Trouble is brewing at Brian McNulty's new gig at the Savoy Hotel in Lehane's intriguing third mystery to feature the New York bartender (after 2005's What Goes Around Comes Around
). Fellow barman and union rabble-rouser Barney Saunders suspects the hotel's new manager is cashing in on corruption between union bigwigs and organized crime. An all-out strike turns violent when flirty waitress Betsy Tierney rushes to commiserate with Barney on the picket line, and her jealous husband, one of New York's finest, attacks Barney, who's then loyally defended by Brian. That evening, the hotel manager and Betsy's cop husband are both murdered, and Barney becomes the prime suspect. McNulty investigates, suspecting a union middleman of both murders. Lehane does a good job of depicting the underbelly of the city's working class. Readers will look forward to more outings from his world-weary, savvy and imperfect protagonist. (June)
