A MOMENT OF MADNESS

A hard-bitten reporter covering a juicy celebrity murder gets way too close to his subject.

Reworking the formula of When the Dead Cry Out (2005), Bonner this time subordinates workaholic Detective Inspector Karen Meadows to jaded journalist John Kelly. Closing in on 50 and indifferent to both his live-in love Moira and his job at the Evening Argus, Kelly sees a lifeline in the murder of rock superstar Scott Silver, found dead next to Terry James, an apparent intruder. Kelly harbors a secret about Scott’s widow Angel, who was a renowned child star before becoming part of pop music’s most famous couple. In between her two periods in the spotlight, Angel was a prostitute and drug addict. Using his knowledge as leverage for exclusive interviews with Angel, Kelly meanwhile fights his strong attraction to her. The information Kelly gets from Angel basically jibes with Karen’s theory of the crime: that Terry James killed Scott and was in turn killed by Angel. Not everything Kelly learns, however, is consistent with Angel’s account, which he champions. At her trial, Angel’s claim of self-defense rather than revenge convinces a jury to exonerate her. His career revitalized, Kelly’s wracked by doubt and guilt that only deepen when he finally enters into a long-delayed affair with the far-from-grieving widow.

Intense suspense from a veteran, with a surprising final twist.