Animal Instinct

In Edgar finalist Rosenfelt’s winning sequel to 2020’s The K Team, former police officers turned PIs Corey Douglas and Laurie Collins look into the shooting death of Lisa Yates on a street in Paterson, N.J. While on the Paterson PD, Corey was called to a domestic dispute involving Lisa and her live-in boyfriend, Gerald Kline. It was obvious that Gerald had hit Lisa, but she refused to press charges. Regretting he didn’t do more, Corey is sure Gerald had Lisa killed. Though lacking a client, Corey and Laurie, who’s the wife of defense attorney Andy Carpenter, the author’s main series lead, decide to investigate anyway to get justice for Lisa. Rounding out the team are investigator and muscle Marcus Clark and Corey’s K-9 partner, German shepherd Simon Garfunkel. The believable plot takes surprising twists as the insightful private detectives uncover an intricate conspiracy that reaches beyond a spurned lover. Andy becomes involved when Corey is arrested for a second murder. Rosenfelt smoothly mixes humor with a sharp plot and appealing characters. This series deserves a long run. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House. (Apr.)

Correction: An earlier version of this review misstated the title of the author's previous book.