The Electrician's Code by Clarissa Draper

STORY LINE: A man goes out to collect the newspaper. Someone stabs him and he ends up dead. His demise unearths secret activity that involves a whole lot of other dead people.

A code breaker is brought in to consult on a case of suspected arms dealing. A woman in murdered in that case and the consultant (Sophia) and Detective Blackwell are thrown together to solve the murders.

PLAYERS: Sophia is brilliant at what she does and is facing personal problems that carry over from the first book in the series.

Detective Blackwell is also driven and has his own challenges with his home life, which is also a carryover from the previous story.

OVERALL COMMENTS: The Electrician's Code is cleverly written and keeps the reader moving forward from a seemingly senseless murder to the unveiling of a wily killer, who eventually succumbs to retribution. I didn't even attempt to break the code that's part of the story as my brain isn't wired for this sort of brilliance. Nevertheless, the mystery and the interconnected characters and their schemes kept me occupied until the end.

Although there is a previous story, The Sholes Key, the books are standalone novels.

COVER NOTE: The night cityscape is fitting for this story, especially considering the nefarious deeds done by the murdered electrician.