Killer's Wedge

The 7th book in McBain’s groundbreaking series of police procedurals — a genre he basically invented — seems to be having a bit of fun. In previous books, McBain’s introductions and afterwords, written many decades later, explain how his publishers did not want Detective Steve Carella to be killed off, nor did they want him to be the main attraction in the series. Carella was seen as too much the good guy — happily married to a wife he adored, the now-pregnant Teddy. So in this book, under instructions from the publishers to focus on the other members of the 87th precinct detective squad, Carella hardly appears. And yet, in the opening scene, a woman enters the detectives’ room with a pistol and a bottle of nitroglycerin (or show more is it?) saying that she has come to kill Carella. Except that he’s not there, and barely appears in the book at all until near the end. All the other cops — an ethnically very diverse group, reflecting the reality of the fictional city based on New York — get their moment in the sun, as does a Puerto Rican woman. There are bits of Yiddish and Spanish thrown in, references to Ireland and Italy, and even one cop who self identifies as a WASP. Though written more than sixty years ago, the book still reads well and the tension — punctuated by violence — is palpable. show less

87th Precinct books seem to either lose me in the first chapter or grab me by the lapels until the end. This one firmly falls into the latter category. A woman with an agenda walks into the station with a gun pointed at what she claims is a bottle of nitro, with the ultimatum that she must be able to kill Carella or the whole station will go up in smoke. Totally riveting action, with a little locked-room mystery on the side! The mystery isn't too weighty but it adds some lightness to a story which is otherwise pretty intense. Would have made for a dynamite 85-minute movie.

Damn, I LOVE the 87th Precinct books. This one blends a genuinely tense hostage situation in the precinct building itself with a delicious locked door murder mystery. Throw in McBain's sly humour and superb pacing and you've got another winner. Superb.

The tension that was lacking from McBain's last installment (Lady Killer) is evident in full force with Killer's Wedge. The widow of a recently deceased convict enters the detective's division of the 87th with a gun and a bottle allegedly filled with nitroglycerin, and proceeds to take the station hostage as she awaits the return of Steve Carella, the man she blames for her husbands death.

Killer's Wedge takes place in early October.

Lieutenant Byrnes, Meyer, Hawes, Kling, Brown, and Willis find themselves at the mercy of a vengeance lusting woman with a homemade bomb, unable to communicate with one another on how to gain control of the situation. Much of their story involves internal monologue as the bulls debate their options while show more second-guessing the others. Several attempts to get help or subdue the widow of various levels of ingenuity are undertaken as emotions run high. Interestingly enough, the main focus of the story, Carella, spends the length of the book investigating the supposed suicide of a rich industrialist while the usual cast of background characters spend the majority of their time in the spotlight as the try to diffuse the situation before Carella walks into his own execution. This gives the reader a welcome chance to spend more time with the other vivid and often neglected characters populating the 87th

The only real personal story involved is the revelation at the beginning of the book that Teddy is pregnant. Her appearance at the station to meet Carrella for a night of celebration manages to increase the tension.

The title of the book has the same dual meaning as earlier novels like Con Man, as the titular "wedge" refers not only to the the distance created between Byrnes and his command by the vengeful woman in black, but also a piece of wood the weighs heavily in the solution of Carella's locked room mystery. This is not the only parallel between the two stories, as Carella's obsessive investigation into the "locked room mystery" of how a man found hanging in a room locked from the inside could have been murdered mirrors the reality of his fellow bulls finding themselves locked in a room with a murderer.

On a side note, McBain tips his hat to a fellow mystery writer when he has Carella, pondering the impossibility of his locked room suicide/murder dilemma, wonder if he should simply contact John Dickson Carr for an answer. show less

“I’m going to kill Steve Carella,” the woman said. And she walked right into the 87th to do it! “In effect, Virginia Dodge now commands the 87th Squad.”! With a .38 and a bottle of nitroglycerin!

Meanwhile… Carella is investigating the death of a man, whose body was found in a windowless, locked room, the door having been bolted from the inside. An apparent suicide. Or…

Really good story, very tense and intriguing! Great ending too! Can’t wait to read the next one!

Best of the series so far. The distraught widow of a criminal, who died in prison after being caught by Detective Steve Carella, holds the 87th Precinct hostage, with a gun and vial, supposedly of nitroglycerin. Meanwhile, Carella is off investigating the apparent suicide of a wealthy business owner, who hung himself in a locked room. When Carella's pregnant wife Teddy goes to the precinct to meet Steve for a celebatory dinner, Cotton Hawes takes matters into his own hands. Chock full of suspense.

I'd read all but one of McBain's 87th Precinct novels over the years and this was the one I'd missed... so I was glad to pick it up at a discounts store for £1.99. Its an early entry in the series and very concise. McBain's easy-going style is in evidence - notably his excellent use of dialogue. The series would broaden out and improve to become a classic as it got older. In the meantime this is an entertaining read.