Burke’s third white-knuckle thriller finds NYPD Det. Ellie Hatcher (after Angel’s Tip) and her partner, J.J. Rogan, investigating the murder of NYU student Megan Gunther, who’s the target of threatening posts on a college gossip Web site. The death of bodyguard Robert “Robo” Mancini, whose bullet-ridden corpse turns up in a swanky new building, the 212, built by Sam Sparks, the high-powered Manhattan real-estate developer Robo worked for, ups the ante. When Sam makes it clear that the police won’t have access to any company records, Ellie’s interest is piqued. As she and J.J. try to piece together Megan’s life, they discover a link between the student and a recently murdered real estate agent. With her usual tenacity, Ellie pursues leads that put both her career and her life at risk. Burke expertly weaves real-life headlines into her plot—particularly the Craig’s List Killer and the slew of recent political scandals—without ever sacrificing originality. (Apr.)
When NYPD detective Ellie Hatcher (Angel's Tip) and her partner, J.J. Rogan, suspect a connection between the murder of a college co-ed who'd recently complained about an online stalking incident and the murder of a bodyguard employed by a wealthy and well-known real estate developer, the clues lead them into the darker side of the Internet—a world of anonymous online gossip and call-girl ads. Ellie soon finds herself juggling two active cases while sitting in the crosshairs of both office politics and high-powered persons of interest who don't like the police looking into their business. VERDICT The latest installment of former district attorney and current criminal law professor Burke's Ellie Hatcher series is a fast-paced thriller featuring an appealingly current angle, dynamic characters, and a spiderweb of possibilities she manages to leave tied up neatly. Strongly recommended for public libraries, especially where thrillers are popular. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 12/09.]—Amy Brozio-Andrews, Albany P.L., NY
A novel that opens up the seamy side-is there another?-of untraceable online threats; of pay-for-sex escort services; and of murder in posh penthouses. Burke (Angel's Tip, 2008, etc.) reintroduces Ellie Hatcher, a tough and beautiful cop, to investigate the murder of Robert Mancini, whose bullet-riddled body has been found in a penthouse at 212 Lafayette in New York City. It turns out the apartment is owned by millionaire (billionaire?) real-estate tycoon Sam Sparks, whom characters often refer to as the Sam Sparks? (As in the Donald Trump?). When he arrives shortly after the murder, he seems more upset that Hatcher is making footprints on his designer carpet than that his employee Mancini has been murdered in his bed. Evidence abounds that a personal "escort" had been with Mancini, so she immediately becomes a suspect. Hatcher quickly gets into big trouble (and even cools her heels in the slammer for 24 hours) for suspecting that Sparks himself could be responsible for this murder, but another possibility exists-that the missing escort had been an unwilling witness and that she's on the lam because she fears for her life. Meanwhile, NYU student Megan Gunther has been receiving threatening messages on a smarmy website, Campus Juice ("All the Juice. Always Anonymous"). When her parents go to the police precinct to get some action on these threats, they're told that the perp can't be traced and that anyway there's nothing illegal about sending creepy messages. This story doesn't go down well with the Gunthers, even more so when less than 24 hours later Megan is murdered in her apartment-though the intended victim just might have been Megan's roommate, who we discover works for an escortservice and is using an alias. Bodies continue to pile up in various distressing guises, including one that's been tortured, but Hatcher, along with her street-smart partner J.J. Rogan, is just the one to track down the nasties. Burke's plot is more convoluted than necessary, and her prose more serviceable than memorable. Author appearances in Los Angeles, New York, Portland, Ore., Seattle
“The plot of an Alafair Burke thriller doesn’t just rip from the headlines. She’s one step ahead of them. 212 scares you and keeps you turning the pages into the wee hours.” — Harlan Coben
“Burke’s prose is clear and fast, and every move by investigators and officers of the court is the real deal. She explores genuine contemporary questions in a revealing and thoughtful way.... Her plot is always dynamic and intelligent. 212 is engineered to wring double-whammy suspense out of credible peril.” — Katherine Dunn, Portland Oregonian
“Starts the suspense on the very first page and doesn’t stop until the last sentence. . . . Hatcher and Rogan are a dream team, their relationship the ideal of what every partnership should be. It’s a wonderfully fulfilling book.” — Romantic Times (Top Pick, 4 ½ stars)
“White-knuckle thriller. . . . Burke expertly weaves real-life headlines into her plot-particularly the Craig’s List Killer and the slew of recent political scandals-without ever sacrificing originality.” — Publishers Weekly
“The story is not merely ‘ripped from the headlines’; Burke starts with these themes and makes them her own…. Pleasingly complex, with multiple suspects and surprising twists. The characters are richly drawn, and Burke’s prose is as precise as the Glock pistol that Ellie carries…. A page-turner. — Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
“A fast-paced thriller featuring an appealingly current angle, dynamic characters, and a spiderweb of possibilities she manages to leave tied up neatly. Strongly recommended for public libraries, especially where thrillers are popular.” — Library Journal
“Up-to-the-minute, action-packed crime fiction.” — Michele Leber, Booklist
Burke’s prose is clear and fast, and every move by investigators and officers of the court is the real deal. She explores genuine contemporary questions in a revealing and thoughtful way.... Her plot is always dynamic and intelligent. 212 is engineered to wring double-whammy suspense out of credible peril.
The story is not merely ‘ripped from the headlines’; Burke starts with these themes and makes them her own…. Pleasingly complex, with multiple suspects and surprising twists. The characters are richly drawn, and Burke’s prose is as precise as the Glock pistol that Ellie carries…. A page-turner.
The plot of an Alafair Burke thriller doesn’t just rip from the headlines. She’s one step ahead of them. 212 scares you and keeps you turning the pages into the wee hours.
Up-to-the-minute, action-packed crime fiction.
Starts the suspense on the very first page and doesn’t stop until the last sentence. . . . Hatcher and Rogan are a dream team, their relationship the ideal of what every partnership should be. It’s a wonderfully fulfilling book.
Starts the suspense on the very first page and doesn’t stop until the last sentence. . . . Hatcher and Rogan are a dream team, their relationship the ideal of what every partnership should be. It’s a wonderfully fulfilling book.
The story is not merely ‘ripped from the headlines’; Burke starts with these themes and makes them her own…. Pleasingly complex, with multiple suspects and surprising twists. The characters are richly drawn, and Burke’s prose is as precise as the Glock pistol that Ellie carries…. A page-turner.
"Starts the suspense on the very first page and doesn’t stop until the last sentence. . . . Hatcher and Rogan are a dream team, their relationship the ideal of what every partnership should be. It’s a wonderfully fulfilling book."
The story is not merely ‘ripped from the headlines’; Burke starts with these themes and makes them her own…. Pleasingly complex, with multiple suspects and surprising twists. The characters are richly drawn, and Burke’s prose is as precise as the Glock pistol that Ellie carries…. A page-turner.
With clear, sharp brushstrokes, Alafair Burke creates victims, suspects, and detectives, each as well drawn as series leading lady Ellie Hatcher, of the NYPD. “212” is New York City’s area code and the address of the penthouse where a bullet-riddled body is found. Hatcher and her partner, J.J. Rogan, begin an investigation that leads to entrepreneur Sam Sparks and a view of the lifestyles of the super-rich, a murdered NYU student and the chilling potential for invasive computer technology, and an exclusive escort service for uptown clientele. Eliza Foss offers a low-key performance that works well—Rogan’s “cop-speak” is especially realistic. The third in Burke’s Ellie Hatcher series offers a contemporary moral puzzle, and Foss makes listening easy. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine
