cover image Blind Fear: A Cold Case Thriller

Blind Fear: A Cold Case Thriller

Lynn Abercrombie, . . Pinnacle, $6.99 (381pp) ISBN 978-0-7860-1728-7

Despite an improbable plot and a mystery villain you can spot a mile away, Abercrombie's follow-up to his grisly The Body Box is a whodunit police procedural with a fast pace and action enough to keep readers along for the ride. Former Atlanta police detective Hank Gooch, bored with retirement, returns to work with a vengeance when his former partner, Sgt. MeChelle Deakes of the cold case unit, is abducted. Deakes's kidnapper's demands are far from typical: instead of a ransom, the unknown assailant demands that Deakes, with whatever assistance she can obtain, not only solve an old homicide but obtain proof that would stand up in court. To make the challenge even more Herculean, Deakes's eyes have been glued shut, she's allowed just three brief phone calls an hour to communicate with Gooch, and her kidnapper isn't speaking a word. Returning heroine Deakes remains a fun, feisty lead—even when forced to toss witty barbs at a silent partner— and Gooch's no-nonsense act is likable if familiar, but their intriguing setup isn't matched by the follow-through, which burns through a pool of suspects so scant as to leave the identity of murderer and kidnapper in plain sight. (Dec.)