A Killing of Angels: A Thriller (Alice Quentin)
In Crossbones Yard (2013), psychologist Alice Quentin suffered grave personal consequences while helping London’s Metropolitan Police track a serial killer. A year later, Alice is wrangling with her brother’s bipolar disorder, budget cuts that axed her anger-management program, and a former client turned stalker. When Don Burns, her partner on the Crossbones case, pleads with Alice to help with a new investigation, loyalty forces her to agree. An executive from the elite Angel Bank has been murdered, and the killer has garnished the body with the image of an avenging angel. The killer quickly strikes again, this time targeting a bank trainee, and the team races to halt an escalating serial killer. Meanwhile, in a great leap of faith, Alice begins dating a charming philanthropist, but his connections to Angel Bank threaten to return her to the dark place she’s just managed to leave behind. Poet Rhodes crafts a mighty turn of phrase, and her multilayered characterization makes for an engaging read, but occasionally predictable plotting will frustrate sticklers for a challenging puzzle. --Christine Tran