Visit JaneTHE BURNING is the first in the DC Maeve Kerrigan, British police procedural series. For those whose tastes are as eclectic as mine I like to include mysteries and such. I really enjoyed THE BURNING and will be reading the 4 others as soon as I can get to them. As a fan of McBain & Shannon I wonder if it will move along those lines and readers will get better acquainted with the other members of the squad. Any other McBain & Shannon fans out there? If any of you read THE BURNING, please let me know what you think. I'm always eager to discuss books even if we agree to disagree! :D
 London enters the Christmas season under a pall of fear created by a serial killer dubbed “The Burning Man” by the press. When Rebecca Haworth’s body is discovered, she’s believed, at first, to be the fifth victim. Detective Constable Maeve Kerrigan finds differences in the MO disturbing, believing it’s either a copycat or someone hoping Rebecca’s murder is attributed to The Burning Man. Superintendent Godley puts Maeve, the only woman on his team, in charge of investigating Rebecca’s murder and discovering whether she’s the fifth victim or not. THE BURNING is the promising debut in the D.C. Maeve Kerrigan British police procedural series. Maeve, the only woman on Supt. Godley’s squad, is an intelligent, ambitious, attractive workaholic. At this point in her career she’s also idealistic about justice. THE BURNING is told from the alternating viewpoints of Maeve and Louise North, Rebecca’s best friend, giving readers an intimate, revealing, fascinating, often disquieting look into the three women who are the central focus. Ms. Casey displays a deft hand when it comes to tension and chilling narrative, while highly descriptive depictions bring London and Oxford vividly to your mind’s eye. Unfortunately, considering the atmosphere and overall gloom of the weather I can’t say either came across as appealing. THE BURNING is a solid, well-written, intelligent police procedural with good flow and pacing ensuring steady smooth reading. The denouement style fit the guilty party perfectly and the end articles tied up the dangling bits neatly. Well seasoned mystery readers will easily figure out the “who” but for me THE BURNING was all about the journey, not the final destination. I’m looking forward to reading the next four books the Maeve Kerrigan series. There is quite a bit of British slang and terminology but for habitual readers of British fiction it shouldn’t be a problem. I don’t think fans of British procedurals who add Maeve Kerrigan to their reading lists will be disappointed.
4 stars