Night Rituals: A Novel

One after another in dimly lit Riverside Park, three young women are brutally murdered. Palm fronds bind their wrists, and halos of corn kernels frame their heads. Blood has been taken from their bodies; no blood is on the ground.Who killed them? Before long, Bill Donovan, commander of the West Side Major Crimes Unit, has reason to suspect the habitués of Riley's Saloon, the Broadway tavern where he and his drinking buddies hang out. Especially since the third victim is the sister of Donovan's new girlfriend, Rosie, the night bartender at Riley's. Gradually Donovan realizes that the bizarre killing spree is directed at him.Enlisting the aid of Marcie Barnes, a glamorous black undercover police detective who is also his on-again, off-again lover, Donovan sets a trap. Marcie, suited up, will jog in the park alone and draw the killer out. But Donovan has begun to lose his cool....Their collaboration nearly kills them both, and drags them through a maze of clues pointing to Manhattan street people, American Indians, Haitian refugees, and a murderer who lurks at nightfall, stealing forward now and again to claim a life.Here's a big-city thriller, a cinematic read that's scary and enticing.