In the Dark by Mark Billingham
Apparently Mark Billingham is a well known author of mystery novels, but this is a departure from his normal series. I haven’t read any of his normal series, but if this is typical of his style, they must be very stark and realistic.
This book begins with a random drive-by shooting, or that’s what it appears. A gang initiation requires one young man to fire a gun into a car chosen by his friends. The frightened driver loses control of the car and drives into a group of pedestrians waiting for a bus. One is killed.
The dead man happens to be a cop, and his pregnant girlfriend is even more determined than the rest of the police to get to the bottom of what exactly happened. Using a mix of careful police work, and the contacts she maintains with his friends to work out what happened.
This is a wonderfully crafted novel with many layers of complexity. Nothing is exactly as it appears. In many ways the young shooter is one of the more sympathetic characters in the book. But the story is well structured and the solution is not too extreme.
This is truly a frightening book about senseless violence, directionless youth, and a society totally dedicated to personal gain. But it is a very good read and will certainly give you plenty to think about as you read it.
