Harlot's Moon

Rating:
Summary: The best that mystery has to offer
Review: Monsignor Steven Gray asks his old childhood friend, former FBI psychological profiler, Robert Payne to investigate the murder of Father Daly. Robert, who now works as an investigator for a Cedar Rapids, Iowa law firm, does not want to get involved with what looks to him like an internal church affair. However, for old time sakes, he agrees to look into this and a similar grisly murder of a priest.

Among Daly's possessions are a series of articles about the brutal killings of members of St. Mallory Church. From these clippings and other information, Robert develops a profile on a vicious serial killer. As he gets closer to identifying the culprit, Robert knows he must pick up the pace before another parishioner becomes the next brutalized victim.

HARLOT'S MOON, the latest Robert Payne novel (see HAWK MOON and BLOOD MOON), is a tremendous hard-boiled detective story, starring a great protagonist. When it comes to crime, Robert is as tough as they get, but Ed Gorman makes his star profiler seem human because he provides him with compassionate traits too. Throw in a well-designed fast-paced story line and a strong support cast that constantly move the plot forward and the audience has a top rate psychological who-done-it.

Harriet Klausner