Prayer for the dead An Inspector McLean novel

A nut job is standing over his victim in a chamber in Edinburgh's network of underground caves, ranting, We are here unborn, before bringing knife to throat. So begins Oswald's fifth entry in his series starring Detective Inspector Tony McLean. The novels are labeled procedurals, which here means offering insight into the corporatization of police work. These cops spend less time investigating than sitting around an office talking about investigating. Two more grisly murders occur, each followed by a raft of meetings, each one soaked in in-house politics. Some may find this a revealing change from the solitary, damaged detective and his bottle. Others will love two women characters: the determined Detective Sergeant Ritchie, doing her best in a man's world, and, especially, reporter Jo Dalgliesh, a welcome visitor from the old noir novels. With her insolent manner and perpetual cigarette, she brings the novel to life whenever she appears. Wields a mean scaffold pole, too, complete with wisecrack. And there's Oswald's soft, unobtrusive humor. A crime scene is as clean as a Labrador's dinner dish. --Crinklaw, Don Copyright 2017 Booklist

An eerie murder kicks off Oswald's exciting fifth novel to feature Edinburgh Det. Insp. Tony McLean (after 2016's Dead Men's Bones). When newspaper reporter Ben Stevenson is found in a ritualistic pose with his throat cut, it's not just the brutality of the crime that shocks McLean but the location: Gilmerton Cove, a series of caves and underground passages just below street level. It soon becomes evident that Stevenson was researching the history of secret societies, and McLean reluctantly enlists the help of Stevenson's journalist colleague, Jo Dagliesh, with whom the detective has been in conflict in the past. As the body count rises, McLean must juggle the increasingly odd case with pleas for help from medium Madam Rose, a friend who's been receiving violent threats. McLean, an extremely likable cop who's bemused at how much he frustrates his superiors, is more than up to the task of chasing a particularly strange killer. This series just keeps getting better, and loyal fans and new readers alike will be pleased. Agent: Juliet Mushens, Agency Group (U.K.). (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.