Brilliant evolution of the characters

My first E. George book was "For the sake of Elena". Immediately, I gobbled up all the previous releases and have continued to do so with new releases.

SPOILER ALERT!!! I am puzzled by those reviewers who feel "Betrayed and Manipulated" by the death of Helen. She has always been "window dressing" to me, in regards to the Lynley/Havers books. How fascinating can a woman whose greatest conflict in life seems to be what christening outfit will her baby wear or should she really wear the too high healed boots when it kills her feet? I won't miss her and I don't believe the series will suffer in her absence.

Having said that, I am greatly pleased that I was able to get to know Winston better, and to see that Barbara hasn't become a mere characterization either, which I worried about in previous novel.

One of the best E. Georges I've read in a long time...

Although like all Elizabeth Georges the book is quite long, when I had to put it down for a while to go to work, I couldn't wait to get back to the book. I thought she was in top form. The theme of the book is quite serious (violence and youth, both against youth and by youth against society). As one character in the book points out, England hasn't been "safe" for decades, and yet we like to think that street violence is an American phenomenon.

The plot involves a serial killer who may be connected in some way to a not-for-profit organization that works with London youth who are what used to be called "juvenile delinquents." The usual E. George characters are involved in trying to track down this killer, particularly Lynley, Havers, and Nkata, who are leading up the investigation. Their job is made more difficult by a new supervisor -- anyone who has had a terrible boss will sympathize with Lynley -- who is determined to manipulate the press and go behind Lynley's back in making decisions involving the investigation. The serial killer's victims are young adolescents, many of whom are mixed race.

Havers plays a prominent role in this book, and part of the reason I enjoyed the book so much is that she's a probably my favorite George character. We have a number of scenes of her with her next door neighbors. Lynley alternates between trying to protect Havers and being exasperated himself with her for being too independent -- not a team player. I can identify with that!

The aspect of the book that has upset so many E. George fans -- I won't say too much because it could be a spoiler -- was, I think, necessary in driving home the point of the book and making the reader emotionally experience the effects of violence in our society. I was saddened but not particularly angry with George for this plotting decision -- on the contrary, I think it was a good literary decision, even if it is difficult for the reader. My criticism has to do with the length of the book. I really think it could have been tightened up a little, and she could have lost 50 pages and had a better book. Some paragraphs exploring the emotions of the characters just went on too long. As someone once commented, novels these days seem to be more about emotions than plot. I could have done with a bit less soul-searching and a tighter plotline.

The ending (last 50 pages) was amazing -- kept you on the edge of your seat, and really a perfect conclusion to this harrowing story of violence in our society. All told, a five star book! And a great improvement over her previous book...

Disappointed

Ms. George's books have usually kept me reading to the very end unable to put the book down until finished. I found this book plodding, repetetive and I had to force myself to finish it. Barbara Havers was still the one bright and interesting character, but the rest were just boring. While the end was sad and depressing, Lynley's character needs more depth and color and this might take it in that direction. I hate giving an Elizabeth George book 2 stars because I have had so much enjoyment from the previous ones, but this one became tiresome.