After thoroughly enjoying the intricate plotting and atmospheric characterization of The Puppet Show, the award-winning first outing of brilliant, bull-in-a-china-shop detective Washington Poe, I rushed to read “Black Summer.” If anything, Black Summer is even more devilish than the debut, in the sense that crime fiction fans find delicious. And delicious is the correct adjective to use, for the book is set around the world of Michelin star restaurants. Poe caught and jailed a charismatic. psychopathic chef for the murder of the man’s daughter, but now a dazed young woman lurches into a police station and DNA proves she is the daughter. Brimming with shades of Hannibal Lecter’s brilliance, the novel kicks off swiftly and never slows down. Aided by Tilly Bradshaw, the ultimate awkward nerd introduced in The Puppet Show, Poe needs to unravel the chef’s plan even as he himself becomes a suspect. The author’s characters come wonderfully alive, especially in the dialogue, and the Cumbrian setting is vivid. Another superbly plotted one-nighter.
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