Dark Traces

August 1, 2017

South African Police Warrant Officer Jan Magson works in Cape Town's Violent Crimes Unit. Still grieving the loss of his wife, he is called to a crime scene just out of town. The pathologist, having discovered that the victim had been hanged before being dumped, remembers a similar recent case. When another body is found, and another girl disappears, Jan and his team find themselves on the hunt for a sadistic serial killer. At the same time, an attempted rapprochement with his estranged son in England does not go well when he refuses to answer his son's questions on how his mother died. Fighting to hold it together so he can stay on the case, Jan races to find the killer before the body count gets higher. VERDICT A damaged but determined detective is matched against a bold and intelligent killer in this captivating debut thriller. Steyn's Cape Town will be familiar to any city dweller who no longer knows their neighbors and hides behind barred windows. [Catalyst is a new press devoted to African literature.--Ed.]--Dan Forrest, Western Kentucky Univ. Libs., Bowling Green

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