Nothing like starting summer (or ending spring) with a good mystery but some may have to wait a little longer before being able to put their hands on this latest. Of course I always will have a weakness for Canadian authors and I try to add as many as I can to my library. Mr. Whellams has recently joined my extensive list and when NetGalley and ECW Press added “The Verdict on Each Man Dead” to their list I couldn’t resist asking for it. Thank you for accepting my request and for the wonderful opportunity to read this advance copy.
I haven’t been faithful to the sequence in this series I skipped the 2nd novel to get to this one. Having done so did not leave me at a lost; this novel can be read and enjoyed on its own. The story brings the former Chief inspector in the suburbs of Salt Lake City, Utah on a hunt for a man with terrorist connections.
The story is divided into 4 parts: all have in common the hunt for a murderer and the obsession that drives the protagonist Peter Cammon.
In Part 1: Henry
Peter played a minor role leaving Henry Pastern of the local law enforcement to take the center stage and lead the investigation into a gruesome attack on a tranquil neighbourhood street. This slowly set the stage for the hunt and apprehension of a killer.
In Part 2: Peter
Peter travels to the U.S to help Henry. (Why is a retiree from Scotland Yard on a US case?) We soon have the answer….be ready to be glued to every word.
Peter’s contribution brings to the plot: endless action, many twists and foremost lots of suspense. The inevitable bad guys such as corrupt officials, drug lords, terrorists all of them add the excitement needed to make this novel quite a page-turner. Peter also discovers a link to a case he worked on during the 1990’s. Some of us will remember the reference to the Ubabomber and the Oklahoma City bombing. We revisit in some ways this time in history, how true to the facts I will leave this to the experts.
In part 3: Vyne
Peter’s wife joins him and as she puts her two cents into the fray we once again fall into endless action. Many characters show up and it is a bit of a challenge to keep track of all of them. Gun battles, loud blast and lots of blood and guts are vividly described and exciting. The action focuses mainly on nabbing Kelso Vyne and confronting evil in unusual ways. This is described expertly…….
Finally part 4, The Killer
The shootout wraps up quickly, Peter returns to England and the testimony into the rampage is given by Skype a month later. All ends well.
My last words:
This book is captivating from start to finish and is by far better than book 1 ( I have yet to see what book 2 has in store for me). Dividing this mystery in 4 parts was an excellent idea and worked very well. “The Verdict in Each Man Dead” is a strong and well-plotted story, richly written with sharp dialogue and populated with an exceptional cast of characters. I enjoyed this one immensely and in no way the offer I have received influenced my thoughts.
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