Grove Atlantic
Published July 8, 2025
Reviewed by Barbara Fister
Tom Thorne has had a long career as a detective. First encountered in Sleepyhead (20o1), he has appeared in nineteen books. Here, he’s dealing with a case that’s a ticking time bomb: Someone has kindly left a box of four doughnuts for a group of uniformed coppers assisting at an arrest. They’re pleased by the gesture. Not everyone appreciates their hard work these days – but it soon becomes clear that that includes whoever brought the treats. By nightfall three of the coppers are dead from poisoning and the fourth is barely hanging on. That’s just the first attack against officers from someone unknown who has a grudge and a violent streak. They have to find the vigilante, and fast.