This is the second book in the DS Cross series, and it felt like a copy of the first book, The Dentist. A body is found; DS George Cross is assigned to the case; he has Asperger’s, so he doesn’t understand social cues, takes things too literally, eats weirdly (every food item must be on a separate plate), has an odd relationship with his dad, and gets into awkward situations; but it’s OK, as all his colleagues will tell you, he’s brilliant at noticing details and working things out logically, so everyone deals with his weirdness, and his partner, a woman, helps him learn; they do lots of interviews with family and friends; everyone involved has something to hide, but if you ask them enough times, they all confess the truth eventually (though most of the secrets are unrelated to the murder); the “obvious” solution to the crime turns out to be wrong, and they get stuck for a while; the boss is an idiot, and always pushes to press charges before they are ready; DS Cross spots some tiny detail that leads to a breakthrough; all the criminals eventually confess.
I know that many authors use a formula when writing a series of books, but man, this one felt like someone just did a “find & replace” on the first book to swap out some names and other details, and that was it. It still has a few funny scenes here and there, and a little bit of clever deduction, but because it’s a clone of the previous book, the charm wears off quickly. I might try the third book in the series to see if it’s any different, but if it’s just more of the same, that’ll probably be the last DS Cross book I read.
