The Crime Trade: A Novel [Hardcover]

Simon Kernick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 21, 2005

When Operation Surgical Strike, a police sting designed to catch Colombian drug traffickers in the act of selling a large consignment of cocaine to undercover police officers, goes horribly wrong, suspicion quickly falls on one of the police officers involved: "Stegs" Jenner. Stegs is no ordinary cop. Something of a maverick, he has in the past played the role of a criminal just a little too well. Now suspended from duty, and with his close friend killed in the shoot-out, he determines to go at it alone.

DI John Gallan and his partner Tina Boyd are part of the subsequent investigation that will take them to the heart of one of London's most notorious criminal gangs. What they cannot know is that they've also embarked on a journey that will lead one of them straight into the rifle sights of the enemy.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The third entry in Kernick's loosely knit London gangland series opens with a bang, as the ironically named Colombian narcotics sting, Operation Surgical Strike, dissolves into a bloodbath when uninvited thugs make the scene. Among the dead is the partner of nasty undercover cop Stegs Jenner. Things get perplexing fast as DI John Gallen, whose recent promotion seems to have rubbed off some rough edges, finds the probable leak shot dead and must include Stegs among a dwindling pool of suspects. In Kernick's world, coppers mostly come in three varieties: bent, twisted, and broken; not surprisingly, then, much of this book's suspense hinges on just how far Stegs will go and whether we will end up respecting or loathing him when the smoke has cleared. Although Stegs is not as compelling as Milne, the antihero at the black heart of the series debut, The Business of Dying (2003), this remains a solid, morally ambiguous mystery with some great tricks up its sleeve. Kernick belongs on the second tier of Brit noir, right below Bruen, Lawrence, and Harvey. David Wright
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"I love this book...it blasts through the London underworld like a cigarette boat on the Thames."-Lee Child,bestselling author of Persuader on The Murder Exchange

"British author Simon Kernick shows every sign of being a major talent...Powerful prose, tight plotting and a clever fair-play puzzle add up to a remarkable first effort."-Publishers Weekly on The Business of Dying (starred review)

"Murderous thugs, heartless babes, bent cops, sex, sadism...compulsively readable."-Kirkus Reviews, (starred review) on The Murder Exchange

"Impressive...with a voice not unlike James M. Cain's in Double Indemnity."-Kirkus Reviews

"Kernick's debut is compelling, dark and suspenseful."-Booklist

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (April 21, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312340591
• ISBN-13: 978-0312340599
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,792,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fabulous exciting thriller, April 27, 2005

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Crime Trade: A Novel (Hardcover)

Stegs Jenner and Paul Vokerman are undercover cops working a drug deal near Heathrow with the Colombians. Stegs steps out promising to return within ten minutes while Vokes nervously waits with two of the Cali Cartel when they receive a call. Without a reply to the caller, Manuel "Manolo" Lopez executes Vokes. Stegs returns in time for the police to attack. Others die as all hell breaks loose in the final phase of Operation Surgical Strike.

Nearby at about the same time, the informant who set up the deal Slim Robbie and his mother are murdered. DI John Gallan and his partner WDS Tina Boyd lead the inquiries and quickly find out that DCS Noel Flanagan who headed the police sting blames Stegs for the fiasco. Stegs is angry over the death of his partner and needs to avenge Vokes' death while Gallan and Boyd try to learn what went wrong and how to rein in the loose cannon before Stegs causes a third deadly incident.

The return of Detective Inspector Gallan and several of his cronies is always a thrill for British police procedural fans, but his third appearance is his best yet (see the BUSINESS OF DYING and THE MURDER EXCHANGE). The story line predominantly moves on two major subplots that follow the actions of either Gallan or Stegs. Interestingly, Gallan provides a first hand account of what is going on so the audience sees behind the scenes of the police investigation; on the other hand Stegs stars in a third person account, which leaves readers to wonder which side is he really on. This duality works tremendously as Simon Kernick provides a fabulous exciting thriller.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Perry Mason ?, December 18, 2008

By 

Victor da la Tnalag "review guy" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Crime Trade: A Novel (Hardcover)

I really like the story line of Kernick novels. And I mostly enjoy the first 90% of the book. At the end he seems to feel rushed or compelled to wrap everything up with all the minute details patched together. Reminds me of Paul Drake, Perry Mason's investigator explaining the whole deal at the end of the show.

Somehow he needs to weave into the story all of the details he wants to convey and make cleaner endings.

Still an enjoyable read.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kernick is building a multi-volume masterwork picture of crime in Londan today. Don't miss it!, May 25, 2008

By 

Jeff (Northern California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Crime Trade: A Novel (Hardcover)

Simon Kernick started with The Business of Dying, and extended it in The Murder Exchange. Now he brings us The Crime Trade which stretches out his loosely strong tale of various investigators with the Series Crimes Squad based in contemporary London.

These works are strongly plotted, richly charactered, and move rapidly. There is extremely strong color and dialog. The plotting is unusual, and often times the reader will be genuinely surprised that his picture of what is going on turns out to be horribly amiss. In this, he reminds me of the late, great Margaret Millar who could drop clue after clue right under your eyes and still surprise you well at the end.

Kernick came out of the gate charging with The Business of Dying. he has not let up one single bit with The Crime Trade.

If you take him on, make sure to read the series in order as subsequent books drip with spoilers.