Dead Man’s Time

In James’s absorbing ninth crime novel featuring Det. Supt. Roy Grace (after 2012’s Not Dead Yet), Grace investigates the torture murder of 98-year-old Aileen McWhirter and the theft of £10 million in valuable antiques, including a rare 1910 Patek Philippe watch, from her Brighton home. Despite the watch’s high monetary value, it’s the sentimental value that makes 95-year-old Gavin Daly, Aileen’s brother, desperate to recover it, avenge his sister, and discover the fate of his father, who was kidnapped in New York City in 1922 and never seen again. While the police pursue various angles, Gavin’s reckless son, Lucas Daly, takes direct, violent action. In two meaty subplots, ex-con Amis Smallbone plots terrible vengeance on Grace via his lover, Cleo Morey, and their infant son, Noah; and Grace’s ex-wife, Sandy, plans surprises almost equally terrible. The crisp action, which shifts from Sussex to Spain’s Costa del Sol and New York, includes several well-concealed closing twists. Agent: Carole Blake, Blake Friedmann Literary. (Oct.)