Part of V.I. Warshawski, book 8
First published 1995
V.I. Warshawski refuses to leave her Chicago office building even as demolition crews prepare to tear it down. The stubborn private investigator works alone among broken electrical systems and vacant hallways. She discovers a homeless mother with three children hiding in the basement, but the family vanishes before she can help them. Then V.I. arrives at work to find Deirdre Messenger's body sprawled across her desk. Deirdre was the wife of a powerful attorney and V.I.'s fellow volunteer at a women's shelter. The police suspect V.I. of murder. She believes Deirdre died because she knew too much about domestic violence in Chicago's elite circles. The abuse has been covered up so skillfully that law enforcement won't investigate. V.I. searches for the truth as the cops turn against her. Her investigation leads into the abandoned tunnel system beneath the city streets, where dangerous secrets hide in the darkness.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, investigative-journalism
Setting: Chicago
Period: 20th-century
480 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Dell
Content warnings: domestic-violence