Amy Robinson Malik and her police detective husband Ben are honeymooning at the coast when they see a light aircraft plunge into the sea. Despite their best efforts at rescue, the bodies of top architect Eugene Sokalsky and his wife are pulled from the water. When it is discovered that Sokalsky may have been poisoned, Ben is recalled from his honeymoon and asked to lead an investigation into potential foul play. His first port of call is the architect’s son and heir Mark. But something about the man’s reaction to the death of his parents doesn’t feel right and Ben is suspicious. A wayward son prone to repeated failure, Mark has become embedded with gangsters and as much as the cops want him to talk, the gangsters want him to keep quiet. Soon Ben finds himself enmeshed in a world of violence and corruption. Out on his own, the only person who has his back is his wife Amy and she will stop at nothing to keep him safe.
FLIGHT ACROSS WATERS is the second novel from Ulla Håkanson continuing the story of Amy Robinson and Ben Malik, who met in her well received debut The Price of Silence. It’s a gripping, page turner which successfully blends the mystery thriller with a touch of old school romance. And continuing from her debut, the author seems to be carving her own micro-niche genre of mystery thriller with the return of various high tension boat scenes, including a heart pounding chase featuring a kayak, a speedboat and a ferry. It’s a very well written passage and one of the highlights of the book. Håkanson’s lead characters are well drawn and their bond is convincingly laid out in their early interactions before the drama of the plot starts to kick in. The supporting cast, most especially the deadbeat son and the criminals with which he associates, are a little less realistic–often prone to ill conceived acts that serve to drive the plot forward without being especially credible. Indeed the son’s monumentally dim plan that kickstarts the entire affair foreshadows his stupidity so clearly that his increasingly strange choices would be comical if they didn’t have such violent and deadly consequences. The main villain, Luigi Alzaperi, who runs an illegal gambling outfit from his front as an East Vancouver coffee shop owner is bordering on caricature. None of this is to say that the book doesn’t deliver on thrills and well paced action. It is reminiscent of an episode of some amiable TV cop series where dubious decisions made by hastily sketched characters propel a plot that’s very enjoyable as it speeds along but doesn’t bear close scrutiny. After being sidelined in the early part of the novel, where she seems most interested in cooking something nice for her husband’s dinner, Amy really comes into her own as the plot develops. It’s a nice switch when the author reveals that beneath her seemingly content, homely exterior Amy has real guts and bravery.
While the plot of Ulla Håkanson’s highly entertaining mystery thriller, FLIGHT ACROSS WATERS, is driven by some barely credible actions by rather thinly drawn villains, the two main characters’ relationship and their gutsy commitment to protect each other ensure are suitably gripping.
~Kent Lane for IndieReader