Books
Bloodline

by Mark Billingham
Mulholland Books, July 2011, $

In Bloodline, Mark Billingham delivers a multilayered crime novel that digs deep into characters’ psyches with the dark, edgy approach that has made him a bestseller in England. The fragility of families proves a compelling theme for the latest outing of Detective Inspector Tom Thorne. A family isn’t in the immediate future for Thorne and his girlfriend, Louise Parker, who has just miscarried. Neither knows quite how to deal with the loss of their baby, and Thorne finds that anything he does or says is wrong.

A family tragedy of another sort occupies Thorne at work. What appears to be a domestic murder turns out to be the first in a series of killings targeting the children and relatives of a notorious serial killer’s victims. Anthony Garvey died in prison years ago, but a copycat killer is now preying on his victims’ survivors. Thorne tries to find the killer as well as track down the next victims, while seeking a link between the late Garvey and the unknown murderer.

It’s easy to understand why Bloodline, which is just now hitting American bookstores, quickly became a bestseller when it was released during 2009 in England. Billingham builds a superior police procedural filled with twists and turns as he explores his richly imagined characters. Each member of Thorne’s tight-knit team emerges as a unique individual, but the standout has always been Phil Hendricks, an intelligent medical examiner who mourns the breakup with each of his boyfriends with a new piercing. Phil is a friend to both Louise and Thorne, the latter of whom admits to being a bit jealous that his girlfriend seems more comfortable discussing her feelings with Phil than with him. Louise, a detective inspector in the Kidnap Investigation Unit, finds it easier to talk about murder with her lover than the miscarriage. Billingham continues to explore the broody, complex, country music-loving Thorne. While melancholic cops abound in the mystery genre, Billingham is careful to make Thorne realistic, not a caricature.

Oline H. Cogdill

billingham_bloodlineA multilayered crime novel that digs deep into characters’ psyches with the dark, edgy approach that has made its author a bestseller in England.

Teri Duerr
2083

by Mark Billingham
Mulholland Books, July 2011, $

Billingham
July 2011
bloodline
Mulholland Books