Phoenix

Connor introduces a tough Yorkshire female cop in his engrossing debut. After joining a fellow detective and the girlfriend of a known drug dealer for one too many drinks at a pub one evening, Det. Constable Karen Sharpe wakes up with a hangover the next morning to discover that she must identify the bodies of her companions, shot the previous night. Det. Chief Supt. John Munro, who heads the investigation, is convinced the case is tied to a botched drug deal. Sharpe, a wildcard who's used to following her own rules, pursues a different angle. She soon realizes that the murders may be linked to her own checkered past as an undercover operative. While U.S. readers may have difficulty at first keeping the various British and Irish political factions straight, Sharpe will remind many of a young Jane Tennison—stubborn, angrily vulnerable, and with some of the best instincts on the force. (Sept.)