A Simple Act of Violence

Book excerpt: A D.C. detective’s search for a killer leads to Cold War political intrigue in this “must-read for noir fans” by the author of A Quiet Beliefin Angels (Publishers Weekly, starred review). When Washington, D.C., homicide detective Robert Miller is called to yet another homicide, the crime scene resembles that of three other murders in the same upscale neighborhood over the past eight months. The female victim, badly beaten and strangled, has been left with a luggage tag hanging from a ribbon around her neck. With no leads to go on, the so-called Ribbon Killer is causing panic among residents. Then Miller discovers an unsettling connection between the victims: none of their identities stand up to scrutiny. Could they all have been under witness protection? Facing one federal roadblock after another, the investigation leads Miller into covert activities in Latin America, and a suspect who happens to be an expert CIA assassin. “An awesome achievement—a thriller of such power, scope and accomplishment that fanfares should herald its arrivals.” —The Guardian, UK