cover image Cupid

Cupid

Robert Sims Reid. Crimeline, $3.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-553-28824-7

A police detective in real life, Reid ( Big Sky Blues ) spins a lively yarn about big-time murder in a small-time Missouri town. He's in his element relating the strategy and details of investigation; however, occasional attempts at profound observation and repartee fall flat. When detective Leo Banks is called out to investigate a shooting, the scene brings to mind a nightmare from his past: the victim is Sky King Hudson, a drug dealer who once nearly killed him. Because of this connection, Banks is pulled from the case, but he soon has another murder on his plate: a 22-year-old woman with an arrow through her heart and a dragon tattooed on her buttock. A man called Fisher White sports a similar dragon, but before Banks can question him, orders come down: hands off White. In some unofficial snooping, Banks discovers that White is in cahoots with a local FBI agent. Soon another Fed arrives and, claiming that Department of Defense security matters are involved, tries to squelch the investigation. As Banks disentangles the web of deceit surrounding the murders, he learns that few people are what they seem, whether criminal or victim. (Jan.)