Petey's Fiction Review

 

Isle of Dogs

by Patricia Cornwell

As an investigation into the brutal murder of a trucker gets under way, the disconnected-from-reality governor of Virginia orders speed traps painted on the highways of Tangier, an island 14 miles off the coast of Virginia in Chesapeake Bay. The angry Isle of Dogs inhabitants, eccentric descendants of pirates, respond in the only way they know how; they declare war on the State of Virginia.

Superintendent of State Police Judy Hammer and her right-hand man, State Trooper Andy Brazil, a former reporter, are directed to implement and enforce the governor's ill-conceived plan, even as they try to dismantle it. Blogging as "Trooper Truth," Andy posts strategic messages on the Trooper Truth Web site, causing the intended recipients to react in predictable ways.

Together, Hammer and Brazil contrive clever deceptions to defuse the "war," free a hostage, foil the theft of a helicopter, and bring a vicious killer to justice.

Darkly funny, Isle of Dogs is one of Patricia Cornwell's best novels, surpassing even her famed Kay Scarpetta mysteries. With Isle of Dogs, Cornwell moves into Hiaasen and Westlake country, and stakes a claim of her own.

Visit Patricia Cornwell's Web site at www.patriciacornwell.com/home.html

Review by Phil Hanson

Click on the title to order your copy of Isle of Dogs.

Copyright © 2005 by Phil Hanson
All rights reserved.

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