Killer heat : a novel

Format:

Book (large print)

Title:

Killer heat : a novel

Author:

Fairstein, Linda A.

ISBN:

9780739327654

Edition:

1st large print ed.

Publication Information:

New York : Random House Large Print, 2008.

Physical Description:

559 pages (large print) : map ; 24 cm.

Series title(s):

Alexandra Cooper novels ;

Number in series:

10.

Summary:

The body of a young woman has been found in an abandoned building. The brutality of the murder is disturbing enough, but when a second body, beaten and disposed of in exactly the same manner, the city's top brass want the killer found fast. It becomes clear to Manhattan D.A. Alex Cooper and her team that time is not on their side.

Personal Subject:

Cooper, Alexandra (Fictitious character)-Fiction.

Cooper, Alexandra (Fictitious character) (OCoLC)fst00878109

Subject(s):

Public prosecutors -- Fiction.

Serial murderers -- Fiction.

New York (N.Y.) -- Fiction.

Geographic Term:

New York (N.Y.) -- Fiction.

New York (State) -- New York.

Genre:

Large type books.

Legal fiction (Literature)

Detective and mystery fiction.

Fiction.

Mystery fiction.

Legal stories.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Dallas Public Library	LARGE PRINT - FAIRSTEIN	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

It's August in New York, and the only thing that's hotter than the pavement is Manhattan D.A. Alex Cooper's professional and personal life. Just as she's claiming an especially gratifying victory in a rape case, she gets the call: the body of a young woman has been found in an abandoned building. The brutality of the murder is disturbing enough, but when a second body, beaten and disposed of in exactly same manner, is found off the Belt Parkway, the city's top brass want the killer found fast, before the tabloids can start churning out ghoulish serial killer headlines.
Between dodging the bullets of the gang members who are infuriated by Alex's most recent courtroom victory and keeping a rendezvous with a charming restaurateur, a serial killer on the loose is the last thing she needs on her plate right now. Then a third victim is found, and it becomes clear to Alex and her team that time is not on their side.
Through Alex's peerless interrogation skills--and one big break--the search becomes focused on someone who has a twisted obsession with the military, and things grow increasingly dangerous when the chase leads to a chain of small, abandoned islands around New York harbor.
Once again Linda Fairstein brilliantly orchestrates a page-turning mix of cutting-edge legal issues and forensics, New York City history, and spine-tingling suspense. And at the center of it all is Alex Cooper--stunning, single-minded, accomplished, and not to be trifled with whether she's in or out of a courtroom.

Author Notes

Linda Fairstein was born in Mt. Vernon, New York on May 5, 1947. She received a B. A. in English literature from Vassar College in 1969 and a law degree from the University of Virginia in 1972. She was appointed to the staff of the New York County District Attorney's office in 1972. She investigated crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence. She retired in 2002. She is the author of the Alexandra Cooper Mysteries series and one nonfiction book entitled Sexual Violence: Our War Against Rape.

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

At the start of bestseller Fairstein's nail-biting 10th legal thriller to feature alter ego Alex Cooper (after 2006's Bad Blood), the Manhattan ADA takes a hit from a cigar at the urging of her longtime police ally, Mike Chapman-to cover the stench of a badly decomposed female body at a crime scene in an abandoned building near the Staten Island ferry. The victim later proves to be the first of a number of women in uniform targeted by the murderer, who may have military ties in his past. The trail leads to a notorious bar catering to underage drinkers, before a chance observation by a civilian shifts the inquiry dramatically. Meanwhile, Cooper is preparing to try Floyd Warren, a rapist whose first trial three decades earlier ended in a hung jury. Fairstein, whose professional resume includes groundbreaking work in the field of sex crimes prosecution, manages to both entertain and educate, as Cooper struggles with the evidentiary challenges of the Warren rape case and with tracking a vicious serial killer. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

True serial killers are rare, we're told in Fairstein's latest thriller starring Manhattan sex-crimes prosecutor Alex Cooper and homicide detective Mike Chapman. Rare they may be, but one is on the loose, using the city's muddy, mosquito-infested waterfront and the relatively unpopulated islands that dot New York Harbor for his body dumps. Three women, who seem to have nothing in common other than their extraordinarily brutal manner of death, have been found in these remote areas. A drab olive blanket, left at each crime scene, provides the first real clue, which eventually leads Alex and Mike to New York's Governor's Island for a lesson in a little-known bit of American history. Then another young woman is abducted, and the hunt intensifies. Alex proves an able narrator, though Fairstein seems less comfortable writing romantic banter (there's a sappy candlelight dinner scene between Alex and her boyfriend, Luc) than she is penning courtroom scenes or expostulating on crime theory. But series fans won't mind; there's ample drama here (Alex is the target of a murderous Latino gang), and tough but vulnerable Mike's usual snappy combacks and his dedication to Alex, whom he calls Blondie, continue to provide entertainment along the way.--Zvirin, Stephanie Copyright 2007 Booklist

Library Journal Review

In her tenth Alexandra Cooper thriller (after Bad Blood), Fairstein delivers a scorcher of a crime novel-her hottest yet. The assistant DA alternates between the courtroom and crime scenes amid the sweltering summer heat of Manhattan. As she works to convict a serial rapist accused of over 50 rapes in a 35-year-old cold case, verbal and physical threats from vengeance-seeking drug-gang members heat up the courtroom. Alex is called to a crime scene in an abandoned government building, and soon two other young women vanish. Similarities in the cases suggest the possibility of a serial killer, and Alex and colleagues Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace brave rising temperatures and isolated locations in hot pursuit of the killer. Partly based on a 2006 crime, the novel delivers taut suspense, action-packed chases, historical glimpses of Manhattan, and a smattering of romance. Readers will not want to put down this red-hot thriller until they've turned the final page. It's essential for all public libraries.-Mary Todd Chesnut, Northern Kentucky Univ. Lib., Highland Heights (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.