GHOSTS OF ANGELS

A Chicago cop searches for the leaders of an ancient cult with the assistance of the great beyond in this debut thriller.

Nick Palmer, Lawrence’s protagonist, is in no shape to be roped into a paranormal quest. His wife, Isabela, has left him and taken their young daughter, Lucy, back to her parents’ home in California. But Nick is being kept awake by his current case, in which the body of a young woman, Susan Roberts, was found dressed in a robe, kneeling in front of a church. Nick’s first lead in the case comes from Margaux, a ghostly young woman appearing in his mirror who had been killed in a similar manner to Roberts. Over the next few weeks, Nick receives visits from other women, murdered at the same age in an identical way on the same date in different years, from around the globe. The haunted Nick takes a leave to solve the mystery on his own. He heads to Paris, where he meets Henri Deneuve, Margaux's brother, who becomes his investigative helper. Aided by Nick’s partner-turned-lover Gabriela Martinez and later Henri’s other sister, Madeline, the two sleuths uncover a Mexico-based cult that has been sacrificing women for hundreds of years. But can they end the cult’s reign of terror before they get added to the body count? In his spine-tingling novel, Lawrence has created a mesmerizing, creepy travelogue as Nick journeys to various cities to look into each girl’s murder. He stays just ahead of assassins sent after him while academic Henri assembles the pieces to discover the cult. The author keeps readers anxious by continually throwing obstacles in Nick’s path as he methodically tracks the cult to its home in Mexico City. In addition to the country-hopping, fast-moving narrative, characterization is another of Lawrence’s strengths. Gabriela helps keep stressed Nick focused, and the Deneuve siblings dispense Continental wisdom that the American detective badly needs. In addition, the family members long behind the cult are properly venal, making them fit as hissable villains. What results from the author’s heady blend of history and characters is an entrancing read.

This globe-trotting whodunit succeeds as a chilling pleasure.