Margaret Truman Murder at the Washington Tribune

Murder at the Washington Tribune

Margaret Truman

Ballantine, Oct 2005, $24.95, 336pp.

ISBN 0345478193

One month ago, someone murdered Washington Tribune "Panache" section reporter Jean Kaporis, who was out of school less than a year. A second female victim is found in Franklin Park with a similar M.O. as that of Jean. Under extreme pressure to break the story from his editor, since their paper was last on the first homicide, crime reporter Joe Wilcox concocts a serial killer theory.

The case is already complicated from Joe's perspective, because his daughter is reporting on it on TV, and he has slept with the MPD lead detective Vargas-Swayze, who is about to drop the hyphen once her divorce is finalized. However, his case and his "serial killer fantasy" merge, turning his involvement even more complex, when Joe's brother Michael is released from the institution he resided in for years after killing a young girl. Could his own sibling be a serial killer, as evidence points in that direction, or is Joe allowing his imagination to run wild by blaming Michael?

Though the police procedural aspects of the case pale next to the journalism, fans of Margaret Truman's long running Capital Crimes mysteries, will enjoy this strong tale that screams for reporter integrity as a key element of democracy. The timing of MURDER AT THE WASHINGTON TRIBUNE is perfect with the Glass scenario, embedded reporters, more reporters dead in Iraq than Nam, and Judith Miller in jail for about two months, as the only person locked away so far with the Plume Affair. Joe is a fabulous protagonist, proud of his daughter, but desperate not to lose his standing, so he crosses the ethical line. This is a terrific crime thriller with a moral message.