Devil’s Kitchen
-
-
4.0 • 6 Ratings
-
-
- $14.99
-
- $14.99
Publisher Description
When a city's heroes become its boldest criminals . . .
For years the firefighters of New York's Engine 99 have rushed fearlessly into hot zones, saving countless lives and stopping devastating blazes in their tracks.
They've also stolen millions from banks, jewellery stores and art galleries. With their inside knowledge and specialist equipment they've become the most successful heist crew on the East Coast.
Their newest member, Andrea 'Andy' Nearland, is not what she seems either. She's an undercover operative, hunting the men of Engine 99 for a host of crimes - including the murder of an off-duty cop and the disappearance of a mother and child.
As the clock counts down to the gang's most daring heist yet, loyalties begin to fray and mistrust boils over. Andy's career is all smoke and mirrors, but infiltrating this crew of 'heroes' might prove her most dangerous job of all . . .
'One of the world's most original thriller writers.' Reader's Digest
'Australia's globally bestselling crime queen.' Australian Women's Weekly
'One of Australian's finest new-gen crime writers.' Sydney Morning Herald
Customer Reviews
New York’s fieriest
3.5 stars
The author is an Australian crime novelist, who shifted her theatre of operation to the US a few years ago after meeting James Patterson. FTR, I think the titles published under her own name are better than those where she shares billing with JP (his name on top, of course).
A group of NY firefighters has a lucrative side hustle: burglary. They scope out targets while “on the job” at fires in adjacent buildings, interfere with alarm systems etc then come back and score. Or just set fires and score while putting them out. The leader is a damaged man who survived the Twin Towers when most of his then squaddies did not make it, and harbours considerable guilt as a result. Everyone else has emotional and psychological baggage too, including the thirty-something female freelance investigator who infiltrates the squad. (She works with the FBI using methods they aren’t allowed to.) Basically, everyone’s got secrets. There’s double crosses galore. The body count rises, and not just from the fires. Dramatic conclusion with more deaths. Ultimate resolution. Sort of.
Pace starts out moderately high and steadily increases. Detail of firefighting (Ms Fox did considerable research with fieries in Oz and the US) makes ‘Backdraft’ seem like toasting marshmallows around a camp fire. Main characters all damaged, and not particularly credible IMO. I would have preferred less interior monologues and more heists. Maybe a few more fires too.