The Silence That Speaks

March 23, 2015
In bestseller Kane’s prosaic fourth Forensic Instincts novel (after 2013’s The Stranger You Know), an attempt on the life of Madeline Westfield sends her to the FI team, which is led by behavioral expert Casey Woods. The quest for Madeline’s would-be killer centers on Manhattan Memorial Hospital, where she is a surgical nurse; her ex-husband, Conrad, a cardiothoracic surgeon, heads the cardio unit. The hospital is in a state of nervous flux: former administrator Ronald Lexington died after an operation by Conrad, who is now in a mental health facility. Unpopular Jacob Casper, interim administrator, is pushing for a merger with New York Medical Center, which threatens staff positions. Ronald’s bitter widow, Nancy, is one suspect, but there are plenty of others as Casey and the members of her super team uncover a wide range of rivalries and jealousies. Unfortunately, their efforts don’t generate much heat. Agent: Robert Gottlieb, Trident Media Group.

May 1, 2015
The fourth in the Forensic Instincts series (following The Stranger You Know, 2013) finds Casey Woods and her associates helping Madeline Westfield dodge whoever is trying to kill her. Madeline is a nurse at Manhattan Memorial Hospital and recently divorced from her heart-surgeon husband, Conrad, who is convalescing from a breakdown after the hospital's CEO died on his operating table. Is the administrator's suspicious death connected to the attempts on Madeline's life? Forensic Instincts' Marc Devereaux makes it his mission to find out. Marc had a brief love affair with Madeline before she was married, and the sparks are still there. In fact, one of the main appeals of the book is the dynamic between the characters. The mystery is just an excuse for the investigators to show off their special skillsclairvoyance and computer hacking, among them. The resolution here is somewhat convoluted, and the details of how one of the book's major crimes was committed are never fully explained. Still, fans of the popular teams-of-eccentric-people-solving-crimes TV shows, and readers of romantic suspense by Catherine Coulter or Lisa Gardner, will enjoy the chase and forgive the slips.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)