"Stand Out Thriller"

Elizabeth George returns, with another installment featuring New Scotland Yard's Acting Superintendent Thomas Lynley and his partner, Constable Barbara Havers. A serial killer is on the loose in London, targeting adolescent boys. While Lynley and Havers seeks to ferret out clues to the killer's identity, they are forced to deal with contentious superior, AC Hiller, who insists on pairing them with a profiler and involving the ubiquitous press. With deft insight, George explores the characters' personal issues, as Lynley thrives in the joy of his wife's pregnancy, and Havers continues to drive herself professionally, seeking to reinstate herself as a sergeant. Their investigation soon exposes London's sinister underbelly as the crime spree continues implicating Colossus, a help center for young men previously charged with crimes.

While the novel is somewhat lengthy (over 600 pages), George never fails to deliver. Though American, she possesses an uncanny insight into English culture. The suspense is nonstop, replete with red herrings and gritty depictions of unseemly crimes. Readers will be enthralled with this detailed, yet swiftly moving plotline, in this one- of-a-kind superb thriller.

Reviewed by Sheri Melnick
Posted May 23, 2005

Summary

Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley takes on the case of his career. When it comes to spellbinding suspense and page-turning excitement, New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth George always delivers. As the Wall Street Journal raves, "Ms. George can do it all, with style to spare." In With No One as Witness, Elizabeth George has crafted an intricate, meticulously researched, and absorbing story sure to enthrall her readers. Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley is back, along with his longtime partner, the fiery Barbara Havers, and newly promoted Detective Sergeant Winston Nkata. They are on the hunt for a sinister killer. When an adolescent boy's nude body is found mutilated and artfully arranged on the top of a tomb, it takes no large leap for the police to recognize this as the work of a serial killer. This is the fourth victim in three months but the first to be white. Hoping to avoid charges of institutionalized racism in its failure to pursue the earlier crimes to their conclusion, New Scotland Yard hands the case over to Lynley and his colleagues. The killer is a psychopath who does not intend to be stopped. Worse, a devastating tragedy within the police ranks causes them to fumble in their pursuit of him.