From Publishers Weekly Defense attorney Yessayan's promising debut nicely juggles a large cast of attorneys and cops, though at times it comes close to sounding like a legal spinoff of the TV show Friends . Someone is killing young women in Boston, or at least young women are disappearing, leaving behind no trace except bathtubs full of blood. The police are pretty sure the victims must be dead, but no bodies have been found. The killer, who's identified for the reader as Richter, is doing something with the bodies that involves embalming, but it remains unclear what he's up to until the very end. Extended forays into race relations, the plight of the poor and questions of legal responsibility tend to slow the action. Hopefully, Yessayan, who doesn't stray beyond the conventional bounds of the legal thriller/serial killer subgenre, will strike out in his own direction next time. (June)
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From The television series Law and Order meets the city of Boston in this first novel. A serial killer drains the blood from his victims, leaves it in the bathtub, and then removes the body from the scene. Newly promoted to homicide, Detective Angel Alves wants to prove his worth to his superiors, even at the cost of his marriage. Assistant District Attorney Conrad Daget struggles to juggle the hundreds of cases piled on his desk and still help officers and attorneys catch this elusive maniac. First-novelist Yessayan provides a deeper, more complex look inside the criminal-justice system than we usually see on television, and he holds our interest with a cast of full-bodied characters. The plot begins to fall apart a bit near the end, but Yessayan saves the best for last and redeems himself. For a better read, ignore the jacket blurb, which gives away too much. --Jeff Ayers

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Raffi Yessayan

Random House Publishing Group

Ballantine Books

Ivy Books

Fawcett

United States, United States of America

New York, New York State, 2008

1st ed, New York, ©2008

lg_fict_id_436394

In this swiftly paced, breathlessly suspenseful debut novel, the bizarre rampage of an elusive serial killer sends shockwaves through Boston, igniting a harrowing police manhunt and resounding at the highest levels of the criminal justice system. Drawing on eleven years' experience as a Boston assistant district attorney--and as chief prosecutor with the elite Gang Unit--Raffi Yessayan renders a stark, realistic, and gripping portrait of law enforcement professionals on the job, and under the gun, in a city at the mercy of a madman.The scene is perplexingly always the same: the home of a single woman, no signs of forced entry, no evidence of an intruder, and no victim--only a bathtub filled with blood. Newly promoted homicide detective Angel Alves wants to make his mark in the department and a difference on the streets. But juggling the needs of a family and the demands of a relentlessly driven partner tests the young cop's commitment as sorely as tracking the killer challenges his skills. Meanwhile, assistant DA Conrad Darget has his own hands full--mentoring an ambitious young law student, whom he is also dating, rallying his fellow attorneys in their daily courtroom battles, and striving to win true justice in an imperfect system. With each new attack the twisted mystery only deepens, and the hunger for answers--and action--intensifies. No sane mind could comprehend the dark design behind it all. And no one can anticipate the final fateful strokes that will lead to a shocking endgame.From its chilling first pages to its heart-stopping home stretch, Eight in the Box thrills at every turn and surprises at every opportunity--racing at an ever increasing velocity to deliver a climax that pays off in devastating style.From the Hardcover edition.

The harrowing scene is always the same: the home of a single woman, no signs of forced entry, no evidence of an intruder, and no victim—only a bathtub filled with blood. Newly promoted homicide detective Angel Alves wants to make his mark in the department and a difference on the streets, but tracking this elusive serial killer sorely challenges his commitment and skills. Meanwhile, assistant DA Conrad Darget has his own hands full mentoring an ambitious young law student and rallying his fellow attorneys in their daily courtroom battles. With each new attack the twisted mystery only deepens, and the hunger for answers—and action—intensifies. No sane mind could comprehend the dark design behind it all. And no one can anticipate the final fateful strokes that will lead to a shocking endgame.

2011-11-04