The Shadow Walker
Michael Walters
Berkley, Aug 2008, $14.00
ISBN: 9780425222331
In Ulan Bataar, Mongolia, the police are stymied as a silent serial killer stalks the streets. The unknown culprit has left behind his fourth mutilated corpse with a severed head and limbs this time in a luxurious hotel. Former Serious Crimes Chief Nergui is ordered back to lead the official investigation, but is frustrated having made no progress at all in catching the predator.
He needs specialized help as serial killers are outside his experience or any member of the department especially his younger replacement as section chief Doripalam. British CID Chief Inspector Drew McLeish is sent to assist Nergui on his quest to catch the killer before more people die, but he realizes that he knows nothing about the land or the people that he is to profile as he is five thousand miles from home. They work as a team with Nergui providing the insight to the city, the suburbs and the Gobi while Drew brings the profiling even as the body count mounts.
THE SHADOW WALKER is a strong police procedural with an exciting serial killer investigation, but it is the location that makes this tale standout. Nergui is a superb cop, but readers will appreciate even more his in-depth tour guide role as he escorts the audience and Drew around the city, the suburbs and beyond.
Harriet Klausner
