London Calling

August 8, 2011
A tired plot line hobbles journalist Craig’s debut, the first in a police procedural series featuring Metropolitan Police Insp. John Carlyle. Britain is on the verge of elevating the so-called Golden Twins—brothers Edgar and Xavier Carlton—to the highest positions in the land as prime minister and foreign secretary, respectively, in the upcoming general election. Their induction is imperiled by Carlyle’s murder inquiry into the death of consultant Ian Blake, found in a hotel room with a knife sticking out of his backside. Carlyle soon traces a connection between the dead man and the Carltons via their membership in “an ultra-exclusive Cambridge University fraternity famous in equal measure for its hard drinking and bad behaviour,” and learns that another member was killed in a similar manner before Blake. Once that link is uncovered, there are few surprises as Carlyle races the clock to catch the murderer before the Carltons become victims as well.

September 15, 2011

A series of grisly murders spells trouble for the orderly transfer of power in a pivotal British General Election.

Edgar Carlton and his twin Xavier are so rich, so handsome and so media-savvy that they've been dubbed the Golden Twins. Edgar, leader of the opposition in Parliament, is a shoo-in to be the next Prime Minister, with Xavier as his Foreign Secretary. But their royal road to coronation gets a rude jolt when someone begins carving up alumni of the 1984 Merrion Club, an exclusive Cambridge society. Now the brothers, once leading lights, are in imminent danger of both getting killed and, even worse, attracting the glare of publicity. This delicate case falls to bull-headed Inspector John Carlyle, whose repeated refusal to follow the police line and protect his undeserving fellow officers, duly documented in a series of gratuitous flashbacks, has made him an outlier distrusted by his boss, Supt. Carole Simpson, whose financier husband is in bed with the Golden Twins. True to form, Carlyle doesn't exactly shine as a detective. But together with his sergeant, Joe Szyszkowski, he dutifully makes the rounds, asking obligatory questions, working his way up the greasy pole and increasingly getting stonewalled by practiced liars while he waits for inspiration to strike. At length it does, allowing an appropriately jaundiced conclusion.

Journalist/TV producer Craig lards his familiar tale of revenge served cold with enough expository detail for a primer on politics and enough personal background about his hero to insure that his debut mystery won't be his last.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

October 1, 2011

A serial killer with a sadistic sexual style of new proportions rocks London insiders--but there's a muzzle on the publicity because the victims are all powerful leaders in British politics, including the potential new prime minister. Quickly, we can see someone is enacting systematic revenge for a collegiate incident that goes back to 1980s Cambridge. Inspector Carlyle, the maverick cop who has inherited this thankless case, and his partner, Joe Szyszkowski, must work quickly and outside the box if they hope to snare the killer. Or could there be more than one? This is familiar territory: the upper classes are bestowed with the most clout. Can an honest cop make a bit of difference? VERDICT Craig's provocative debut is not for the queasy, but it's so addictive you won't be able to tear yourself away. Readers will appreciate the nod to The Clash and the author's weary gaze at the troubled 1980s with its contrasting smugness and street violence.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.