THE VILLAIN

Investigators try to track down a killer who may have a connection to their superior in Hunt’s debut whodunit.

One evening in 1993, in an unnamed Russian city,a sex worker named Piala is attacked and murdered, and two detectives, Cord and Force,are tasked with solving the crime. Their search for the criminal, who’s dubbed “The Villain” by a journalist, brings the partners to a local brothel where Cord realizes that the description of Piala’s last client—and prime suspect in her murder—strongly resembles Familiar, his boss’s son. The case only gets worse as two more victims are found at the local hospital, and, later, someone kills the madam of the brothel while she’s walking home. During the investigation, Force meets an alluring woman who goes by the name “Pink Flaminga”; she’s a columnist with a shadowy past whose essays later have an impact on the investigation (in part by giving the killer his nickname). Meanwhile, Cord meets Dia, the daughter of Tsar III, the country’s ruler, and sparks fly. The pair’s romance develops quickly after the two survive a car crash during their first date. As Cord falls further into the case, he tries to balance his work with the deepening relationship. In this novel translated from the Russian, Hunt attempts to present a complex story of a serial killer and a skilled investigator. However, this lengthy tale is convoluted and confusing, involving police corruption, a staged murder attempt, and a main character who’s prone to lengthy, earnest speeches. At one point, Cord is accused of being the killer, but his subsequent interrogation is wrapped up so quickly that it feels superfluous. The romantic plot is sometimes rather sweet and is perhaps the strongest part of the work; Dia appears to gives Cord a sentimental purpose—someone to live for. However, their dialogue often feels stilted and unrealistic, as when Cord deduces Dia’s identity: “ ‘How…how did you?’ ‘Logic,’ Cord winked. ‘Ah…Uh…Well, okay! Yes, I’m Diadem. Only hush-hush, don’t tell anybody!’ ” The story culminates in a dissatisfying, pessimistic ending.

A perplexing and overstuffed thriller.