Review: The Strangler by William Landay

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Review of “The Strangler” by William Landay:
Mr. Landay has become one of my favorite mystery authors. He’s published 2 books so far with the third one to be released 1/31/12. His first effort was “Mission Flats”. It was terrific and won the Dagger Award for best debut crime novel in 2003.
“The Strangler” is set in Boston in 1963. The country is shaken by the recent assassination of President John F. Kennedy and Boston, in particular, is reeling from a rapist/murderer on the loose. Dubbed by the press as “The Boston Strangler” the women of Boston are terrified.
However, this book is not about the assassination or even much about the Boston Strangler despite the title. It is about three Irish brothers and centers around the murder of their father and the mystery surrounding it. There is mob, there is police corruption, murder, gambling. Every element that makes a terrific mystery. One a cop, one a Assistant to the Attorney General and the other a non-apologetic burglar.
The only slightly negative thing I will say Mr. Landay could have developed his characters a little more. This is the reason for the 4 stars instead of 5. I didn’t really feel I knew any of them. That being said, I still loved this book.
I will not post anything that might be a spoiler to others, but let it suffice to say, this book is well worth the read for the ending alone. Mr. Landay is very good at keeping you guessing up until the last page. I really liked the ending and even though the thought of it had occurred to me, I dismissed it out of hand because it didn’t fit.
If you choose to read this book, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Mr. Landay has a new novel titled “Defending Jacob” being released on January 31, 2012. Needless to say, I have it pre-ordered. I’m a big fan and the new book sounds intriguing.