This one was seriously perverse. I've read several of the Matthew Hope novels by now and know enough not to expect fluffy in spite of the fairy tale titles, but this one went well beyond the point at which the others stopped. The initial crime was incredibly brutal - a woman, hands and feet tied with wire, is doused with gasoline and burned to death on the beach. Grim start. And in many respects in only got worse - not in the sense of physical brutality, but the devolution of good intentions into such a result. After all, the murder is the end of the story rather than the beginning, even if it traditionally opens the book. A mystery novel is about someone trying to figure out the story - after the fact.
In spite of the nature of this story, McBain is such a craftsman that the book is compelling to read. I have started books that I simply could not finish - or if I finished them, I never picked up another by that author. That won't happen here.
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