robotham's lost

Robotham’s second mystery brings some of the cast from his debut, Suspect, including Detective Inspector Vincent Ruiz and clinical psychologist Joseph O’Loughlin. The novel’s fast-paced action opens with a half-dead Ruiz being fished out of the Thames. When Ruiz awakens from his coma, he discovers that he has no memory of why he was in the river, almost dead from blood loss as a result of a bullet wound to his leg, nor can he remember anything from the week leading up to his injury. With the help of O’Loughlin, Ruiz begins piecing together details that show he was following up on the disappearance of 8-year-old Mickey Carlyle. Ruiz was on the Thames to make a kidnapping payoff. The only problem? Mickey disappeared 3 years ago and a sexual predator has been convicted of her murder. As Ruiz retraces his steps, he relives several incidents from his past that are linked to his need to investigate a closed case. Readers looking for a fast-paced thriller will find plenty of adventure here; Ruiz’s hunt for answers takes him deep into the sewers below London and into the cold waters of the Thames. Robotham has expertly created complex characters; Ruiz, the son of a Gypsy woman raped by German soldiers in World War II, is haunted by the childhood drowning of his half-brother, even though he’s estranged from his own children. Robotham understands that some quests are worth any sacrifice no matter how long the odds of success may be. The result is a subtle and taut thriller, with convincing characters and strong psychological components.