There in the Darkness

New York prosecutor John Savarese, who is devoted to getting the bad guys, is not quite as pure as the driven snow in Lee's lively but uneven crime novel set in 1970s New York. When an undercover cop who was infiltrating a radical group is found murdered, the savvy Savarese recognizes that the homicide investigation could land him a promotion or a coveted position with the Feds. Lee gives early glimpses of skeletons in the ADA's closet with a reference to a favor for a mob-connected relative, and eventually, Savarese's story line intersects with that of Tommy Kelly, an ex-con with a beef. Although Lee's novel has a solid setup and good pacing, the author's characters aren't particularly engrossing or unique.