With No One as Witness

Elizabeth George

Book 13 of Inspector Lynley

Language: English

Publisher: Harper

Published: Jan 1, 2005

Description:

“[A] juicy serial killer whodunit.”
USA Today

“Delicately textured...achingly compassionate....It’s one of George’s best, and that’s saying something.”
Seattle Times

The 13th novel in Elizabeth George’s acclaimed, New York Times bestselling Inspector Linley crime fiction series, With No One as Witness is arguably the most riveting, shocking, and emotionally compelling of the lot. The hunt for a serial killer who has been murdering and mutilating young boys in London has Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Thomas Lynley and his team of investigators racing to stop the slaughter, only to have the investigation nearly derailed by one devastating, truly game changing event. An American author, George has been praised as “a master of the British mystery” by the New York Times, one of only two Yanks whose crime novels have been adapted for the PBS TV series, “Mystery,”  and her exceptional police procedurals rank with the best of Ian Rankin, Peter Robinson, and Ruth Rendell.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Acting Supt. Thomas Lynley and Det. Constable Barbara Havers face their most challenging and perilous case yet—the linked murders of four youths, three of black or mixed parentage—in bestseller George's absorbing 13th British police procedural (after 2003's A Place of Hiding). Crime fans will find plenty of forensic minutiae and details of police bureaucracy and politics, but it's characterization at which George really excels. The up-and-down career of Havers is at low ebb following her demotion from sergeant to constable, and her rocky personal life doesn't make that easier to bear. Lynley's professional life has become more difficult due to the continued absence of Supt. Malcolm Webberly and the need to deal directly with Asst. Commissioner David Hillier. The tension builds as the brutal serial killings continue and the pressure to solve them mounts. George expertly uses every device in the book from red herrings to blind alleys, from subtle twists to swift shocks. This is an outstanding and explosive addition to a popular series.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Starred Review Issues of racism within the police are brought to the fore when the ritualistic murder of a teenage boy is linked to the deaths of three other youths. It's clear there's a serial killer at work, and New Scotland Yard is called in to solve the case and quell accusations of police prejudice. Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley has his hands full----not only with finding the murderer but also with ensuring that volatile Barbara Havers doesn't further damage her career. Then there's the matter of keeping an eye on a tabloid reporter and a profiler whom intractable Assistant Commissioner Hillier has foisted on the team. Veteran thriller writer George, an American, is as at home with the social dynamics of the seedier parts of London as she is with the multidimensional personalities of Lynley and his colleagues (Winston Nkata, in particular, really comes into his own here). This is a riveting installment in a superb series--far more than just plain good. It's also a turning point for the series as George makes some bold, surprising decisions that permanently change the lives of the characters her fans have come to know. Stephanie Zvirin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

“[A] juicy serial killer whodunit.”
USA Today

“Delicately textured...achingly compassionate....It’s one of George’s best, and that’s saying something.”
Seattle Times

The 13th novel in Elizabeth George’s acclaimed, New York Times bestselling Inspector Linley crime fiction series, With No One as Witness is arguably the most riveting, shocking, and emotionally compelling of the lot. The hunt for a serial killer who has been murdering and mutilating young boys in London has Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Thomas Lynley and his team of investigators racing to stop the slaughter, only to have the investigation nearly derailed by one devastating, truly game changing event. An American author, George has been praised as “a master of the British mystery” by the New York Times, one of only two Yanks whose crime novels have been adapted for the PBS TV series, “Mystery,” and her exceptional police procedurals rank with the best of Ian Rankin, Peter Robinson, and Ruth Rendell.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Acting Supt. Thomas Lynley and Det. Constable Barbara Havers face their most challenging and perilous case yet—the linked murders of four youths, three of black or mixed parentage—in bestseller George's absorbing 13th British police procedural (after 2003's A Place of Hiding). Crime fans will find plenty of forensic minutiae and details of police bureaucracy and politics, but it's characterization at which George really excels. The up-and-down career of Havers is at low ebb following her demotion from sergeant to constable, and her rocky personal life doesn't make that easier to bear. Lynley's professional life has become more difficult due to the continued absence of Supt. Malcolm Webberly and the need to deal directly with Asst. Commissioner David Hillier. The tension builds as the brutal serial killings continue and the pressure to solve them mounts. George expertly uses every device in the book from red herrings to blind alleys, from subtle twists to swift shocks. This is an outstanding and explosive addition to a popular series.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Starred Review Issues of racism within the police are brought to the fore when the ritualistic murder of a teenage boy is linked to the deaths of three other youths. It's clear there's a serial killer at work, and New Scotland Yard is called in to solve the case and quell accusations of police prejudice. Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley has his hands full----not only with finding the murderer but also with ensuring that volatile Barbara Havers doesn't further damage her career. Then there's the matter of keeping an eye on a tabloid reporter and a profiler whom intractable Assistant Commissioner Hillier has foisted on the team. Veteran thriller writer George, an American, is as at home with the social dynamics of the seedier parts of London as she is with the multidimensional personalities of Lynley and his colleagues (Winston Nkata, in particular, really comes into his own here). This is a riveting installment in a superb series--far more than just plain good. It's also a turning point for the series as George makes some bold, surprising decisions that permanently change the lives of the characters her fans have come to know. Stephanie Zvirin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved