I felt that a new installment in James Patterson and James O. Born’s Michael Bennett series was long overdue. So I was happy to have THE RUSSIAN arrive on my doorstep. It certainly was worth the wait, as it provides the NYPD homicide detective with a case that he must solve quickly, and for more than one reason.

The core of the book is the hunt for a serial killer who is murdering women in New York in a particularly brutal manner. His signature is a grisly mutilation, the details of which are being kept under wraps by the police as they keep their collective eye out for the culprit, who is striking literally at will. There is no mystery here, as his identity is revealed --- to the reader, not to Bennett --- within the first several pages. He is Daniel Ott, and his job enables him to travel to cities, stay for a while, kill a few people and go somewhere else. We eventually learn that Ott has been doing this for a while. It takes Bennett and his new partner, Brett Hollis, some time to figure it out. However, there are ticking clocks of the “will he be stopped before he kills again?” variety.

"The intricate parts of this latest installment in this thrilling and, yes, charming series come together seamlessly to create a reading experience that flows quickly and satisfactorily from beginning to end."

Bennett is in danger of losing the case on two fronts if he doesn’t solve it quickly. The Mayor’s office has sent a somewhat obnoxious lackey to micromanage the investigation, which doesn’t sit well with him at all. Meanwhile, the FBI is trying to interject itself into the proceedings for reasons that are ultimately made clear in a twist that takes place toward the book’s conclusion.

There is also the home front to consider. Longtime readers of this series have followed the slow-burning romance between Bennett and Mary Kate, who was hired to take care of his  children but who ended up stealing his heart. At long last they are scheduled to get married, though he has a killer to catch first. Bennett’s son Brian, who recently has been released from prison, also seems to be having some difficulty adjusting to civilian life. He is behaving strangely and in certain instances appears to be on the verge of letting his anger get the better of him. But the biggest domestic crisis of all is that Bennett’s daughter, Jane, has her first real boyfriend. He is somewhat of a jerk, being the entitled son of a hedge fund manager.

It is great fun to watch Bennett get closer and closer to Ott, among others, as they approach the big ending.

Patterson and Born have been honing their craft for a while, both individually and as collaborators. The intricate parts of this latest installment in this thrilling and, yes, charming series come together seamlessly to create a reading experience that flows quickly and satisfactorily from beginning to end. It’s the perfect way to begin your reading year.