Cold Hit

Rating:
Summary: A well constructed, absorbing, first class mystery.
Review: Eight o'clock at the end of a long August day and the corpse of a woman tied to a ladder washed up on the Hudsen river. Who is she, once so elegant and clearly well cared for, who had so prematurely, met a violent end.

So opens Linda Fairstein latest book 'Cold Hit'. This is a brilliant piece of writing. It is tight and exciting. I love mystery fiction, but what a bonus when I learn something. In both the earlier books 'Final Jeopardy' and 'Likely To Die' I was enthalled, not just by the mysteries that Linda wove, but by the fascinating insights into Alex Cooper's job as the Assistant District Attorney, prosecuting sex crimes, which Linda Fairstein seemlessly interlaces into her plots, and which again is in evidence in this lattest offering.

In 'Cold Hit' we are introduced additionally into the Art World. An unknown area to me, I found the experience added yet another dimension of interest and intrigue.

We meet again Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace. Although, in this book Alex has a new man in her life, it seems to have little effect on the chemistry that sparks between Alex and Mike Chapman and which they both seem oblivious to. But we all know that's how it sneaks up on one:-)

Cold Hit is the luck that will match DNA from a crime scene with a DNA profile in the police database. Is it ever that simple?

This is a well constructed, absorbing, first class mystery that keeps one guessing. I heartily recommend that none of you miss this one. It is a terrific book.

Rating:
Summary: Missing the Mystery
Review: Linda Fairstein's latest is another Alex Cross, excuse me, Alex Cooper mystery with the protagonist working more closely with police than any DA unit chief ever would, especially in a city like New York. This time Cooper is involved in a high-stakes art caper that leads to a woman's dead body washing up at the end of Manhattan.
Fairstein knows her subject, and the grittiness of the police detail and dialogue reflect it. But she also falls all over herself to give Fairstein a wonderfully glamorous lifestyle which has her casually dining in the finest Manhattan restaurants and whisking off for a weekend at "the Cape" with her globetrotting TV News boyfriend. I'm not certain if this is the way that Fairstein really lived while on the job, but if it was, she shouldn't have traded it in for the typewriter.
Still, Cooper's relationship with her cop friends, especially wisecracking Mike Chapman and standup guy Mercer Wallace is interesting, especially when Jeopardy is on the tube. Otherwise, COLD HIT is a slow-paced mystery story with no more plot twists than your average episode of Law and Order. The book left me, well, cold.

Rating:
Summary: Less Grit, More Elegance
Review: Linda Fairstein's third book in the Alex Cooper series is a sophisticated foray into the high-stakes international world of art. It is markedly different than her first two books--one expects Cary Grant to saunter onto the pages at any minute, resplendent in tuxedo and sporting his usual savoir faire.

Instead, we have hardboiled street cop/renaissance man Mike Chapman, Alex's fast-talking, down-to-earth and impossibly endearing sidekick. Whether it's questioning a recalcitrant sidekick, stuffing his mouth at a resplendent Italian-food restaurant, or betting Alex on the nightly Final Jeopardy question, Mike is always in top form. But this time, he may be in over his head.

When Deni Caxton, the estranged wife of an internationally renowned art dealer, is found raped and murdered, Alex, as New York's Assistant District Attorney for the Sex Crimes Unit (as is Linda Fairstein in real life), is called onto the case. Almost immediately, she, Mike, and Mike's able partner Mercer are caught in a confusing whirlpool of events that pulls them ever deeper into a well of murder. In short succession, several other bodies are found, and each seems to tie in some way with Deni Caxton's demise.

The more Alex and her friends try to unravel the clues, the more they are drawn into a seemingly endless web of shady art dealers, mysterious Mata-Hari-type women, jailhouse thugs, antique dealers, and a cast of characters that would put Hitchcock to shame. It's obvious that Fairstein had a lot of fun with this novel, and it shows. Over and above the very real and perplexing mystery is the author's own unique view of the art world her fictional characters are exploring. The result is suspenseful, fun, and easy to read.

The only negative to be said about this book is that there are so many characters, one almost needs a cast sheet to keep them straight. Several times, I found myself looking back 100 pages or so to verify who was whom. This slowed me down, but was certainly not annoying enough to stop reading.

There is enough suspense in this book, including the near-murder of a cop near and dear to Alex's heart and a chilling encounter with the man who may be the perpetrator, to keep the reader turning the pages. This time I did guess the murderer, but not until near the end of the book. Like Final Jeopardy, it was good to be right for once!

This is a fun and well-written series, and Linda Fairstein has joined my list of favorite writers. I look forward to reading her next book, "The Deadhouse," with pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Alex Cooper keeps going like the Energizer Bunny
Review: This lady goes from strength to strength. Once again we see Alexandra Cooper, the Assistant District Attorney for the Sex Crimes Unit of Manhattan. Only this time she finds herself with a body being pulled out of the river, but the woman is expensively dressed and tied to a ladder, with no identification.

It is not the easiest of cases, we find all kinds of skullduggery in the genteel art world, with forgery and faked provenance and Alex gets a bit too close to the murderer in this one, only narrowly escaping being shot, although unfortunately Mercer Wallace is hit, which is all rather too real.

I never imagined Art Galleries to inspire the kind of passions that abound in this book, I know that money will drive people to extremes and this is well illustrated here, but this really is the ugly side to beautiful artworks.

Nevertheless, as a subject for murder, it is a gripping plot. I know that sidekicks are not as immune as central characters, but Mercer and Mike are too central to be the victim of homicidal lunatics, but here we see that they can have a little scare, just to remind us that it is a terrible place for the good guys.