No Trace - (Brock and Kolla Mysteries) by Barry Maitland (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Cited as one of the top ten crime novels of 2006 (Kirkus Reviews), No Trace is the finest novel yet by one of best crime novelists of our time.

In a London neighborhood known for its artists and bohemian style, six year old Tracey Rudd is abducted from her home without any warning, or sign of violence. She is the third child abucted under similar circumstances in recent weeks.

But this case is different. She is the daughter of notorious contemporary artist Gabriel Rudd, best known for the grotesque "Dead Puppies," a work centered around his wife's suicide five years earlier. While Rudd exploits Tracey's abduction as an inspiration for a major new work in his upcoming exhibit, D.C.I. David Brock and Detective Sergeant Kathy Kolla hunt for the missing girls' kidnapper, who is suspiciously connected to the eccentric community of artists, dealers, and collectors in the neighborhood.

Review Quotes

"Gripping...Maitland brings the particular world he depicts unforgettably alive. No one who reads this haunting, unnerving work will ever again think about contemporary artists the same way." --Publishers Weekly on No Trace

"In what may be his best book yet, Maitland starkly contrasts the modern art worldview of life as art/art as life with the police attitude that life is not a game. Fans of British police procedurals by such authors as Jill McGown, Stuart MacBride, and Quentin Jardine will demand this." --Library Journal (starred review) on No Trace

About the Author

BARRY MAITLAND is a finalist for the John Creasy Award for best first novel and winner of the Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Fiction. He lives in Newcastle, Australia.