Red Cat

by Peter Spiegelman
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John March is a private investigator in New York. Events in his past has turned him into somewhat of a loner and he has promised himself never to allow the dangers associated with his work to get mixed up with his private life.

But then one of his brothers asks him for help. David March has had a short affair with a young woman he knows only as Wren. Wren is now stalking him, threatening to make their affair public unless he agrees to see her again. David wants John to find out who Wren really is and warn her off.

John is already making progress in his investigation when a woman's body is fished out of East River. The police has yet to identify the woman and publishes a photo of a distinguishing mark; a tattoo of a red cat. Realising that the dead woman most likely is Wren and that David now risks being a murder suspect John has to find the real killer before the police finds David.

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This is a really good PI-story. But I think you have to really like this genre to like this book. The characters and their motivations are not ignored, but the focus is the life and work of the private investigator and his interpretations of people, events and behaviours. The book plays it straight with the reader all the way; everything John March discovers is revealed to us, but nothing more. He doesn't realise at the very beginning who the murderer is, and there is no hidden clue that the reader should have noticed to come to the same conclusion. We follow March from clue to clue until all the pieces fall into place as the case is finally solved.

John March is in many ways a classic private investigator; he is the black sheep of the family, he has a background with the police, he has a past that has scarred him, he no longer drinks alcohol but tries to maintain a healthy lifestyle but tends to keep other people at somewhat of a distance. He is not depicted as a tough guy, one that hits first and asks questions later, but an intelligent and compassionate, modern person who works in a structured way, uses the internet for fact finding and keeps detailed notes of his cases and their progress.

I really liked John March and this book, and I wish I had started with the first book in the series. I recommend this book to anyone who likes PI-stories.

Peter Spiegelman has written the following novels:

Featuring John March, private investigator in New York:
Black Maps (2003)
Death's Little Helpers (2005)
Also published as: No Way Home
Red Cat (2007)