From Publishers Weekly
Mortimore's novelization of Jimmy McGovern's screenplay successfully captures the essence of A&E/Granada television's Cracker series starring Robbie Coltrane as crusty Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald. Fitz is a brilliantly unorthodox psychologist. Overweight and overbearing, he's abrasive enough to scratch a diamond, addicted to gambling and alcohol and fighting to keep together his disintegrating family and professional life. He also carries a passionate obsession for truth that awes and frightens the police for whom he sometimes freelances. Bleak, grimy Manchester is the perfect backdrop for him. This second Cracker book is based on the first TV episode: Fitz attempts to hold his ample supply of demons in check while seeking to unmask the murderer of one of his students. Young, pretty Jacqui Appleby falls victim to a peculiar and vicious serial killer on the train between Sheffield and Manchester. Within hours, the police have a battered and bloodied suspect who either suffers?or pretends to suffer?from amnesia. Appleby's bereaved parents give Fitz the leverage to involve himself in the police investigation headed by Detective Chief Inspector Billborough and Detective Sergeant Jane Penhaligon. The sexual and professional tension between Fitz and Penhaligon keeps this Cracker tale roiling towards its climax. Mortimore ably retains the hard, knowing edge that distinguishes McGovern's screenplays.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Based on a screenplay for the award-winning A & E series, Mortimore's novel is a surprisingly complex story that's part provocative commentary on the human condition, part suspenseful murder mystery. Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald is a gifted if unorthodox psychologist whose own psyche is in disarray after his wife leaves him, claiming she's fed up with his drinking, gambling, and self-centeredness. Desperate to fill the void left by her departure, Fitz offers to help the local CID find a brutal serial killer. The coppers, eager to make an arrest, have a suspect in custody. Enter Fitz, whose sledgehammer-like psychoanalytic technique soon has the suspect terrified--but still claiming innocence. DC Jane Penhaligon, a misfit cop with her own personal problems, convinces Fitz the suspect is telling the truth, and soon the cunning, bearlike Fitz and the petite, tough-minded Jane team up to smoke out the real killer. Juxtaposing subtle humor and bloody brutality, plodding mediocrity and stunning brilliance, bleak disappointment and small triumphs, Mortimore's story is high impact, hard hitting, and riveting.
Emily Melton
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
