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Frederick Troy was twenty-nine years old in 1944. While London was recovering from the bombings that ravished parts of the city, Det. Sgt. Troy was recovering from a gunshot that ravished his kidney and small intestine. Thus the theme is set for the latest novel in this mystery series as it compares and contrasts the fallout wrought by world warfare and gang warfare.
Ladslaw Kolankiewicz, arms expert and longtime friend, insists on teaching Troy how to defend himself. So even though Troy believes in an unarmed police force, he spends weeks becoming proficient in every handgun available because Kolankiewicz does not want to see him shot to death. Troy is surrounded by many such close friends and they remain together over the years as the novel picks up again in 1959.
It is then that one of his best mates is killed by a car bomb blast and Troy is injured as well. While on sick leave he spends an inordinate amount of time in bed, and not alone. Not only is he separated from his wife, but his lover, Foxx, hands him an ultimatum, and he is comforted by his doctor, Anna, in very non-medical fashion. Then along comes his old flame from America, who is now the wife of a presidential hopeful, but all Kate wants to do is spark up Troy again. Whew.
The first half of FLESH WOUNDS reads like a soap opera with tiny bubbles of the mystery barely visible. Even after mutilated bodies start showing up, the investigation takes a back seat to simultaneous affairs, historical detours and various manipulations designed to get Troy to intervene with his Opposition Party Leader brother, Rod, for political favors. But once our Chief Superintendent becomes serious about getting to the bottom of things, we are offered an excellent look at the police work that has made Scotland Yard a force to be reckoned with.
John Lawton has written an ambitious book that encompasses postwar politics, ruthless gang activities, old-fashioned police work, and relationships complicated enough to make Danielle Steel smile. Lawton is not afraid to push the envelope when it comes to the horrific violence of the underworld or to traditionally taboo sexual themes. The work is perceptive and witty while the English vernacular is fun and definitely increases the reader's store of epithets.
--- Reviewed by Maggie Harding, a substance abuse counselor in Phoenix, AZ who wanted to be Brenda Starr before life intervened. She also reviews for www.faithfulreader.com and www.womenonwriting.com. To contact Maggie, email Magster2@cox.net.
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