Fatal Truth [Mass Market Paperback]

Robin Burcell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 30, 2002

A homicide inspector with the San Francisco Police Department, Kate Gillespie worked hard to get where she is. But a frantic phone call from a snitch threatens to destroy everything she is and everything she's earned. Pulled from the bright lights of the Homicide office onto the shadowy night streets, she arrives at a clandestine meet just in time to see the frightened informer shot dead ... by another cop. Now Kate is a target, on a trail of dirty deals, corruption, and escalating violence that reaches back into her own troubled family history and deep into a department riddled with dark secrets and truths that kill. Suddenly Kate Gillespie is teetering on a "blue wall of silence"and being set up to take a long, fatal fall -- by a relentless killer who's hiding in plain sight.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Police corruption and violence abound in Fatal Truth, Robin Burcell's second novel (after Every Move She Makes) starring San Francisco homicide inspector Kate Gillespie. On the way to meet with a snitch, Kate witnesses his murder. The culprit, a corrupt narcotics investigator, turns up dead several hours later. Unsure of whom she can trust, Kate turns to her ex-partner, PI Sam Scolari, and Mike Torrance, an internal affairs detective and former romantic flame. Both men assist Kate as she investigates the two killings and discovers some surprising links to a 12-year-old scandal involving her brother, his wife and their young son. Through sharp, staccato prose, Burcell delivers a taut police procedural stuffed with law enforcement jargon and exhilarating action sequences.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Robin Burcell has been a police officer since 1983. She has been assigned to different details in the Investigations Division, working Crimes Against Property, Persons, and Juvenile. She is a forensic artist, trained by the FBI at Quantico, Virginia. Currently she works Patrol, and is a member of the Hostage Negotiation Team. She lives in Northern California with her husband.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Avon (July 30, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061061239
• ISBN-13: 978-0061061233
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #771,244 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robin Burcell, an FBI-trained forensic artist, has worked in law enforcement
for over two decades as a police officer, detective and hostage negotiator. Her thriller about an FBI forensic artist, Face of a Killer, debuted November 2008 with a starred review from Library Journal. The Bone Chamber is the sequel, due out January 2010. She is the two-time Anthony Award-winning author of four previous novels featuring SFPD Homicide Inspector Kate Gillespie: Every Move She Makes, Fatal Truth, Deadly Legacy and Cold Case. You can visit her website at: www.robinburcell.com/

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Solid Hit!, November 22, 2002

By 

"acalifornialibrarylover" (Northern CA, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fatal Truth (Mass Market Paperback)

This is book 2 in the Inspector Kate Gillespie series, and this book is great! The character's are complex, the mystery has more dips and loops than a rollar coaster, and the scenery is fabulous! (Well maybe I am a bit partial- they visit my town ;0). Sexy IA Investigator Torrance is back heating up the pages, and leaving us wishing for more.

In this book Kate finds herself in the middle of corruption in the department (and higher?). She doesn't know which of her fellow officer's she can trust, and which are out to make her a silent witness. Who is on her side? Who is being framed? Who sold out on his badge? At least she can trust Torrance.... or can she?

A fast, enjoyable read, Robin Burcell scores a hit here. She writes from knowledge, as a cop and a woman, and gives us a female star we could all be proud of!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truth is - its great!, October 10, 2002

By 

S. Gould "gouldpjaks" (Woodmere, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fatal Truth (Mass Market Paperback)

If you like suspenseful detective stories you can't go wrong with this book. Robin Burcell spins a fascinating story of corruption within the San francisco Police Department and its effect upon the lives relationships of those police officers who chose to expose it. However, it is the characters that stand out in this series. Kate Gillespie is a wonderful protagonist about whom I hope to read more in the future.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fast-paced read, August 19, 2002

By 

Margaret Chittenden (Washington State, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fatal Truth (Mass Market Paperback)

...

Robin Burcell is a criminal investigator in Northern California, has worked as a homicide detective, a patrol officer, a member of the hostage negotiating team and is an FBI trained forensic artist. It hardly seems fair that she can write too!

One of the problems with authors like Robin Burcell, Linda Fairstein, Paul Bishop, is that most reviews stress their authenticity. Well, of course they are authentic, these writers write about the work they do themselves.

What should be stressed is not only that these writers write authentic stuff, they do it extremely well!

Fatal Truth is the second in the Kate Gillespie series. The first was Every Move She Makes, another terrific book. Kate is a Homicide Inspector with the San Francisco Police Department. Just like Nash Bridges, except Kate plays by the rules.

In Fatal Truth, Kate witnesses a homicide that involves an informant she is working with, and a cop she knows. Quite soon, she finds herself the target of someone who is setting her up to take the blame for the murder. Who is trying to discredit her? Whom can she trust? And where does the enigmatic but very attractive Lieutenant Mike Torrance fit in.

Robin Burcell writes a fast-paced, intriguing story with surprises around every corner, including a connection to the past death of a family member. I didn't have to read any parts with my eyes closed but there's pleny of action going on. This novel will definitely show up on my ten favorites of the year.

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