Cross And Burn by Val McDermid

 

The worst has happened.  A psychopath killed DCI Carol Jordan's brother and sister to bring her misery.  Her unit has been dissolved, its members reassigned to other locations after she resigned.  No one has heard from Carol and that includes her closest friend, Tony Hill.  She blames the forensic psychologist for not foreseeing what could happen and somehow preventing it.

But crime does not stop.  Women are being kidnapped off the street and found days later, beaten beyond recognition.  The chilling thing is that they all resemble Carol who is out in the country, renovating her brother's residence.  Paula McIntryre, a member of Carol's former unit, has moved to the precinct in charge of the murders and promoted to sergeant.  Her new boss is nothing like Carol who encouraged brainstorming and teamwork.  The new boss is determined to micromanage everyone and her word is law.  

Prone to quick assumptions, the new DCI finds a great suspect, Tony Hill.  There is some forensic evidence that ties him to the crimes and she jumps the gun to charge him, eager to impress her superiors.  Paula is determined not to let Tony be railroaded and tracks down Carol.  Carol is still furious at Tony but can't let him go to prison for something he could never do.  Together along with some of the former team, they work behind the scenes to free Tony and find the real killer.  Can Tony distance himself from the situation to do what he does best and get into the head of the killer?

This is the eighth novel in this series.  It is one of my favorite series as both Tony Hill and Carol Jordan are interesting characters and their relationship is intriguing as well.  The other characters are well drawn and the mystery is mind turning.  The reader will try to solve the mystery while pondering the question of whether Carol can ever forgive Tony and whether he can forgive himself.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.