Hunted

I would like to thank Netgalley and Aria for an advance copy of Hunted, the second novel to feature Commissioner Sensi and Dr Claps of the Milan police.

Seven years ago Commissioner Sensi and Dr Claps joined forces for the first time to hunt down a sexual predator. They caught him quickly and he was sent to a secure psychiatric facility. Now Giacomo Riondino has escaped in an orgy of violence.

Hunted is an extremely difficult novel to review as it mostly revolves around Riondino's mental disorder and to reveal what it is would be a massive spoiler. Let's just say I'm not convinced it is a genuine disorder, having seen too many documentaries debunking it but it is much loved by authors and film makers.

I enjoyed the hunt for Riondino which is tense and exciting as they have so many near misses in catching him. I found the chapters from Riondino's point of view fairly confusing - I can't explain this without spoilers - and difficult to follow but his planning seems very smart for a man with a psychiatric condition. I should also mention that the novel has a cliffhanger ending which some people don't like, normally including me but in this case it has whetted my appetite for more.

Commissioner Sensi is not a particularly well developed character and is portrayed as a conscientious officer determined to do everything possible to capture the murderer. Dr Claps, on the other hand, is a very unusual protagonist. Having suffered previously at the hands of another serial killer he is nervous, timid, anxious and unwilling to get involved in the investigation. It's very refreshing to see a protagonist screw up their courage to get involved and probably more realistic than the gung-ho experts we normally read about.

There is a tremendous amount of psychiatric/psychological information in this novel, most of it interesting but some of it a bit repetitive but that aside Hunted is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

4 and 1 / 2 stars

This book goes back and forth between the present and the recent past when Dr. Claps first started working for Commissioner Sensi. It was his first case working with the police. They caught he murderer named Giacomo Riondino. Riondino was sent to a psychiatric facility – a rather lax one at that. He appeared to have a multiple personality disorder.

When Riodino attacked and killed two nurses and escaped all the stops are pulled out to recapture him. They fear that he will kill again, and of course he does. He has these continuing conversations with himself – or his “selves” as I should say. The reader remains unsure if he really has multiple personalities or if he is faking it as so many believe.

Claps still suffers occasionally from aphasia which is the mixing up of some words when speaking. He received the condition from the aftermath of an attack he suffered when apprehending a suspect. When asked to write a story about Riondino, Greta Alfieri turns to Claps for advice since he is an old friend of hers. She wants nothing to do with the current search for him and is very upset at the thought of him being out again.

Much information was given in this novel describing how Riondino acquired multiple personalities which is pretty much the same for all persons who have this disorder.

The tension mounts as the bodies pile up and Riondino keeps escaping capture. Greta drops a bomb during her television interview. Chaps learns Riondino’s secret and discovers something of monumental significance. Things go badly and the stakes get higher.

This is a very well written and plotted novel. I didn’t like it quite as much as the first in this series, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The characters are interesting and in some cases likeable. The story moved along at a regular pace as the tension mounted. All in all well done Mr. Marsden, and I very much look forward to the next novel he pens. Hats off also to the translator who did a fine job.

I want to thank Netgalley and Aria for forwarding to me a copy of this wonderful novel to read.