Becker's Ring

Cohen's macabre hardcover debut (after the mass market Seven Shades of Black, 1995) is an over-the-top crime thriller that begins when an ex-convict is deposited at a Manhattan hospital with his hands amputated, his arms surgically joined in front of him to form a loop and his mouth sewn shut. As like crimes proliferate, the perp ups the ante, turning a pair of paroled crooks into grotesque Siamese twins by interconnecting their arms and legs. Using a combination of computer technology and medical detective work, NYPD Lt. Brent Kramer and his engineer colleague, Nigel Atkerson, close in on the suspect, using botanical clues supplied by an eccentric scientist who specializes in a form of tree grafting that resembles the suspect's m.o. The story clips along at breakneck speed, aided by some darkly humorous passages in which the victims join the legions of talk-show freaks in search of their Warholian 15 minutes of fame. The detailed descriptions of the surgical procedures are needlessly grisly, however, and the climactic finale, in which the killer captures several of the protagonists, has a slapdash, haphazard feel. Cohen has crafted a fascinating spin on the standard genre formula, but his emphasis on sadism and gore ultimately detracts from the raw emotional power of his tale. (Feb.)