cover image Panic Attack: A Daniel Rinaldi Thriller

Panic Attack: A Daniel Rinaldi Thriller

Dennis Palumbo. Poisoned Pen, $15.99 trade paper (384p) ISBN 978-1-4642-1345-8

When a sniper kills the Teasdale College mascot during a football game at the Pennsylvania college in Palumbo’s solid sixth Daniel Rinaldi thriller (after 2018’s Head Wounds), clinical psychologist Rinaldi, who’s watching the game, soon discovers the victim isn’t Jason Graham, the student who was supposed to be wearing the tiger costume. Graham, fearful he was the intended target, hides at a nearby motel, where he says he’ll speak only to Rinaldi, who he remembers is a consultant with the Pittsburgh PD from the commencement speech Rinaldi gave at Teasdale. After Rinaldi helps Graham through a panic attack and gleans information that will help the case, a similar shooting occurs—of a woman in her 60s. Rinaldi’s lover, FBI agent Gloria Reese, joins the investigation into what the media dub the Steel City Sniper. As the death toll continues to climb, it looks as if the victims are random, until Rinaldi and Reese unearth a disturbing connection among them. Some smart detective work makes up for the not always credible relationship between Reese and Rinaldi. This is not the place to start for newcomers. Agent: Ken Atchity, Atchity Entertainment. (Sept.)