Review by Kirkus Book Review
Hired to protect superstar Chicago news anchor Morgan Shaw, who says someone is trying to kill her, Black cop-turned--PI Ashe Cayne is drawn into investigating a police shooting that might be related. A vision of perfection--"her eyes were a radiant topaz against flawless skin the color of warm cocoa butter"--Morgan seemingly has it all. Fabulously wealthy, she is "all but deified" by her legions of fans. But she has been feeling the heat from a rising young evening anchor at another station: the blond and beautiful Alicia Roscati. Desperate for news she can break to boost her dominance in the ratings, Morgan makes up the story about being stalked as a way to meet Cayne and persuade him to uncover the truth about the apparent execution of a young Black man by an undercover cop. In due course, Alicia dies a mysterious death; Cayne figures out that there's more to Morgan's supposedly kaput, kinky affair with married Illinois Senate Majority Leader Reinhardt Schmidt than she's letting on; and the wisecracking Ashe and his muscle-bound sideman, Mechanic, are attacked by Schmidt's henchmen. Celebrity TV doctor Smith's third Cayne novel, following Wolf Point (2021), has the makings of a good and timely mystery. But the author becomes too easily distracted with gratuitous plot elements, including the return of the jilted Ashe's ex-fiancee. And for a Chicagoan who makes so much of the city's settings and milieu, Smith gets a lot wrong, including the fantastical notion of an Oprah-like anchor in the Windy City, where there hasn't been anything resembling a star newscaster in many years. Those who know Chicago may find his odd practice of twisting the names of real-life celebrities--activist priest Michael Pfleger becomes Father Flagger, veteran anchorwoman Allison Rosati becomes Alicia Roscati--annoying. Thankfully, Bill Murray remains Bill Murray. A scattered and implausible thriller. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
