Watching the Detectives

New York. 1984. February 1984. Pantheon Books. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Dustjacket. 0394532813. 232 pages. hardcover. Jacket illustration by Susannah Kelly. keywords: Mystery England. DESCRIPTION - Commissioner Jan Argond of Brabt, whose integrity has so often embarrassed his superiors, now heads the Bureau of Advice and Investigation, set up to handle complaints against the police themselves. His initial inquiries uncover a series of disturbing cases of police brutality, racism, and harassment of homosexuals. Mysteriously though, many of the complaints are withdrawn, and Argand gradually realizes that suspicions he had originally dismissed as products of his own paranoia point to a depth of governmental deception almost too bitter for him to accept. The plot widens to include an extreme left-wing group that may harbor terrorists; a vast antinuclear demonstration that turns into a near massacre when State Troopers move in; the murder of one of Argand's own team; and an attempt on the life of Argand himself. WATCHING THE DETECTIVES is a highly topical and possibly prophetic novel. Interweaving the most urgent political concerns of Europe and the United States with his usual skill and convincing subtlety, Rathbone has written a gripping story of a nation's, and an individual's, response to a potently unexpected threat. This is a distinguished successor to Rathbone's two previous Argand novels, the EURO-KILLERS and BASE CASE. inventory #3379.