WINTER AND NIGHT S. J. Rozan ISBN 0-312-24555-6 February, 2002

S. J. Rozan’s WINTER AND NIGHT is the eighth book in the Lydia Chin / Bill Smith mystery series. It opens with a phone call. N.Y.P.D. has a kid in lock-up and he’s not saying anything. When pressed the kid admits he knows P.I. Bill Smith. With that Bill gets a phone call and series readers set upon another adventure with writer Rozan that reassures us that she will continue to help set the standard in mystery.

After the boy Gary Russell is released into Bill’s custody he escapes from Smith’s apartment and the hunt is on. For reasons both of today and yesterday Bill will not rest until he finds the boy and helps him to do what he must. Your reviewer is not trying to be cryptic here but several layers of our mysterious Mr. Smith’s past come into play and I refuse to spoil that for my fellow fans.

It’s a story about an all too familiar Suburban America. In Warrenstown all revolves around football. There are the “in” kids and the “out” kids. Something bad has just happened in this town and as the story unfolds you realize that its not over yet. It’s not the first time something awful has happened in this town either. A not forgotten but long “not referred to” incident in the past must also be looked at by our dynamic duo if they’re to get to the bottom of this all.

Rozan’s gift as a scribe makes this read something much more than a “ripped from the headlines” narrative. It is her gift that she can create a compelling tale about subjects that we as readers perhaps don’t want to confront. Is it time to stop conforming to the norm when it comes to our kids? Well it certainly is in Warrenstown. Is it our responsibility to speak up and pay attention to what’s going on in our communities? Yes.

That I was left with this resounding ideal in my mind while also being able to unpeel layers of a craftily created mystery narrated by one of my favorite fictional detectives? BONUS. Well done Bill and Lydia and S. J. I can’t imagine it was easy for any of you. Thank you too for making me face some of the things that go bump in the night and are still there when you wake up. I’m glad I was with friends.

Ruth Jordan