by J. J. Marric
Part of Gideon, book 7
First published 1974
Commander George Gideon stares at the charred remains of another building as flames still lick at the edges. London burns while an arsonist strikes without pattern or mercy. The fires spread faster than Gideon's Scotland Yard team can track them. Each blaze brings new victims and fresh evidence that leads nowhere. The perpetrator knows the city's vulnerabilities and exploits them with surgical precision. Gideon must navigate departmental politics while his officers work around the clock. The press demands answers he cannot give. Citizens grow fearful as the attacks escalate. Time runs short before the next fire claims more lives. Gideon races against both the clock and a criminal who seems always one step ahead. The investigation tests every skill he has developed over decades of police work.
Genres: 20th-century, mystery, crime, thriller, detective, police
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: cat-and-mouse, police-procedural, race-against-time
Setting: London, Scotland Yard
Period: 20th-century
350 pages · Hardcover · Ulverscroft