Librarian Tim recommends: Flood by Andrew Vachss (this book is available through interlibrary loan)

Burke is a detective and con-artist working in New York City. A foster child and ex-con, he has a special feeling for cases involving abused children. When a mysterious woman named Flood arrives, Burke is hired to find a child killer so she can take revenge. I read about this series when it was name-checked by the great Irish crime writer Ken Bruen, and I was very impressed. Vachss writes in the hard-boiled American detective story tradition, and Burke walks the mean streets of New York City filled with prostitutes, street corner prophets and runaways. The characters in particular are memorable, with Burke coming off as an updated Philip Marlowe, and his colleagues like the technology expert The Mole are drawn with subtlety and care. This was a very well written and consistently engaging story, and I look forward to checking out the rest of the series. Fans of dark crime fiction will find much to enjoy here.

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