"The Crime Trade", by Simon Kernick

It is of no surprise to find as in his earlier installments that “The Crime trade” centers around the ganglands of north London where the good guys tend to mix quite well with the bad ones. It is a dark place with dramatic effects---shot outs in parking lots, police confrontations with drug smugglers, some elements of abuse and torture. But to say this crime thriller is depressing would be false on the contrary it has some underlying humour to it and sizzling dialogue that propels us through the twisted tales. By the end, one can fell as entertained as well as unnerved.

This story is unpredictable in every sense fresh twists and plenty of them kept derailing thoughts, so easy not to see them coming. It shows us what genuinely goes on under our nose with odd exaggeration here and there. However I did find this one not as lively and exciting as the other books and it is so easy to get lost in the description and the back stories.

Although this is not part of a series the tale involves interconnecting characters who weaves in and out of each books. They are part of a strong cast of familiar and new faces and the tight plot also includes a large group of secondary players.

Synopsis taken from the author’s site:

Stegs Jenner has always lived on the edge.

No ordinary cop, he's never happier than when he's working undercover, consorting with criminals and fighting to bring them to justice. But suspicion falls on him when he strikes out on his own and the operation he's involved in goes horribly wrong.

DI John Gallan and DS Tina Boyd are called in to investigate.

What they cannot know is that their inquiries will take them both into the heart of one of London's most notorious criminal gangs - and one of them into the rifle sights of the enemy.