In Hecht's less than satisfying third novel to feature paranormal investigator Lucretia "Cree" Black (after 2004's Land of Echoes
), an old family friend, SFPD homicide detective Bert Marchetti, who's nearing retirement and wishes to leave the force with as few loose ends as possible, enlists Cree's help with an unusual skeletal find—an apparent victim of the 1906 earthquake whose strange physiognomy leads the forensic anthropologists on the case to dub him the Wolfman. The detective's motives become suspect when Cree realizes that his agenda may include settling scores with a deformed radiologist Marchetti believes is an unpunished murderer. The chance discovery of a 19th-century diary enables Cree to piece together some details about the Wolfman, but the two main plot lines never quite mesh, and her risky actions belie her reputation for being levelheaded. (July)
