Wild Justice

When the proprietor of London's Daily Post a most unpopular manis found stabbed to death at his desk, there is no shortage of suspects and motives. Hal MacQuillan, an American, had bought the respected paper after assurances that he would not tamper with it editorially. He had broken most of the promises, taken the paper downmarket, fired or demoted some staff members, and generally made life miserable for most of the rest. Post gossip columnist Rain Morgan finds herself in an ambiguous position: she is present when the body is discovered, her old friend detective-superintendent Paul Wickham is put in charge of the case, and editor Luke Eliot asks her to help reporter Frank Shildon conduct a clandestine instigation into MacQuillan's affairsa project initiated before his death. Sinister rumors gain currencythat MacQuillan was backed by Irish interests in the U.S. to propagandize Britain's withdrawal from Northern Ireland, that the intelligence services had wanted him killed. Rain pursues these leads while coping with romantic problems: she evicts her lover, cartoonist and co-worker Oliver West and finds herself becoming more attracted to Wickham. Grant-Adamson ( Guilty Knowledge ) delivers a neatly plotted and well-written story while conveying an authentic flavor of life in the newsroom and newspaper bars. She is a snappy writer with an eye for telling detail. ( August )