Aftermath

Those with a hankering for a solid police procedural with no distracting subplots will welcome this gripping entry in British author Turnbull's long-running series featuring George Hennessey and Somerled Yellich (Deliver Us from Evil, etc.). When solicitor John Seers inspects the kitchen garden of a vacant mansion while taking inventory, he discovers five mostly skeletal human bodies. Each of the victims was restrained—gagged as well as chained by the wrists behind the back and by the ankle to a large concrete block. The Yorkshire police have a tall order to identify the victims and find out who systematically left them to die a cruel death. True to form, the members of Hennessey's team doggedly search for a common thread uniting the five. While characterization isn't one of the books strong points, the unpredictable story line builds to a surprising closing twist. (Feb.)