Psychotopia

Morris (the Porfiry Petrovich and Silas Quinn series) stumbles in this so-so thriller, set in a near future in which humanity is threatened by a plague of psychopathic behavior. In Britain, psychopathy has become an increasingly widespread subculture whose members take pride in their disorder, with some even going so far as to tattoo a letter P on their foreheads. In response, Dr. Arbus, who styles himself a psycho-anthropologist, constructs a machine that, when affixed to a person’s head, can quickly and reliably identify psychopaths. The upsurge in horrific violence makes widespread use of the device acceptable, though some wonder about the ethics of using it as a prophylactic measure. The absence of any sympathetic characters in this dystopian world—the leads include an obnoxious and randy police detective and a sadistic electronic games developer—is a minus. Strong stomachs are needed for some of the scenes, but shocking violence isn’t enough to maintain interest. Morris’s fans will likely hope he returns to his historical series. Agent: Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson, Sinclair-Stevenson (U.K). (Feb.)