Secret Rage

Canadian police officer Pilkey's third gritty Rage novel (following Lethal Rage and Savage Rage) finds Toronto officer Jack Warren, nicknamed "The Reaper" due to his penchant for killing criminals, paired with sexy cop Jennifer Alton as they try to stop a series of vicious assaults on prostitutes in Division 51, aka Toronto's toilet. Alton and Warren deal with the dregs of the city, from bulked up bill-jumpers and alcoholics to battered wives and children, as they piece together the threads of the case. With his wife Karen haranguing him to leave the force, Warren and Alton find their fledgling attraction more and more tempting as they get closer to their suspect. Using Alton as bait, the cops hope to corner the steroid-fueled rage of a very sick Taylor Furlington. This dark trip into the streets of Toronto packs a few surprises, plus a tantalizingly ambiguous ending; Pilkey's heroes take a lot of punishment but mete out even more. (Oct.)