New Zealand author Vanda Symon is known primarily for her Sam Shephard books but began a new series in 2022 with Faceless, featuring Max Grimes. Reaper is the followup to that novel about the former policeman who now lives on the streets of Auckland. This series will really appeal if you enjoy some grit in your crime fiction.
Whereas Sam Shephard narrates the novels she appears in with a touch of lightness and humour, the Grimes novels are darker. We hear from both Grimes and Detective Sergeant Meredith Peters, his ex partner, as well as the perpetrator they are hunting. The tone is darker, particularly with the killer’s perspective taken into account.
When we last encountered Max, he was in a bad place. He had walked away from his job and family and ended up living rough after the death of his daughter, Jess. She was brutally murdered by her boyfriend, Tim, a crystal meth addict who went on to kill himself as well. As a police officer, Max felt responsible and became deeply depressed.
Things are looking up for Max in Reaper. He has a casual, under-the-table job working in a gym. This means some money in his pocket and access to showers. Rather than sleeping in alleys or shopfronts, he has found an empty house being renovated. He slips onto the site at night and departs first thing in the morning. The nightmares about Jess are fading. Max feels that life is moving forward.
This newly found optimism doesn’t last long once a ghost from his past seeks him out. This person wants Max to track down a man whose actions impacted both of their lives. Initially Max has no interest in the request, however a part of him would like to dust off his detective skills. As Ian Rankin has demonstrated in his Rebus series, just because someone is no longer an active detective, their skills and instincts remain.
There is a second plot line involving the death of another homeless man. Meredith reaches out to Max hoping that he can identify the body. He has made a point of befriending many of the unhoused people who sleep in the same part of the city as he does. In some ways his actions are similar to those of a beat cop. Max walks the streets to see if all is well among the rough sleepers.
His battered self-esteem gets a boost from being able to buy his friends a cup of coffee or occasionally some food. The unhoused may be faceless to some of the people who walk past them on the busy city streets but not to Max. He identifies the dead man as Edward James, known locally as The Ferret.
Initially, The Ferret’s death was assumed to be the result of a health issue or hypothermia. When two more of Max’s friends die it becomes apparent that these are not natural deaths. Autopsy results indicate that all three victims died from different toxic substances administered in different ways. Someone is intentionally killing homeless people.
News about the serial killer causes panic in Auckland. Some homeless people spotted a stranger around the time of the murders. They nickname him The Reaper because of the large hood on his jacket. As the investigation continues, the dual plot lines intertwine and pull you into the book. Although there is some foreshadowing of one major twist, maybe a more direct hint would have been more effective.
Reaper contains many engaging characters and unexpected surprises. Some authors present homeless characters as one-dimensional stereotypes. This can lead to them being judged more by their appearance than their actions. Symons has taken time to give her characters depth. The contrast between a homeless man who spends his limited funds on food for the dog of one of the murder victims and a killer who thinks that he is ridding the streets of vermin will stay with me.
Also see The Last Days of Johnny Nunn by Nick Triplow and The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding.
Orenda Books
Print/Kindle
£6.49
CFL Rating: 4 Stars
