Book Review: A Killing Gift

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

A Killing Gift     Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Leslie Glass
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Woman Main Character   Police Procedural   Ethnic
Series: April Woo # 8
Onyx, June 2003, $7.50, 368 pp.

New York Police Sergeant April Woo organizes the retirement party for Lieutenant Alfredo Bernadino leaving after almost four decades on the force. He plans to live simply though his beloved wife over fifteen million dollars in the lottery after taxes just before she died. Alfredo slips out quietly during the party but an assailant kills him. April notices he left and races after her mentor in time to see him murdered.

April tries to catch the killer but he almost overpowers her. Jack Devereaux, who just inherited millions from the father who never acknowledged him, saves her life and once again becomes a media sensation. April and her partner and lover Mike Sanchez work together to find the perpetrator. When a second person, who has inherited a fortune is killed, the police think they have a culprit who targets people who suddenly have gained plenty of publicized money. To make matters even more curious, phone records show someone has called both the deceased lieutenant and Jack, two people who have never met and have nothing in common except they attended the same university, one that the second victim was being courted for a donation.

In A KILLING GIFT April and Mike have finally gotten their act together and are living together, making plans to buy a house, get married and have a baby. Both are more open about their feelings and that adds another personal dimension to the story line. This is one of the best installments in the series because readers see the police slowly but surely build a case. Leslie Glass writes some of the best procedurals on the market today and her latest will embellish that reputation.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner