TENACITY

Murder, assault, and submarines plumbing the depths of the seas take center stage in Law’s debut.

Danielle "Dan" Lewis is a Royal Navy lieutenant assigned to the investigative division known as Crimes Involving Loss of Life, or Kill, as it’s colloquially known. In 2010, Lewis misled her own partner and faced off against serial killer Christopher Hamilton, nearly losing her life in the process. When a series of papers she wrote on the case was leaked along with her theory that Hamilton didn’t work alone, she became a pariah and cultural curiosity. Now, Lewis has been assigned to take a look at the purported suicide of an old friend, Stewart Walker, a member of the ship’s company aboard the submarine Tenacity. Complicating matters is the recent homicide of Walker’s wife, Cheryl, who was killed similarly to Hamilton’s victims. Dan, who is concealing evidence from her fellow investigators, ends up onboard the Tenacity when it’s underway, interviewing a mostly hostile crew. Law understands dramatic tension and sets the stage nicely for the very detailed scenes aboard the submarine, and his description of life inside a sub is fascinating. But Dan—slated to be the central character in future books—proves a less-than-sympathetic heroine. She takes ridiculous chances and isn’t a team player, both qualities that call into question her highly regimented career choices. And while the book may be worth the time, readers may grow tired of the author’s fondness for imagery and similes. Less, in this case, would have been more.

A good yarn that suffers from florid overwriting.