COLD BLOOD

Paris Murphy, of St. Paul Homicide, returns in a mystery as sudsy as her debut (Clean Cut, 2003).

It’s all about Paris—gorgeous Paris (“long black hair, violet eyes . . . narrow waist but big breasts”), with whom all the opposite sex is so desperately in love that simply counting the ways leaves little room for mystery or suspense. Sure, there are the obligatory murders, but the monster responsible is too color-me-evil to take seriously. His parents christened him Justice Trip; schoolyard bullies tacked on “Sweet” as a form of abuse. Everyone abuses Trip: his loopy dad, a variety of mean-spirited bosses, women in general, and Paris, another schoolmate, in particular—or at least so Trip thinks, concluding that he has no choice but to become a serial killer. Meanwhile, back at the cop shop, the really important stuff is happening. Homicide Commander Axel Duncan joins the ranks of the besotted, forming a quadrangle with Paris’s husband and lover. Jack, the husband, and Erik, the lover, are both hunks, of course, and jealous as you please. When she’s not keeping the hunks from demolishing each other, Paris finds a free moment to set a trap for Trip—easy prey, after all, since he too, in his own sociopathic way, is crazy about Paris.

Stumbles as mystery, though it might work for readers who demand romance at any price.