DUTY ELSEWHERE

by John Wainwright ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 21, 1979

Wainwright at his cops-and-robbers crudest, with a tepid Yorkshire variation on Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry--coppers who go beyond the law to nail bad guys. The bad guy they're after: mobster Adam Cooke, who supposedly died some years back but is spotted briefly by Detective Inspector Lyle while in a hotel for a cop convention. With four other policemen, Lyle goes on ""duty elsewhere,"" a euphemism for freelance, unauthorized police work, to track Cooke down. Meanwhile, Cooke, aided by his loyal wife, is surviving a car accident and up to his usual no good. With surprisingly little violence or skulduggery--considering all the hush-hush stuff about ""duty elsewhere""--the cops go through gang-land to find their man, but there's an ironic twist waiting at the end. It's the only bright touch in a fiat and style-less crime hunt from a tireless mass-producer.

Pub Date: Sept. 21, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1979

Categories: FICTION