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Summary
Summary
Rookie cop Selma Cibolo passed the detective examinations in record time. Assigned to the Homicide Division, she is forced to deal with age, gender, and resistance issues. If you are looking for a "thriller with a feminist bent," then Selma Cibolo is your girl.Soon after her arrival, the police find a body in a dumpster behind the San Antonio Convention Center. Before the coroner can identify the body, Selma recognizes the costume of a Comic-Con character named Evie Frye. Selma's supervisor, tough, old-school Detective Thorn Nix, is only concerned with "real world" facts and has no intention of "chasing Batman down a rabbit hole!"Selma is convinced that clues are lurking in the cosplay angle. Nix is adamant and loads Selma up with cold-case files to keep her busy and out of the way. In the old murder files, Selma finds another victim killed during the previous annual San Antonio Comic-Con. Selma identifies the victim as also being dressed as Evie Frye. This information is still not enough to convince Detective Nix. He formally orders Selma to stop wasting time on "such nonsense, and stick to the facts!" Acting on a hunch, against orders, Selma calls a former schoolmate who is working in the Denver PD, where Comic-Con Denver just concluded. Yes, there was a murder during the event. Looking at the faxed crime scene photos, Selma identifies the Colorado victim as Evie Frye. Someone keeps killing Evie Fry, but who and why?
Reviews (1)
Kirkus Review
Two newly partnered Texas detectives clash when investigating unexplained deaths in this thriller. Selma Cibolo earns her detective rank after only two years on the police force. It's an impressive feat, but that doesn't make San Antonio detective Thornton Nix any less resistant to being her partner. In the seasoned cop's archaic mindset, she's a "Barbie doll in a cop outfit" who can't handle the job. One of their first cases together involves a body in a dumpster. Cibolo recognizes the victim's unique costume as Evie Frye's--a character from a popular online video game. She suspects a link to the Comic-Con that was just in town, a theory that Nix immediately dismisses. He doesn't even think it's a homicide but rather some sort of accidental death. Yet Cibolo keeps digging and unearths other "Evies" who died during Comic-Cons, including one in another state. As the detective tries deciphering how someone could grab a cosplayer in the midst of a crowded venue, Cibolo concocts a risky plan that puts her on the heels of a dangerous, twisted killer. Lee masterfully balances a procedural with a suspense-laden exploration of a murderer. For example, readers get glimpses of the killer's frighteningly meticulous plotting. There's also a focus on the legendary Spring-Heeled Jack, the star of a video game (based on a real-life game with a few altered details), who's tied to the villain's unnerving psychosis. The only drawback is that the story could have used more scenes with the razor-sharp Cibolo, whose investigation takes her to Denver, a Comic-Con, and a memorably creepy barn. While Nix's refusal to support Cibolo's smart hunch makes him seem dense, he eventually proves to be more than a one-dimensional sexist cop. The author's unadorned but effective prose fuels the relatively short novel all the way to the exciting final act and an ending that hints at a sequel. This engaging murder mystery pits a remarkable hero against a formidable killer. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
