Deadly Sins

While avoiding crime-thriller clichés, this mystery confronts some very dark places in the human soul. Set in New York City, the novel opens with the discovery of several mangled bodies strewn across Central Park. NYPD's finest are baffled: the murders appear to be the demented handy work of a serial killer but are uniquely sinister because of the killer's sick religious agenda. In particular, detective Jonathan Washbergâ€"who thinks he has seen everything during his years on the forceâ€"gets a very bad vibe about the case. When he realizes that he might be the target of this madman, he immediately takes action, ducking through the murky alleys behind the tourist attractions before descending into the sewer system to find the killer's lair.