SPD BLUE - TRUE CRIME

A New York detective and Navy reservist investigates major crimes in the late 1990s in this fifth installment of Murphy’s mystery series.

Patrick “Mac” MacKenna juggles many things in his jam-packed daily life: He works in the Criminal Investigations Division, is on call for SWAT, and is a devoted single father to his three kids. Still, when a United States Navy recruiter approaches him, he agrees to join the reserves, hoping he’ll wind up in Naval Intelligence. In the meantime, Mac closes cases in Syracuse, NY, from tracking down a husband who may have tried to kill his hospitalized wife to the mysterious accidental death of a 2-year-old boy. CID handles a variety of dreadful crimes, including shootings, stabbings, robberies, and aggravated assaults, but as 1998 speeds toward the new millennium, readers know the real-life 2001 tragedy awaiting these characters. In due time, Mac is made a reservist on active duty assigned to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, empowered to play his part in fighting the War on Terrorism. The author, whose career in law enforcement has inspired this series, delivers a largely procedural narrative. He zeroes in on more mundane aspects of police work, like walking a suspect into CID, detailing the ingredients of a solid interrogation, and planning a CID Christmas party (“A good time was had by all, and this gave Mac a warm feeling. He hadn’t really had time to eat or drink, but that didn’t matter”); there is not much time spent on investigating. The detectives make quick arrests and work what the text dubs a “run-of-the-mill assault case” or “typical whodunit.” While the author excels at developing camaraderie between Mac and his fellow detectives, Mac’s personal life feels decidedly impersonal—the reader is afforded mere glimpses of his growing children and his beloved, estranged second wife, who he calls NMI (with no real name provided). Still, Mac is a likable protagonist, which makes the tense moments (such as fending off a crazed muscular assailant) all the more suspenseful.

An appealing law enforcement professional elevates this otherwise conventional crime story.