Bad Cops

Starred review from February 1, 2017
Every one of Oldham's Henry Christie cop stories is guaranteed to take readers on a roller-coaster ride, and the latest installment is no exception. Now retired from full-time policing, Henry is settling down to a life of relative leisure in rural Lancashire, helping his fiancee, Alison, run the Tawny Owl pub. But unbeknownst to Henry, his life is about to change in the most nightmarish way. After celebrating the wedding of his sister to his old friend and colleague Rik Dean at the Tawny Owl, Henry is ready to call it a day. Instead, a man breaks into the pub, tries to kidnap Henry's fiancee's daughter, Ginny, and assaults Henry. When Henry's good friend, American FBI agent Karl Donaldson, tries to follow the man, a violent and tragic encounter follows. Further violence invades Henry's life, driving him to sort out how it is that his own life and the lives of those he loves are suddenly in terrible danger. Bloodshed, suspense, shocking twists, and a punch-to-the-gut ending make for a gripping, wrenching, sometimes uncomfortable but always mesmerizing read. One of the best in a consistently excellent seriesadd it to the growing list of mysteries starring retired cops (Harry Bosch, John Rebus) who can't stay out of harm's way.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

Starred review from February 15, 2018
Oldham's books are guaranteed to pack a gut punch, and his latest delivers in spades. DCI Henry Christie is recovering from a gunshot wound suffered on his last case and looks forward to spending a few relaxing weeks with his newfound love, Alison, who runs a peaceful country pub. Then he gets a call from his boss, who asks Henry to investigate two murders in Yorkshire (the officer originally in charge of the cases has been killed in a car accident). Reluctantly, Henry agrees, and he and Diane Daniels, the DC assigned to help him, head off. What they don't know is that the two unsolved cases are just the tip of a very nasty iceberg that involves corruption, human trafficking, murder, and huge profits for a lucky few at the top of the food chain. A razor-sharp plot, shocking twists, gruesome violence, pulse-pounding suspense, and a heart-stopping ending make this a not-to-be-missed page-turner for fans of hard-boiled cop thrillers. Definitely not for the fainthearted.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

February 12, 2018
Oldham’s hard-hitting 25th police thriller featuring Det. Supt. Henry Christie of the Lancashire Constabulary’s Force Major Investigation Team (after 2017’s Bad Blood) finds Henry at home recovering from a gunshot wound. Minutes after he rips the bandage off his still oozing shoulder, he hears a knock on the door. Chief constables Robert Fanshaw-Bayley, his boss at the Lancashire police department, and John Burnham, of the Central Yorkshire Police, have come to ask Henry to apply his analytical skills to reviewing two unsolved murder cases in Yorkshire. It should be a low stress task; no rough and tumble required. Less than 24 hours after Henry accepts the job, Burnham is found murdered, and someone pushes Henry down a flight of stone stairs. Are these incidents connected with the two crimes he’s investigating? You bet they are. Oldham dishes up some genuinely gruesome baddies. The fun is not in figuring out whodunit—the reader knows that from the start—but rather in discovering how deep the corruption runs and how these vile, villainous cops get their comeuppance.

February 1, 2018
DS Henry Christie, sent to the Midlands to conduct a pro forma outside review of a pair of murders, swiftly discovers that the problems of the Central Yorkshire Police run a lot deeper.Mark James Wright, whose company specialized in renting heavy machinery, was pulled from his car and stabbed repeatedly. Tom Salter was shot in his own office. What do the two deaths have to do with each other? Probably nothing, Chief Constable John Burnham tells Henry. But Burnham's force has been shorthanded ever since DS Jack Culver was killed in a collision with a stolen car, and even though Henry's still recovering from getting shot in the shoulder on his last case (Bad Blood, 2017), he'd appreciate it if the head of Lancashire Constabulary's Force Major Investigation Team would give him a hand. Burnham's instincts are on the money but not his sense of proportion. Two more fatalities are waiting around the corner. Faced by a seriously aggravated version of his original problem--more murders to investigate, fewer police officers to investigate with--Henry draws on his old mates outside the festering district for help. And he'll have abundant reason to bless the moment when DC Diane Daniels, a young officer eager for more experience, announces that she's been seconded along with him.A routine tale of rotten coppers distinguished by its brutality, its rapid pace, and its unexpectedly chilling final scene.

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