Tangled Web UK Review April 2003
The Meanest Flood by
John Baker
hbk out February 03
Published by Orion
at £16.99
Private detective Sam Turner is held for questioning by the police. Two women have been murdered and Sam is the link between them – they were both lovers of his, damaged relationships from his alcohol soaked past. The police release him on condition he stays in York. However Sam knows who is next on the killer’s list – former girlfriend Julie who lives in Norway. Sam and sidekick Geordie dash to Oslo to try and avert tragedy but Julie is killed under their noses and Sam becomes the focus of an international manhunt. Knowing there are two more women in the sequence, both resident back in York, Sam must try and evade capture and unmask the savage and cunning killer who has set him up. The frantic battle is played out as the flood waters rise and engulf the city.
Blending the traditions of the private eye story and the serial killer thriller Baker gives us a fast-paced and engaging read. But it is the characters and their voices: quirky, fallible, confused and trying their best to tread an honourable path, who bring the brightest pleasure. Sam and his accomplices are wonderful company.
(
Cath Staincliffe
author of the popular Sal Kilkenny mysteries set on the mean streets of Manchester)
New Books by John Baker at Amazon.co.uk
Secondhand and Out of Print Books by John Baker at Alibris.com
