Another great book from Duane Swierczynski, a book that spans the decades from 1965 to 2005 and three generations. It begins with the murder of two cop - Stan Walczak and his partner, George Wildey - one white and one black, one afternoon in 1965.

Stan has a son called Jimmy who also, like his father, becomes a cop and once he becomes a homicide detective he is obsessed with his father's death as no one has been charged with the murder.

What follows is a familial storyline, from Grand Father, Father to son and daughter, all of whom have served the force in one way or the other. His daughter Audrey experiences the highs and lows and is driven to drink. This is no fairytale story, it is hard hitting in parts but the story and historical content is incredible.

A gripping read, it's pretty much unputdownable as we experience the consequences of one moment back in 1965 that reverberates throughout the generations.

The Walczak family has been in law enforcement for at least 50 years. In this book, the author starts with Stan Walczak. He and his partner, George Wildey, are shot to death in a corner bar while waiting for someone who has information for them. The killer has never been caught.

30 years later, Homicide Detective Jim Walczak receives news that Terrill Lee Stanton, the man he has always been sure killed his father, has been in prison for unrelated crimes. He is now free and back home in Philadelphia. Jim finally wants the truth about what happened when his father was killed ... stalking Stanton might give him those answers.

20 years later, Jim's daughter, Audrey, a student of forensic science, re-opens the cold cold case of her grandfather's death. As she investigates and digs in deep, she comes to the conclusion that Stanton might not have been the killer.

This book was something a little different than one would expect reading a crime thriller. Covering three separate and distinct plots within the same family, show the family investigating a heroin ring, the rape and murder of a young journalist, and daughter Audrey, taking on a cold case as an assignment for her degree.

The book goes from present to the past and back again. The reader is treated to the author's obvious attention to details, starting with how Walczak and Wildey first met and became police partners. The families keep bumping into each other for many years. This was almost like 3 different stories. The author has does a fantastic job in melding this saga into a highly suspenseful story with lots of twists and turns.

Many thanks to the author / Mulholland Books / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this highly entertaining book. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.