S. J. Rozan, In This Rain

In This Rain

S. J. Rozan

Delacorte, January 2007, $24.00

ISBN: 038533804X

Nurse's aide Harriet Winston iss walking past a construction site in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx when she is hit by a falling object and dies. She is the third victim to be killed at the location. New York City's Buildings Department of Investigation case worker Ann Montgomery is assigned to look into the deadly incidents to ascertain neglect, another type of violation or sabotage, as three is too much for coincidence, though the first two are linked.

Her inquiry has wider implications. The developer Walter Glybenhall, a campaign donor and personal friend of Mayor Charlie Barr, has put in a bid for a bigger project in Harlem that has racial overtones, as Harlem developer Ford Carrington has put in a bid too and political impact, as Manhattan Borough President Edgar Westermann covets moving to Gracie Mansion. Within the department others want to push the case against Glybenhall for personal reasons, complicating a messy investigation. Harriet realizes she needs help, so she turns to her former partner, Joe Cole, who just spent two plus years in prison due to perjury while testifying on a wrongful death probe; he wants nothing to do with this mess.

Timely with the recent elections, this is a terrific look at the link between local politics, campaign funding and business deals in which the Big Apple is the star for sale by its leaders. The storyline is action-packed, and filled with a myriad of believable characters from Harlem to Gramercy Park to the Bronx and elsewhere. The cleverly designed construction investigation enhances the vast lifestyles of New Yorkers that range from corrupt, lethal, to fast-paced and adrenaline pumping.