Secret of the Seventh Son

Debut author Cooper opens this quasi-supernatural thriller with a series of mysterious deaths in New York. Each victim received a postcard depicting a coffin just before the murder. The FBI turns to Will Piper, a talented agent with a bad attitude who's counting the days to retirement. Teamed with young agent Nancy Lipinski, Will tries to identify the killer from practically nonexistent clues. There are suspenseful moments as Will and Nancy race against time—with inevitable romantic involvement, once Will stops scorning Nancy because of her weight—but long tedious stretches focus on Will being drunk, drinking on the job or complaining of hangovers. Flashbacks to 1947 and the medieval setting that inspired the killer are poorly integrated, and while the secret behind the deaths is original and clever, its revelation is anticlimactic. (Aug.)