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Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... Silver Falls Library | MYS MCGARRITY | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Lyons Public Library | M McGARRITY | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Mount Angel Public Library | MCGARRITY Kevin Kerney#08 | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
The Anthony Award-nominated author with "a cunning mind for crime fiction" (The New York Times Book Review) ratchets up the stakes in a novel of electrifying action and unstoppable suspense, where a vengeful killer with an unspeakable agenda won't stop until . . . everyone dies. Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney and his wife, Lieutenant Colonel Sara Brannon, are on leave and eagerly awaiting the birth of their son when a prominent gay attorney is gunned down outside his office by an unknown assailant. Called to the crime scene and faced with scanty evidence and no apparent motive, Kerney directs his chief of detectives to delve into the victim's personal and professional life, a decision that ultimately leads to a SWAT team screw-up and the death of two innocent people. But the killer has just begun. Kerney's horse, a mustang he'd gentled and trained, is viciously and senselessly destroyed; a dead rat is left on his doorstep; and a second victim with ties to the criminal justice system is found in bed with her throat cut along with a warning: EVERYONE DIES. As a time of joy turns into a nightmare, Kerney and Sara search desperately for a seemingly unstoppable chameleonlike killer who promises to murder them and their unborn son.
Author Notes
Michael McGarrity is a former deputy sheriff for Santa Fe County, he established the first Sex Crimes Unit. He also served as an instructor at the new Mexico Law Enforcement Academy and as an investigator for the New Mexico Public Defender's Office. He lives in Santa Fe.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
The questions and concerns of relationships, both everyday and extraordinary, personal and professional, lie at the heart of McGarrity's ninth entry in his Kevin Kerney series of police procedurals (The Big Gamble; Tularosa; The Judas Judge). Kerney, chief of the Santa Fe police force, and his wife, Sara Brannon, pregnant and due to give birth at any moment, have just begun a much needed vacation. Sara is a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Military Police and will be assigned to the Pentagon just six weeks after the baby is born-a career move that Kerney opposes. A vicious killer slashes his way into the midst of this family crisis, beginning by shooting a Santa Fe lawyer, and in quick succession murdering Kerney's beloved horse, a forensic psychologist and a probation officer. It doesn't take long for Kerney to realize that his entire family has been targeted, especially after the killer begins leaving messages that say, "Everyone Dies." Area law enforcement personnel rally around the chief and begin a massive investigation. The large and varied supporting cast is sometimes difficult to keep straight, but McGarrity's fondness for his characters is evident, as is his love for the harsh but beautiful mountain and desert landscape they inhabit. Readers familiar with the series will be happy to settle back with the chief, his complicated family and the men and women of the department for another enjoyable installment. Major ad/promo; 20-city author tour. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
Another impeccable outing from the master of the small-city procedural (The Big Gamble, 2002, etc.) Santa Fe's the small city, Kevin Kerney its estimable police chief, a man of strong convictions, strong feelings--sensitive, yes, but sufficiently draconian when the situation warrants. Now, however, he finds himself stalked by a relentless sociopath bent on vengeance for acts of aggression he chooses not to specify and Kerney can't imagine. The decorated war veteran, famously cool under fire, would never be unduly disturbed by threats aimed solely at him, but his heart does flip-flops when he reads a note that says: "Kerney, can't wait to meet the wife. See you soon." Found near the corpse of a woman horribly murdered, it refers ominously to Sara Brannon Kerney, days away from delivering their child. A horse Kerney lovingly trained is slaughtered; the house owned by Clayton Istee, Kerney's son, is booby-trapped, blown to bits; the hospital where Sarah's confined is scarily penetrated. Corpses pile up, the investigation heats up, but the avenger is not only clever but also well informed about cops and the ways an unwary perpetrator can play into (or a savvy one remain tantalizingly out of) their hands. At length, of course, the Kerneys and their would-be killer meet face-off in a denouement as sudden and violent as it is satisfying. Warning to the fainthearted: Every thirty pages or so your mouth may go dry. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
McGarrity's Kevin Kerney series, set in New Mexico, has undergone a dramatic transformation over the years. At first, it played heavily on the mythic West and the difficulty of adapting rugged individualism to the modern world. Lately, the focus has shifted to the everyday life of a contemporary police chief--a good man trying to balance the contradictory roles of tough cop and sensitive husband. The new focus is far more difficult--Who wants quotidian reality when you've had a taste of mythic resonance?--but McGarrity rises to the occasion, drawing on his real-life experience as a cop and therapist. This time an unidentified psycho has his sights set on Kerney, his family, and his soon-to-be-born child. This is one serial-killer novel that unfolds without the usual high-concept trappings. McGarrity contrasts the painstaking investigatory work that leads to identifying a suspect with the personal crisis Kerney and his wife, Sara, face. Uncertain about how a child will affect their relationship, the couple must now contend with a much more immediate threat to their lives. The quiet, subtle attention to detail that has long been a hallmark of the Kerney series is once again on display here. The brooding, burned-out yet larger-than-life heroes of Ian Rankin or George Pelecanos have their appeal, yet there's plenty of room in the genre for a cop like Kevin Kearney, who broods not about the lack of meaning in his life but about finding time to help his wife decorate their new house. --Bill Ott Copyright 2003 Booklist
Library Journal Review
Santa Fe police chief Kevin Kerney stars in the eighth entry (after The Big Gamble) in this popular crime series, set in New Mexico. Kerney is planning to take a few weeks of vacation to spend time with his very pregnant wife, who is on leave from her army duties, and to oversee the building of their new house. A serial killer has different ideas, however, and the events he sets in motion with the murder of a popular defense attorney involve dead pets, ominous messages in blood ("everyone dies"), and increasingly macabre killings that pull the murderer's intricate noose tighter and tighter around Kerney and his family. This tautly woven narrative is not for the faint of heart; as the tension builds, the plot's twists and turns involve some brutal and disturbing scenes. McGarrity's trademark use of the magical New Mexico landscape remains an integral part of the narrative. Highly recommended for most popular fiction collections.-Ann Forister, Roseville P.L., CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.