MYSTERY

Countdown City

by Ben H. Winters
Quirk, dist. by Random. (The Last Policeman, Bk. 2). Jul. 2013. 320p. ISBN 9781594746260. pap. $14.95; ebk. ISBN 9781594746277. M
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Hank Palace, protagonist of the Edgar Award-winning The Last Policeman, returns in this sequel, set 77 days before an asteroid will destroy Earth. Things have gotten worse in New Hampshire: Hank has been fired since all police work has been federalized, his sister is still running with a group that claims that it's all a government conspiracy and only they can save the world, and an old family friend asks him to find her husband. Hank reluctantly agrees, but with so many people dropping out to pursue their bucket lists and no telephones or electricity, it won't be easy.
VERDICT Winters has written another complex mystery with plenty of possible motives, suspicious characters, and rich details of a society slowly coming apart, although the local library remains open, of course, staffed by its dedicated librarians and volunteers. As the end nears for Hank and the rest of the world, he struggles to find both the missing husband and a reason to keep looking. Anyone who enjoyed Winters's previous novel will like this outing, as will other readers interested in a good mystery in an innovative setting.
Reviewed by Dan Forrest, Western Kentucky Univ. Libs., Bowling Green , Jun 01, 2013
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