Patterson, New Jersey, is the setting for this debut police procedural by Melanie Anagnos, a native of the town. It’s a bittersweet love letter to her native city, the former mill town that is one of the largest in the dense cluster of New York City’s western suburbs. The Passaic River runs through the town, at one time powering its silk and paper mills. Now, like many manufacturing cities, Paterson has fallen on harder times
This makes the life of a young cop like Jamie Palmieri both more interesting and more dangerous. When making an honest living gets hard, people often follow a less virtuous path, marked with shortcuts. Jamie, three years out of the police academy, is working diligently toward becoming a detective, but his assignments so far are no more than routine. However, when this story begins in January 1979, Sergeant Bachman pulls him into the investigation of a double homicide. A neighbourhood bar owner and one of his dancers – underage, it happens – were shot to death after hours.
Manpower is needed for the great many interviews required – neighbours, bar patrons, other dancers – and Jamie takes on a number of them, including ones with the dead woman’s mother and best friend. These interviews reveal very little and, in truth, not much information is expected. It seems the police hierarchy is only interested in checking boxes. This is the era of the wrongful murder conviction of boxer Rubin Carter in Paterson, based partly on manufactured and withheld evidence, and public cooperation with the police is at a low point.
The higher-ups have put this down as a robbery gone wrong, but Jamie is starting to pieces of a puzzle that suggests there’s more to it. So he sticks with it. He’s working with a pair of senior detectives who do the heavy lifting, but with so little information turning up, Sergeant Bachman finally insists he stand down. The case has grown cold; other crimes need his attention.
Anagnos’s story unwinds slowly, almost wholly from the point of view of Jamie – likeable, eager for experience, and a convincing mix of naïve and savvy. He’ll be a good cop. He struggles to assemble a theory, despite the difficulties he faces, and then slowly begins to realise that his persistence is bringing unwanted attention and danger to his doorstep.
Short chapters from the shooter’s point of view appear occasionally, and break up the intimacy with Jamie. I found them unnecessary, intrusive even, although they underscore that Jamie himself is becoming a target. There’s enough external evidence to suggest that and what matters more is whether Jamie believes he’s at risk, which he does.
Jamie moonlights occasionally, doing security for big events, and on one occasion meets a caterer’s helper, Missy, whom he falls for. But after one date, she ghosts him, finally revealing after some delay that she has multiple roommates who are problematic. She believes her situation is just too complicated and will lead to trouble for him. Nevertheless, one rainy night, she shows up at his front door, having fled her awkward living situation. It takes a while and careful trust-building, but they try to create a relationship.
What I really like about this crime story is how Anagnos builds the character of Jamie. His growing awareness, his uncertainties. He’s developing in front of your eyes into a police officer – and a man – you can respect and admire. As the peril ramps up, Jamie has to decide whom he can share his suspicions with and weigh what might happen if he does.
Anagnos is not only a Paterson native, she has worked as an attorney, which means the legal elements are convincing. She currently publishes a Substack called Cherchez la Femme, which explores pop culture of the 1970s – a perfect background for creating this memorable book.
High Frequency Press
Print
£14.83
CFL Rating: 4 Stars
