From Booklist
Readers new to Cornwell may be puzzled by her high-caliber reputation as they start working their way through this sluggish and convoluted tale, but it isn't a total loss. The setting is intriguing: Charlotte, North Carolina, a city on the make, with crime rising as fast as its new glass towers. Everyone from the mayor on down is desperate to solve the latest crisis: a serial killer is specializing in out-of-town businessmen. Known for her strong female characters, Cornwell must have decided that if one heroine is good, two are better, so she presents us with a classy police chief named Judy Hammer and her top deputy Virginia West, who isn't afraid of cholesterol, cigarettes, or rednecks. Up to their stubborn necks in work, Hammer and West are not at all pleased to have to play nursemaid to a cub reporter named Andy Brazil. The son of a murdered policeman and an alcoholic mother, Brazil is hell bent on winning the Pulitzer. To that end, he's trained as a volunteer cop and wheedled permission to ride patrol. A serviceable setup and Cornwell does well with her gals, but she gets as lost as a weary shopper in a gigantic parking lot after dark when it comes to finding her way through Brazil's dead-end psyche. The scenes where West and Hammer save this silly gentleman-in-distress are quite amusing; otherwise, this is a dud. Donna Seaman