Afterimage

by Kathleen George

Overview

In the humid dog days of a Pittsburgh summer weekend, Richard Christie, Head of Homicide, faces not one, but two mysterious murders. The victims---a polite woman and an angelic child---do not seem to be connected in any obvious way. Christie is short-handed, the clues don't stack up, and he's got a rookie detective, Colleen Greer, to look out for. These are his problems.

Colleen has problems, too. Her boyfriend is trying to break up with her, she's got a serious crush on her mentor, Christie, and it turns out she knew both victims slightly. Early in the investigation, she gets an alarming idea about the perpetrator's identity, but the man she suspects has no obvious connection to the victims. She has to move carefully with nothing but a gut feeling to go on---all the while disturbed by a series of memories of her own childhood.

Kathleen George's novels have been praised for their subtle rendering of character and relationships---whether those relationships are among detectives or in the families of criminals. Boldly and elegantly written, Afterimage is a startling thriller.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466801745
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	12/10/2007
Series:	Pittsburgh Police , #3
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
File size:	334 KB

About the Author

Kathleen George is a theater professor at the University of Pittsburgh, where she also earned a Ph.D. in theater and a subsequent M.F.A. in fiction. She is the author of two previous mysteries featuring Richard Christie. She and her husband live in Pittsburgh on the city's historic North Side.

KATHLEEN GEORGE, Edgar-nominated novelist for The Odds, is also the author of Taken, Fallen, and Afterimage.  She is a professor of theatre at the University of Pittsburgh.  She and her husband live on Pittsburgh’s North Side. 

Editorial Reviews

George's solid third Pittsburgh thriller (after 2004's Fallen) introduces rookie detective Colleen Greer to the homicide squad. Cmdr. Richard Christie is unsure of inexperienced, overeager Greer, but they hit the ground running after a woman is brutally murdered. Greer recognizes the victim as Laura McCall, the wife of David Hoffman, who ran a counseling center where Greer had been employed. McCall was separated from Hoffman and dating another man, making Hoffman the detectives' prime suspect. When Hoffman reaches out to Greer, her cop instincts take precedence over their past friendship, but she still isn't sure of his guilt. When a second body turns up, again with ties to Hoffman's clinic, Greer tries to tap into her intuition and unexpectedly finds herself attracted to her very married boss. George leaves enough balls in the air that fans will eagerly await Christie and Greer's next case. (Dec.)

Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

Publishers Weekly

In investigating two brutal murders, detective Colleen Greer, the rookie member of the Pittsburgh Homicide Squad, is shocked to discover that she slightly knew the female victims (a quiet divorcée and an angelic child) from working at a family-counseling service. With little evidence, few suspects, and no apparent motivation for the killings, Greer must prove to her boss that her instincts are sound and her ability to handle the investisgation is rock solid. In her third crime novel (after Fallen; Taken), George showcases her ability to craft a good mystery with an in-depth understanding of police work and attention to detail. George lives in Pittsburgh.

—Jo Ann Vicarel

Library Journal

The Pittsburgh Homicide squad catches two new cases, both with ties to the squad's rookie, Colleen Greer. Laura McCall has been stabbed to death. Her body was found by her boyfriend, but detectives are more interested in David Hoffman, her estranged husband. Colleen used to work as a counselor at the family counseling center where David was in charge. Now he's clinging to his past relationship with her for reassurance as he fights his inner demons. Colleen, for her part, feels he's innocent yet hiding something that could help with the case. Laura is soon joined in the morgue by strangling victim Jamilla Washington, 13 and pregnant. Her parents, former clients of the counseling center, are chronic alcoholics who left Jamilla to run the household and care for her younger brother and sister. Questioning her family and friends reveals that Jamilla spent a lot of time running errands, shopping and apparently signing in at the center, where everyone denies ever having seen her. Colleen is partnering the squad leader, charismatic Richard Christie. Her crush on him is intensified by the fact that her boyfriend is dumping her. Hours of investigation into every aspect of the two murders turn up many leads, but it's Colleen's shocking hunch that pays off in the end. Even though George (Fallen, 2004, etc.) reveals whodunit fairly early on, the skillfully rendered characters draw you into their lives. An excellent procedural.

Kirkus Reviews