Written in Blood

September 11, 2017
The blunt force trauma murder of a Creekville, N.C., bookstore owner—in the manner of the pawnshop owner in Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment—propels this engrossing crime novel from Green (The Diabolist). Joe “Preach” Everson, a former Atlanta homicide detective who once did stints as a pastor and prison chaplain, investigates. Everson enlists the aid of Scott Kirby, a driven younger cop, and Ari Hale, an attractive bookstore employee and law student, to untangle the twisted motives of a sophisticated killer, who soon strikes again. Green does a good job creating nuanced, fully realized lead characters, but the supporting cast members—from a ruthless female mayor to menacing local thugs—are less well-drawn. He effectively evokes a sense of place, though the satirical depictions of the “People’s Republic of Creekville,” an eccentric community outside Chapel Hill, can be heavy-handed, and an ambitious plot leaves a few loose ends. Still, this is a satisfying page-turner for readers who appreciate literary references and existential questions with their corpses. Agent: Ayesha Pande, Ayesha Pande Literary.