The Reckoning

June 30, 2014
Like its predecessors, Edgar-finalist Airth’s so-so fourth John Madden novel (after 2009’s Dead of Winter) transitions from a whodunit to a search for a known killer well before the end. In 1947, someone shoots Oswald Gibson, a retired bank manager, in the head while he’s fishing in a stream near Lewes, Sussex. Before his death, a visit from a stranger prompted Gibson to compose a letter to Scotland Yard asking about Madden’s whereabouts. Long retired from Scotland Yard, Madden is sure he never met the man. A month earlier, someone shot Dr. Wallace Drummond in his surgery in Ballater, Scotland, “in exactly the same manner.” Readers will have little trouble staying ahead of the police as they attempt to figure out what Madden, Gibson, and Drummond could have had in common, and they will be disappointed by a plot hole in the resolution. Less developed than in previous books, Madden comes across as somewhat dull. Agent: Joy Harris, Joy Harris Literary Agency.

August 1, 2014
John Madden comes out of retirement in post-World War II Britain to help solve a case from his past. Hikers enjoying the countryside near the Sussex town of Lewes see a slightly built man in a red sweater approach Oswald Gibson as he's enjoying a peaceful day of fishing. But no one sees when Gibson is ordered to kneel and is shot execution style, and no one sees the killer leave. Chief Inspector Detective Billy Styles orders a thorough investigation and police search, but the murderer seems to have vanished. Besides noting similarities between Gibson's death and that of a doctor in Aberdeen, Styles finds a letter Gibson was writing to Scotland Yard to inquire about the whereabouts of John Madden, the former detective who taught Styles his trade. Madden doesn't recognize Gibson from the photographs the murdered man's brother shows him, and the only clue so far is that Gibson and the Scottish doctor were both shot with identical bullets, German-made with iron cores. The execution of a third man confirms the killer's pattern of visiting the victims in advance, apparently to establish their identities before delivering the coup de grace. Then an entry in Gibson's diary gives Madden the link he needs to the killer and to his own past: a tragic incident he tried and failed to prevent during World War I. Now he realizes he's in search of someone skilled at deception and disguise and who won't stop until all the parties involved pay for a long-ago injustice. Although the exposition, interspersed with scenes from Madden's domestic life, is leisurely, momentum builds to a satisfying ending. Madden's fourth case (The Dead of Winter, 2009, etc.) maintains Airth's reputation for carefully constructed, highly detailed plots. Although the hero doesn't dominate the present-day action, his past involvement adds an emotional element to his determination to end the killings.

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2014

Great news for lovers of British mysteries: John Madden is back! Yes, even though we were led to believe that when 2009's The Dead of Winter completed the trilogy begun a decade earlier we had seen the last of the former Scotland Yard inspector and his family, friends, and colleagues. But now another puzzling set of murders brings Madden out of retirement. And, once again, we find the elements that made this series a hit among discerning readers. Though the novel is set during the aftermath of World War II, the crux of the case Madden must solve is lodged in the military infrastructure of World War I--the war in which Madden served. As he reunites with former protege Billy Styles and retired DCS Angus Sinclair to examine the evidence in a series of killings that seem to be related only by method, Madden again employs the natural profiling skills he has been developing since his first case to uncover their common motive. VERDICT Although this well-crafted tale can certainly stand on its own, be sure to recommend the earlier titles to series newcomers. Fans will not need to be persuaded.--Nancy McNicol, Hamden P.L., CT

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.