While I read
the latest Eddie Flynn last year, courtesy of Waterstones and Royal Mail, when
it was published in the UK, I acquired a US edition a couple of weeks ago when
Steve Cavanagh stopped at a nearby bookstore on his tour to promote Two
Kinds of Stranger after its US release in March. So now I have two signed
copies!
Of course I
had to re-read it. It’s an enthralling story of Elly Parker, a naïve but generous
young woman who has quite a following on TikTok, posting videos that urge her
followers to perform an act of kindness every day. She has recently married the
man of her dreams and her posts overflow with happiness until a few weeks after
the wedding she walks into her apartment while filming and finds her new
husband and her best friend in bed. The post went viral and millions of people
watched Elly’s perfect life shatter.
One of the
viewers was a psychopath who decided to set Elly up for the murder of her
husband and best friend. He enjoys killing people and he considers the
possibilities of the situation too good to pass up. His plans don’t quite go as
expected but Elly did get arrested. She had enough presence of mind to call
Eddie Flynn, who by now is well known as the defense lawyer for dire cases.
The POV moves
between Eddie trying to find a viable defense strategy and the killer trying to
stay one step ahead. In a parallel thread Kevin, married to Eddie’s ex-wife,
has run into trouble with a young man who courts wealthy elderly women that
make wills in his favor and then die soon after. One of Kevin’s clients was a
victim but Kevin had the will overturned and is now being threatened in
retaliation. Eddie’s daughter asks him to step in, as Kevin is not at all equipped
to deal with thugs.
Eddy’s
attention is split between defending Elly and protecting his family.
Fortunately Eddie’s team has grown since his first book. He now has astute Kate
Brooks in partnership, his long-time friend Harry Ford the retired judge, two skilled
investigators in Bloch and Lake, and Denise the secretary who holds the office
together. Harry has become one of my favorite fictional sidekicks.
The
psychopath here is quite possibly the most ingeniously evil character to grace
the pages of crime fiction. (Steve Cavanagh seems so nice, how does he think of
people like this?) The killer’s thoroughness in establishing Elly’s guilt is
jaw-dropping, but Eddy’s expertise in countering him is no less. The final
twist in the book though is downright brilliant, a deliciously appropriate form
of retribution. Part legal thriller, part psychological thriller, and a thoroughly
good read. Recommended!
Starred
review from Publisher’s Weekly.
For the
record, this is the only piece of crime fiction I’ve read that involves that
scourge of gardeners and farmers, the Japanese lantern fly.
I am looking
forward to Eddy’s next case which will be published in the UK in August.
·
Publisher: Atria Books
·
Publication date: March 24, 2026
·
Language: English
·
Print length: 400 pages
·
ISBN-10: 1668093391
·
ISBN-13: 978-1668093399
Amazon
Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4tWY5Oa
Aubrey Nye
Hamilton ©2026
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
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