When his longtime nemesis, the amphetamine-juiced killer known as "Upper" North, is spotted in England, Detective Chief Inspector Brock is on the trail. His manhunt centers on Silvermeadow, a huge and glittery new shopping mall on the outskirts of London, where North was seen. Lying in wait, he and Kathy Kolla take on a seemingly unrelated case as camouflage, that of a missing girl who had worked in the mall. But what to make of the rumor of other girls gone missing? Coming up against dead ends, Kathy sets off to follow some leads of her own-and finds out that going solo can be very dangerous.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
When Detective Chief Inspector David Brock and Sergeant Kathy Kolla of Scotland Yard's Serious Crimes Task Force get a tip that a vicious armed robber who's gotten away from them before has been sighted at the Silvermeadow shopping mall near London, they use the investigation into the disappearance of a teenaged mall employee as an excuse to surveil the mall in case the robber returns. Then the girl's body turns up in a trash-compacting plant not far from the mall, and Brock and Kathy's search for her killer takes them and their squad back to Silvermeadow, where rumors of other missing girls last seen at the mall soon come to their attention. Maitland's riveting police procedural makes the most of this setup with an intricately layered plot that never fails to surprise the reader, a number of well-drawn and picaresque minor characters, and a pulse-pounding denouement. --Jane Adams
From Publishers Weekly
Better than The Chalon Heads (2001) and almost as good as The Malcontenta (2000), Maitland's latest mystery to feature DCI David Brock and Det. Sgt. Kathy Kolla presents a complex and absorbing case focused on Silvermeadow, an enormous shopping mall near London where a volcano erupts hourly, complete with moving lights for flowing lava. Ordered to stake out the mall because a fugitive killer has been sighted there, Kathy and Brock soon find themselves investigating the murder of a teenage girl whose body has turned up in a trash compactor. Later they get involved in a gigantic robbery. Through the thorough, workmanlike interviews the pair conduct with a range of characters, the author highlights the tragedies in the lives of various police officers and civilians, revealing how complicated the seemingly ordinary can be. In particular, he carefully and lucidly explains (with a prophetic quotation from mile Zola) how architects and engineers plan and execute the transformation of shopping and acquiring into entertainment and recreation. He concentrates on the effects of this transformation on the employees, merchants and customers, with insider details of building engineering and archeology. As usual, Kathy is the center of the resolution of all the crimes, while Brock acts as her supporting rescuer. Maitland fans surely will welcome this addition, with its fusion of commerce, detection and architecture, to his lively series.nominee and Ned Kelly Prize winner Maitland now lives in Australia.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
absolutely riveting,
By tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Silvermeadow: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Hardcover)
"Silvermeadow" is a must read, esp for anyone who's ever been stuck at or who works at a shopping center/mall.It looks as if DCI Brock is finally going to be able to nab his bête noire, the amphetamine juiced killer, 'Upper' North (whom readers may remember from "The Marx Sisters"), who has been recently sighted at the Silvermeadow shopping center in Essex. Eager to finally close the chapter on this violent but elusive criminal, Brock and his team (which also includes DS Kathy Kolla) use the investigation into the murder of a young girl as a cover for their being in Essex. Everyone had more or less assumed that teenage school girl Kerri Vlasich (who also happened to work part-time at the food court at Silvermeadow) had runaway from home to be with her father (Mr. Vlasich works in Germany) -- that is until her compacted body is found at a waste disposal site. Who wanted Kerri dead, and why? And when the preliminary investigations seem to suggest that she had been abducted from (and was probably murdered at) Silvermeadow, the local superintendent suggests that Brock and his team take on the investigation into Kerri's murder while they keep an eye out for North. And even though they are committed to discovering who Kerri's murderer is, both Brock and Kathy cannot help but hope for a quick resolution to Kerri's case -- they're main objective for being in Essex is to collar 'Upper' North after all! But there are certain aspects about this case that are rather troubling, esp to Kathy. To begin with there is the whole issue of exactly what sort of crime it is they are investigating. Was Kerri's murder a one off? Or is there a predator at work at Silvermeadow? And is there any truth to the rumours that there have been other mysterious disappearances? Or are they just rumours? Both the local police and the people who manage Silvermeadow shy away from the notion that there is a predator at work, but Kathy cannot shake the uneasy feeling that there is something completely creepy about Silvermeadow. With time decidedly against them (the shopping center people are pressuring for a quick resolution) and the machinations of an overly ambitious local DS, Brock and Kathy will have to pull out all the stops in order to resolve Kerri's murder, even as they keep an eye on the main prize -- 'Upper' North... Barry Maitland can congratulate himself for writing another exciting and riveting Brock and Kathy mystery novel. What a truly engrossing and compelling read "Silvermeadow" turned out to be! The plot was an intriguing and chilling one; and there were some really clever plot twists and enough red herring suspects to keep most mystery buffs happy. And Brock and Kathy are such and engaging team. I like the manner in which they complement each other (work wise and personality wise). The Brock and Kathy mystery series is probably one of the best in police procedural genre, and I'm always on the look out for the latest Brock & Kathy installation. "Silvermeadow" fulfilled all my expectations. A truly brilliant read.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Couldn't put it down!,
By
This review is from: Silvermeadow: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Hardcover)
Having read a few of Maitland's book, I finally made it to this one. The first two I read were good reads but nothing compared to Silvermeadow. This is a riveting read that uses a large mall, Silvermeadow, as the locus of the action. Brock and his crew, including DS Kathy Kolla use the search for a 14 year old employee at the mall as a pretext to hunt for Brock's nemesis, North. North has been spotted in the mall. The 14 year-old is discovered, murdered in a pile of garbage that has been compacted at the premises of the mall. The story takes off from there at breakneck speed with red herrings, twists and a hair rising ending.
The mall comes to life vividly as do the various characters in the novel. An excellent procedural mystery and I highly recommend it. I look forward to reading more from this author.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intricate and well-written,
By A Customer
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Silvermeadow: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Hardcover)
Barry Maitland has never failed to impress this reader, as each of his four books has proven to be page-turners, complex and logical and safisfying. The police procedural is in clever hands here, as clues keep popping up and sending both the reader and Kathy and Brock in new directions. While each of these characters has some private life, the main emphasis is on the tenacity and instincts of very smart investigators who know their jobs. The author is a splendid writer, a careful plotter and has a sharp understanding of human nature. I regret that we must wait till next summer for Kathy and Brock number four!
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