There is no statute of limits on homicide, but thousands of murders remain unsolved. New York City's Cold Case Squad is whittling away at a backlog of nearly 9,000 murders. The Restless Sleep tracks these intrepid, talented detectives as they track down culprits in three hideous crimes.
Publishers Weekly
NPR contributor Horn's deft writing and unique access to detectives laboring to bring justice to the many forgotten victims of murder create a significant addition to the genre. Horn tracks four very different unsolved killings-a brutal torture of drug dealers while their young children were restrained in an adjoining room; the murder of an off-duty cop who interrupted a robbery in progress; an apparent sex crime turned fatal that claimed the life of a teenager; and the fetishistic strangling of a transplanted Southerner. Each crime presents unique obstacles for the dedicated detectives assigned to them, and each yields very different results. The heroic and three-dimensional portrayals of the individual police officers are compelling, but many will find more novelty in Horn's detailed assessment of the bureaucratic turf battles surrounding the cold case squad, and the serious obstacles NYPD reformers continue to face. Several notches above the typical reporter's insights into the realities of criminal justice, and, given the continued popularity of the CBS TV drama Cold Case, Horn's book is likely to find a wide readership. Agent, Betsy Lerner. (July 11) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Library Journal
Horn (Waiting for My Cats To Die), founder of the virtual salon echonyc.com, again turns her attention to death. In the aftermath of 9/11, Horn met some temporarily reassigned homicide detectives and was intrigued by their particular work. She has spent the time since then getting an insider's view of the NYPD's Cold Case Squad, with this gripping overview of the history of the squad and its seemingly impossible task as a result. By focusing on four cases-one dating back to the 1950s-and four detectives, Horn is able to delve deeply into how the squad works. She pulls no punches as she lays bare the behind-the-scenes NYPD politics. Interestingly, although she intended to tell the story of the Cold Case Squad through profiles of the detectives, it is the victims and the details of their cases that are the clear focus of this book. From the years-long dedication of these professionals, who never give up, it is clear that they would want the story told no other way. Horn is a talented writer who reassures herself and readers that cold case detectives never forget. Highly recommended for public libraries.-Karen Sandlin Silverman, CFAR-Ctr. for Applied Research, Philadelphia Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
