A-Z Wednesday: The Rule Book by Rob Kitchin

Title: The Rule Book
Author: Rob Kitchin
ISBN: 978-1906710576
Publisher: Pen Press/2009
Pages: 350

“His eyes fixed on the sword and started to travel its length, down from the black handle, over the plain hilt and along the two-inch wide shaft to where it penetrated the young woman´s mouth. Beneath her head the pillow and sheet were stained a mix of red and black.”

The first paragraph itself jolts the reader and is enough to keep one hooked till the end.

A young woman has been murdered and the killer has left a chapter of The Rule book in her hand bag, which pertains to rules to follow for commiting a perfect murder. Exccept for her first name, no one seems to know much about the murdered woman.

Detective Superintendent Colm McEvoy is upto his nose to find out the killer. Before he can even think how the killer's mind works, each day a murdere takes place with subsequent chapters of the Rule book found at the crime seen. All the killings seem to be random and the police force has no leads to find him. The killer calls himself "the Raven" and meticulously goes on about his planning for the next killings.

Colm McEvoy has recently lot his wife and has a 12 year oold daughter to take care of and now this. All this takes a toll on him as he forgets to have proper meals and doesn't get adequate sleep either. His superiors are none to happy and bring in Charles Deegan, another detective, who can do anything to solve the case even if means nabbing the wrong person. Colm and Charles come into logger heads and Colm is almost taken off the case.

Meanwhile, "the Raven" is happy with all the coverage he gets in the media. He is so arrogant that he knows with his fool proof rules, no one can recognise him or nab him. Yet, he breaks his own rules. Will that help the detectives to catch him? And who he really is?

The Rule Book is graphic in the sense that all the murders are committed differently and there are lots of it as he kills one a day. However, solving the crime is foremost. Although the police forces seem to bicker amongst themselves yet all of them want the killer to be caught and murders to stop. The Raven is one of those ordinary common person and that is a horrifying aspect. He could be anyone.

Rob Kitchin has created a great character in the form of Colm McEvoy, who has all the human failings and that endears him to the reader. The Rule Book is pegged as noir crime fiction and I think that suits it fine.

I had seen this book in some book blogs and requested a copy from the author. He was kind enough to send me one. I am glad he did as it isn't available in India as yet.