Giles Blunt, By the Time You Read This

By the Time You Read This

Giles Blunt

Henry Holt, February 2007, $19.95

ISBN: 0805080619

In Algonquin Bay, Canada, after decades of battling depression, Catherine Cardinal jumps from the roof of an apartment building. Her spouse, local Homicide Detective John has feared this news for years, but is still devastated by her death. Not shocked that the short inquiry determines suicide, not only because of the leaper's mental state, but also because there is no hint at foul play anywhere near the crime scene, or in a quick look at Catherine's life, as her psychiatrist Dr. Frederick Bell affirms his patient thought of killing herself.

However, John is the only one with doubts, as even his partner Lise Delorme thinks he is just trying to find shadows that are not there. Lise would like to be there for John, but is working a particularly ugly investigation into a paedophile photographing five years of preadolescent abuse. John begins an investigation into his wife's death on his own time without any official sanction. His superior Police Chief R.J. Kendall is irate, and warns him to back off before assigning him to assist Lise. However, John has found some frightening numbers, as the apparent suicide rate in Algonquin Bay has recently turned stratospheric, though even he wonders if his grief is making him see a serial killer where there is none.

Lise's police procedural and John's unofficial investigations make this an excellent whodunit. However, what makes Giles Blunt's novel one of the best tales of the year is the reactions of John to the apparent suicide of his wife, as he goes through the stages of grief with an emphasis on denial, in spite of the overwhelming evidence. BY THE TIME YOU READ THIS, fans will agree that Mr. Blunt has provided a terrific personalized Canadian mystery that deserves award nominations.