It starts with a double homicide. Because of the high profiles of the victims - a politically connected socialite and his glamorous fiancee - the mayor of San Francisco herself demands that a high-ranking detective be put on the case. And so Abe Glitsky is thrust into the controversial investigation. Dan Cuneo, the officer already working the case, is immediately wary of Glitsky and doesn’t hide his distrust.
Hardy's best friend, Lieutenant Abe Glitsky, has kept a secret from him...and everyone else. Hardy never knew that Abe had a daughter-until she was shot dead. It seems obvious that the heroin addict hovering over her body with a gun is the guilty party, and Glitsky has few qualms about sweating a confession out of him. But there is more to this murder-much more. And as both Hardy and Glitsky risk their lives to uncover the truth, others are working hard to stop them.
The heroes of Lescroart's popular Dismas Hardy/Abe Glitsky series (The Second Chair; etc.) have reached the point where age and professional success keep them from the gritty street-level investigations that made their adventures so good. While promising that he hasn't abandoned the duo, Lescroart keeps the action high by inaugurating a new San Francisco series, starring private investigator Wyatt Hunt and homicide detective Devin Juhle. Longtime Lescroart fans can relax: these pals are at least as interesting and enterprising as Hardy/Glitsky.
Lescroart regulars Dismas Hardy and Abe Glitsky may have survived a deadly shootout in The First Law (2003), but their psyches are on life support. Hardy drinks too much and cuts deals instead of practicing law. Glitsky's still a hardworking "procedure freak," but his guts are killing him, and he struggles in his new hands-off role as San Francisco's deputy chief of investigations. Amy Wu, an up-and-comer in Hardy's law firm, isn't doing well, either; grieving her father's death, she's looking for love in singles bars and spinning out of control.
The call comes at midnight. An up-and-coming lawyer has been found dead in a dark alley, with a homeless heroin addict lingering over her body, holding a gun and carrying her jewelry in his pocket. It looks like a robbery gone awry, a tragic and petty murder. But for homicide lieutenant Abe Glitsky, the crime cuts close to home. Because, unknown to anyone—even Glitsky’s best friend, lawyer Dismas Hardy—the victim was his daughter.
