The Book of Lamps and Banners

If The Book of Lamps and Banners had a playlist, it would feature Patti Smith and the Ramones. The fourth thriller in Elizabeth Hand's Cass Neary series finds Cass--"an aging punk jonesing for a drink and a handful of black beauties"--hunting for a rare book. She is "like one of those artificial ecosystems that creates its own bad weather," and her recklessness leads her into trouble at every turn.

Cass is in London looking for Quinn, her lover, when she sees an ancient book that "might contain not just ancient knowledge, but forgotten knowledge." The book is soon stolen, an event that is followed by murders and disappearances of those in the book's orbit. When Cass realizes the book's value, she's determined to chase it down and sell it. She finds Quinn, and Cass, with an addict's confidence, convinces him to help her, hoping "the two of us would finally have enough money to get away someplace safe." 

The high-speed narrative, jittery and swift, mirrors Cass's addiction. She and Quinn follow the book's trail to Sweden, where the black-and-white landscape is a sinister background to Cass's growing obsession. "This kind of thing never ends well. It hasn't even begun well," Quinn tells her in one last appeal for her to quit. But her fantasy of a different life fuels her, and she moves inexorably toward the explosive conclusion. Fans of Scandinavian crime fiction will enjoy this excellent series offering an intelligent puzzle along with gritty reality. --Cindy Pauldine, bookseller, the river's end bookstore, Oswego, N.Y.

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