Review by Booklist Review
Ted Conkaffey believes he's still the most hated man in Australia. The former Sydney cop, now a PI, was unjustly accused of kidnapping, raping, and strangling 13-year-old Claire Bingley and served eight months in prison before being released (as described in Crimson Lake, 2018). Claire's grieving father, Dale, comes gunning for him. Conkaffey and his partner, Amanda Pharrell, have just been hired by the father of one of two young bartenders murdered at the Barking Frog Inn. In addition to working the case, Conkaffey fends off Bingley, appears on a Sydney TV program where the interviewer disarms him with false accusations, and tries to make the most of an emotional meeting with his now two-year-old daughter. Entries from the diary of Claire Bingley's actual attacker are interspersed, heightening the mystery of whether this pedophile will be identified and receive justice. Meanwhile, newly promoted Detective Inspector Philippa Pip Sweeney, heading the bartenders' murder case, feels out of her depth until she establishes rapport with the quirky Pharrell, a petite pixie of a woman adorned with tattoos, who's a convicted murderer with a sharp tongue and even sharper intuition. Fox, formerly one of James Patterson's coauthors, builds tension and suffuses it with humanity in this compelling sequel, featuring a pair of protagonists readers will take to their hearts.--Michele Leber Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In Australian author Fox's gripping sequel to 2016's Crimson Lake, charges have been dropped against former New South Wales policeman Ted Conkaffey, who was accused of the rape and attempted murder of 13-year-old Claire Bingley, but that doesn't stop Claire's father, Dale, from attacking Ted in his cabin in Crimson Lake, Queensland, where he now occasionally works as a private detective. Dale, who has trouble believing that Ted isn't guilty, eventually asks for Ted's help in bringing the real culprit to justice. Excerpts from the diary of the pedophile responsible for the crime against Claire lend a creepy note. Meanwhile, two bartenders are murdered in Crimson Lake, and Michael Bell, the father of one of the victims, hires Ted and his investigative partner, Amanda Pharrell, to find the killer. Amanda, a convicted murderer who served eight years in prison, tries to uncover what happened to Michael's son, while Ted struggles with his own demons in an effort to prove his innocence. Fox, who coauthors the bestselling Harriet Blue series with James Patterson, keeps the tension high throughout. Agent: Lisa Gallagher, DeFiore & Co. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
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