Prayer for the Dead: An Inspector McLean Novel

An eerie murder kicks off Oswald’s exciting fifth novel to feature Edinburgh Det. Insp. Tony McLean (after 2016’s Dead Men’s Bones). When newspaper reporter Ben Stevenson is found in a ritualistic pose with his throat cut, it’s not just the brutality of the crime that shocks McLean but the location: Gilmerton Cove, a series of caves and underground passages just below street level. It soon becomes evident that Stevenson was researching the history of secret societies, and McLean reluctantly enlists the help of Stevenson’s journalist colleague, Jo Dagliesh, with whom the detective has been in conflict in the past. As the body count rises, McLean must juggle the increasingly odd case with pleas for help from medium Madam Rose, a friend who’s been receiving violent threats. McLean, an extremely likable cop who’s bemused at how much he frustrates his superiors, is more than up to the task of chasing a particularly strange killer. This series just keeps getting better, and loyal fans and new readers alike will be pleased. Agent: Juliet Mushens, Agency Group (U.K.). (Feb.)