A Blood Thing
James Hankins
Thomas & Mercer
Wealth, power and prestige: The Kane family of Vermont has them all. Andrew Kane is in his thirties, the youngest person to be elected governor of Vermont. With a sterling reputation for honesty and incorruptibility he’s on track to the White House. Fate intervenes when a stranger at an opening ceremony hands him a cell phone with instructions to answer it when an arrest is made. Andrew puts the incident down to a crank having fun at his expense. He changes his mind quickly when his brother Tyler is arrested for murder.
Tyler is a challenged individual after a childhood fall left him brain damaged. Andrew, brother Henry, and Tyler’s twin sister Molly know he’s innocent and rally to their sibling’s cause. When the cell phone rings, blackmail begins. Whoever the blackmailer is he knows a frightening amount of detail about the family and their routines. He demands Andrew pardon two imprisoned felons, upping the ante whenever Andrew bucks against the script. Henry, an Internal Affairs Unit cop, begins to do what he can behind the scenes. He’s not averse to breaking the rules, but Tyler’s situation looks bleak. Bodies pile up and pressure intensifies. When the blackmailer begins his end game, Andrew must decide just how far he’ll go to save his innocent sibling—but the cost may be more than anyone can bear.
With great pacing, suspense and believable characters, The Blood Game is a masterpiece of murder-mystery writing with a unique villain and good guys who aren’t quite as good as they should be.
