A Ticket to the Boneyard

A Ticket to the Boneyard by Lawrence Block
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A psychopath Matthew Scudder framed years ago when he was still a cop has gotten out of jail and is looking for revenge, killing Scudder's women friends one by one. Can Scudder stop him before he becomes another of the killer's victims?

Holy crap! James Leo Motley was the scariest villain I've run into a long time, far from a mustache twirling James Bond villain. He's crazy and nigh unstoppable. A few times while I was reading, I had to look over my shoulder and make sure he hadn't slipped into my house.

Aside from a chilling villain, Ticket has a lot going for it. Matthew Scudder is as capable as ever and Block does a good job at conveying his frustration and powerlessness as Motley kills victim after victim. Mick Ballou and Elaine Mardell are developed further as supporting characters, probably to return again. And the ending went down just like I hoped.

A Ticket to the Boneyard is another great entry in the Matthew Scudder series but definitely isn't for the squeamish.

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