"Underurrents"

Ridley Pearson's "Undercurrents" novel is the first in his Police Sergeant Lou Boldt series based in Seattle.  I've read all four books in Pearson's Walt Fleming series set in Sun Valley, ID, and was introduced to Boldt when he came to Sun Valley in the last book in the Fleming series, "In Harm's Way."  I decided to start reading the Boldt series next and it has not been a disappointment so far.

In "Undercurrents" Boldt heads a special task force within the Seattle Homicide bureau and he has been charged with finding and stopping the "Cross Killer" who has murdered several women.  The case has some twists and turns along the way that tend to hamper the investigation.  Press leaks from within the police department end in the murder of one suspect and put others linked to the case in serious danger.  When the killing starts again, they know they have not yet caught their serial killer but Boldt is also not sure that all the killings are the work of one murderer.  There may be a copycat killer out there and whoever it is has to have some type of connection to the police force to carry off such a close mimicry.

In the meantime, Boldt and his wife have been having marital difficulties and he moves out.  The police psychologist, the very attractive Daphne Matthews, is there for him professionally and personally.  What I liked about Boldt's personal life, though, was how introspective he becomes after he leaves his wife and his personal discovery that the breakdown of his marriage had as much to do with him and his dedication to his job as it did with his wife.  His personal life is woven in very cleverly as we see how many hours he gives to his work and how little time that leaves for a personal life.

The crime he is investigating is not an easy one to solve and it takes dedicated hours from all of his team -- some he doesn't particularly get along well with!  As they sift through the clues together, some patterns begin to emerge and some breaks along the way finally do lead to a satisfying conclusion.  Experts Boldt talked to in the Seattle area that gave him insight into how the currents move indicating where bodies might end up given different scenarios gave authenticity to the story, too.

Did I like it?  Well, yes -- I've already requested book two in the series!  pazt