"A very good police procedural"
Someone murdered Dominican Tomas Berrios, but before
the killers can toss the body into the nearby canal off RED
HOOK, Brooklyn, someone must have arrived. The culprits
flee the crime scene leaving behind a corpse whose legs are
tied to two concrete blocks. The crime makes no sense as Tomas was considered a good
citizen who worked hard, was married and had two children.
Even more surprising is the reaction of NYPD Detective Jack
Leightner who vomits when he first sees the victim. Unable
to resist the case, Jack obsessively investigates because a
murder in RED HOOK brings back his own unhappy childhood
memories and a reminder of his own failings with his son
just like his own dad failed with him. Apparently his son
is beginning to emulate that relationship. RED HOOK is a very good police procedural that is
actually a powerful relationship drama. The story line is
fast-paced and filled with action as Jack makes inquiries
into Tomas' murder, but also into why his own life is such
a failure at least in his mind. Gabriel Cohen takes
Chapin's Cat in the Cradle and places it inside an urban
who-done-it starring realistic people who make quite an
enjoyable novel. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted September 13, 2001
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