The Yellow Diamond

In this intricate standalone from Martin (The Baghdad Railway Club and seven other Jim Stringer mysteries), a shooting leaves Det. Supt. George Quinn in a coma, creating a vacancy for the head of the new Operational Command Unit formed to keep tabs on London’s so-called super-rich. Behind Det. Insp. Blake Edwards’s somewhat surprising appointment is Victoria Clifford, Quinn’s secretary, who wields unusual influence. Edwards discovers that Quinn was looking into several things, including the affairs of billionaire Andrei Samarin; the theft of a valuable yellow diamond ring involving Andrei’s daughter, Anna Samarina; and the murder of hedge-fund analyst John-Paul Holden. Edwards is thrown into the unfamiliar world of the super-rich, guided and manipulated by Clifford. As he follows Quinn’s trail, he’s seduced by Anna, bribed by Andrei, and threatened by Andrei’s partner, Viktor Rostov. The role and aims of the enigmatic Clifford add an unusual element to what develops into a complex tale of financial skullduggery. (Aug.)