The seventh novel in the 87th Precinct series, Lady Killer is the second book in a row in the series to focus on a single crime rather than one major case with minor ones in the background. The 87th receives an anonymous letter at 8AM on July 24th promising to kill "The Lady" at 8PM that night. With nothing to go on, and with doubts as to whether the threat is real, the boys race against time to try to solve a murder before it even happens.
Strangely enough, the forced time limit of the plot doesn't quite push the suspense of the story beyond anything in the previous novels, possibly because despite the race against the clock, there are still plenty of stretches involving the kind of highly detailed leg work that drives McBains 87th Precinct books. The highest point of action almost seems to be the hour that all hell breaks loose at the station, forcing everyone to set aside the Lady Killer case to handle the other problems that errupt in the city on a regular basis. Perhaps this manic episode is including to help remind author and reader alike that these are not meant to be detective novels focusing on one crime, but glimpses into the daily routines and trials of the police detectives working the city.
Carella and Hawes dominate the story once again, with Meyer, Willis, and Kling filling in the edges. Lieutenant Byrnes gets his hands in this one as he green lights the investigation and keeps a hand in throughout. Meyer's womanizing is on in full force as he crosses paths with an aging madame and her prostitute, a baudy lounge singer (with whom he makes a date), a suspects barely dressed neighbor (whom he perceives as unattractive, but with a "disconcerting" bust), and a cold career woman who slaps him around verbally, knocking him down a peg.
Also noteable is the few asides where Carella and Hawes tackle the moral dillemma of the need to turn a blind eye to some crimes in order to focus on others, and the rational behind keeping some illegal activities (like prostitution) penned in but active out in the open instead of widespread and underground. Previous novels have covered the trials and tribulations of being a cop in the city, but this might be the first one to actively dive into the gray area where justice and the law must sometimes exist.
Strangely enough, the forced time limit of the plot doesn't quite push the suspense of the story beyond anything in the previous novels, possibly because despite the race against the clock, there are still plenty of stretches involving the kind of highly detailed leg work that drives McBains 87th Precinct books. The highest point of action almost seems to be the hour that all hell breaks loose at the station, forcing everyone to set aside the Lady Killer case to handle the other problems that errupt in the city on a regular basis. Perhaps this manic episode is including to help remind author and reader alike that these are not meant to be detective novels focusing on one crime, but glimpses into the daily routines and trials of the police detectives working the city.
Carella and Hawes dominate the story once again, with Meyer, Willis, and Kling filling in the edges. Lieutenant Byrnes gets his hands in this one as he green lights the investigation and keeps a hand in throughout. Meyer's womanizing is on in full force as he crosses paths with an aging madame and her prostitute, a baudy lounge singer (with whom he makes a date), a suspects barely dressed neighbor (whom he perceives as unattractive, but with a "disconcerting" bust), and a cold career woman who slaps him around verbally, knocking him down a peg.
Also noteable is the few asides where Carella and Hawes tackle the moral dillemma of the need to turn a blind eye to some crimes in order to focus on others, and the rational behind keeping some illegal activities (like prostitution) penned in but active out in the open instead of widespread and underground. Previous novels have covered the trials and tribulations of being a cop in the city, but this might be the first one to actively dive into the gray area where justice and the law must sometimes exist.
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