DANTE'S POISON

A near-blind psychiatrist takes on challenging odds to solve a murder.

Two years after Chicago-based psychiatrist Mark Angelotti was diagnosed with a genetic defect that’s robbing him of his vision, he’s trying to adjust to his new life. Regret about his divorce, grief for the death of his older son and estrangement from his younger son leave him without much hope, except for the chance to improve his vision through a medical study he decides to participate in. Meanwhile, his lawyer friend Hallie Sanchez asks his help in a murder case: Her former boss Jane Barrett has been charged with killing her lover, Rory Gallagher, and Hallie wants Mark as an expert witness. Gallagher, a hard-drinking, chain-smoking reporter once famous for his exposés, seems to have been a classic cardiac arrest victim until the exhumation his nephew requests shows he was poisoned with an anti-psychotic medication from the pharmaceutical company Jane represents. Mark’s testimony against some key witnesses helps set Jane free on bail. With the first stage of the murder trial behind them, Mark and Hallie search for a missing homeless man who once saved Mark’s life. A sneak attack leaves Mark mildly concussed and Hallie in a coma. While he waits anxiously for her to recover, Mark tries to find out not only who attacked them, but also what Gallagher was investigating and whether it’s tied to Jane. A second attempted poisoning, a connection to one of Mark’s other cases and some high-tech aids for the blind work together to give Mark unexpected new hope and the reader even more reason to care about Mark’s future.

Raimondo’s (Dante’s Wood, 2013) flawed, complex and courageous protagonist refuses to give in to his disability. In fact, his heightened intuition and awareness make him an unusual but compelling detective in this brisk, well-crafted second adventure in the series.