Review: top notch police procedural
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 22, 2014
I first read McGilloway's books featuring Inspector Devlin and thought them excellent, but this Lucy Black police procedural is even better.  Black is a more complex character than Devlin, with a difficult family history.  The fact that her somewhat estranged mother is the Assistant Chief Constable doesn't make Lucy's life any easier.  The police procedures are explained deftly and realistically, including the competition among departments and the egos of ambitious officers.  Lucy comes across as tough, a bit bitter (with reason), but with a compassionate heart for the victimized children and young adults with whom she works. She is also driven to  find the criminal who is responsible for the deaths of a woman and her daughter, a crime that was a major plot line in the first Black novel.  The murder in Someone You Know is a nasty one with links to sexual exploitation of minors.  There is also a link drawn to an old case which was hushed up because of the political situation during the time of the "Troubles."  The ending has a not altogether unexpected twist, but one that means Lucy may have made a pact with the devil in her efforts to bring the murderer to  justice.  I believe  that police  procedurals such as this tell  readers far more about current social and economic  problems and situations than we might even learn from the news.  Although it can be depressing at times, this novel is exciting and thrilling, one that would be read far into the night!