In this 7th book in the 'Amos Decker' series, the detective investigates a double murder in South Florida. The book can be read as a standalone but familiarity with the series is a plus.
*****
Amos Decker, 6'5" tall and hefty, was a professional football player until a massive hit ended his career and left him with hyperthymesia and synesthesia.
The hyperthymesia gives Decker a permanent detailed memory of everything he's ever seen or experienced - like a combination photo album/video in his head. And the synesthesia makes Decker see things in false colors - like death scenes glowing blue. Unfortunately, Decker's hyperthymesia doesn't allow him to dim the memories of his dead wife and child, who were murdered a few years ago.
On the upside, Decker's phenomenal memory helped him in his career as a police detective, and he's now employed as an FBI consultant, working out of the Washington, D.C. office. Decker is a maverick, though, and doesn't always follow FBI rules to a T.
As the story opens Decker's former police partner, Mary Lancaster, who's suffering from early onset dementia, shoots herself in the head. Decker is very upset by Mary's suicide and also concerned about a new prognosis related to his head injury.
In this atmosphere, Decker is doubly annoyed when his FBI boss sends him on an assignment to South Florida with a new partner, Special Agent Frederica White (Freddie).
Decker doesn't like working with new people, but - given there's no choice - Amos and Freddie fly south to investigate a double murder. The bodies of Federal Judge Julia Cummins......
.....and her bodyguard Alan Draymont were found in Cummins' house in a gated Florida community.
Draymont was shot downstairs and Cummins was stabbed upstairs, in her bedroom. The detectives' first thoughts are that Cummins was the target, and Draymont was collateral damage. Things get more complicated, though, when a wad of Slovakian money is found shoved down Draymont's throat.
Decker and Freddie examine the crime scene and interview Cummins' ex-husband, teenage son, neighbors, colleagues, and acquaintances - but no one knows why Cummins would be targeted. The detectives also visit Gamma Protection Services, which employed Alan Draymont. However the firm's CEO, Kasimira Roe, makes noises about confidentiality and refuses to give out any information.
Decker and Freddie are particularly anxious to speak to Draymont's immediate superior and to Cummins' secretary, but both these women go missing before they can be interviewed. All this, plus Decker examining the 'video' of the crime scene in his mind, changes the direction of the investigation. Things get even more complicated when Kasimira Roe asks Decker to look into the disappearance of her father - a Slovakian business tycoon - three years ago.
While Decker and Freddie investigate the South Florida homicides, they're also dealing with personal issues. Freddie is an African-American single mother with two children, and she's concerned her ambition to climb the FBI ladder will interfere with being a good mom.
And Decker is thinking that new executives at the FBI, annoyed with his independent streak, may be planning to phase him out.
For me, the plot got too convoluted, and I wasn't quite satisfied with the climax. Still, I alway enjoy the Amos Decker books, and I'd recommend the novel to fans of the series.
Rating: 3 stars
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