The murders were spaced out over a long time period and are possibly linked to the death of a much older woman named Margaret Potts who made her living as a prostitute. The deaths were all caused by strangulation and were found close to the service area, but remote enough not to have been discovered right after the women were murdered.

The first order of business is the identification of the young women. No one of similar description has been reported missing. Using estimated time of death provided by the medical examiner and closed circuit TV tapes of the service area, the team eventually zeroes in on a white van that has appeared on several of the tapes during the targeted time period though they are not able to quickly trace the van in question.

A men currently in prison named Cameron Welsh makes contact with the team. Anna is not thrilled having put said man where he currently resides some years ago. She remembers him well and dislikes him intensely. She is quite upset when she is told by her superiors that she must meet with this man in prison because he claims to have information that will aid in the resolution of the murders.

Even at the first meeting Welsh makes Anna's skin crawl. She wants nothing to do with the man but others on the team view some of Welsh's comments as insightful. Anna is forced to continue the meetings even as Welsh seems to become more and more obsessed with Anna. Welsh begins to believe that any other male who speaks with Anna is his rival. His rage escalates to the point that prison officials are finding it increasingly difficult to contain the man.

Meanwhile progress on the serial murders (if that is what they are) continues at a snail's pace until some serendipitous events occur which provide clues for Anna. As has been the case in the past, she relegates her personal life to the back burner as she becomes convinced that she is on the right track and her cohorts are pursuing irrelevant leads.

Though the front cover of Blind Fury leads one to believe this tale is a thriller, it has more the flavor and characteristics of a police procedural. The pace of the action is slow as the team members doggedly pursue what few clues they have as to the identity of the victims as well as the connection of an obviously aging prostitute with several young twenty-something women. Though the careful examination of the little available evidence underscores the methods and patience many police inquiries entail, those yearning for action and confrontation will be disappointed.

Though in real life I'm sure cases are solved as a result of an alert investigator noticing something that looks out of place or makes connections that prove fruitful, Anna seems to have cornered the market on finding the nuggets that provide leads to the case's solution. No one else notices the significance of a blue blanket wrapped around one of the victims. No one else questions why some of the players in the drama seem to have more money than fits with their life situation.

Many readers will have no difficulty in identifying the killer in this case. The author seems more interested in the why than the who in the story. The various avenues the team travels in the pursuit of clues emphasize the tedium of police work though there is little complaint among the troops. To varying degrees each team member seems dedicated to the job. Another unusual situation is the amount of time and staff support that the superiors are willing to devote to this case to the exclusion of other duties strains the well worn suspension of disbelief. However the author does deliver a diversion that will maintain your attention on a long plane ride or a rainy fall weekend.

--Amdy Plonka