Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, is publishing a new review of The Face of a Killer by Robin Burcell. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.
The Face of a Killer by Robin Burcell
A Sydney Fitzpatrick Mystery
Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59058-374-4 (1590583744)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-374-6 (9781590583746)
Publication Date: November 2008
List Price: $24.95
Review: Robin Burcell introduces a new series character, San Francisco-based FBI forensic artist Sidney Fitzpatrick, in the fast-paced, multi-faceted The Face of a Killer.
Sidney's father was murdered 20 years ago. The man accused and convicted of crime is scheduled to be executed within the next ten days. He has always maintained his innocence. To bring closure of her dad’s death, something she has not yet been able to do, Sidney, on the twentieth anniversary of his death, goes to the prison to meet her father's killer face to face. She has no idea this visit would set up a chain of events that would place her friends, family and herself in harm’s way. On the day she goes to the prison, a manila envelope is placed in Sidney’s mail box. This envelope contains an old photograph of her father with his friends during the war. Also found in the envelope is a blackmail letter written by her dad, plus a bank deposit slip from a bank that had closed its doors years before. Unable to believe that her father was involved in a blackmail scheme, Sidney is beginning to have second thoughts about who did in fact did kill him. The more she pushes for answers the deeper she finds herself on a trail of corruption and cover-ups not only in the military, but within the CIA and other political offices. In order to continue her search for the truth she must learn to bend -- if not break -- the rules set down for investigators by the FBI. Time is running out for the convicted man. But little does she know that the clock is also ticking for her
The Face of a Killer is a remarkable debut for this series with an attention-grabbing, riveting story. The author effectively weaves the political realities of government and its bureaucracy into her fictional plot, drawing the reader in and not letting go. It is a pleasure getting to know the characters, and Sidney herself is particularly engaging. The doubt she experiences as both a daughter and an investigator, and the suspense that is generated as she learns more about the past, decidedly contribute to this intense, terrific book.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of The Face of a Killer and to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2009 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
If you are interested in purchasing The Face of a Killer from Amazon.com, please click the button to the right. The Face of a Killer (Kindle edition) is also available. Learn more about the Kindle, Amazon's Wireless Reading Device.
Synopsis (from the publisher): FBI forensic artist Sydney Fitzpatrick questions the guilt of the man about to be executed for her father’s murder twenty years earlier. The first stirrings of doubt occur when one of her forensic sketches on an unrelated case brings forth memories about her father’s homicide that she’d hoped to forget. A mysterious envelope arrives in the mail on the anniversary of her father’s death. She opens the packet and discovers a blackmail letter written by her father, an old photo of his army buddies, and a deposit slip from a bank long closed.
Refusing to believe that her father was involved in any blackmail scheme, she searches for evidence to clear his name. Her investigation leads to a trail of corruption by high-ranking US political officials, and a meticulous and deadly cover-up by the military and the CIA. The more Special Agent Fitzpatrick digs into her father’s past, the more she finds it riddled with dark secrets and truths, including the fact that her father’s seemingly ordinary military career was anything but stellar or even routine.
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