text: I forced myself to finish this book, though it was touch and go in several places, just so I could feel able to review it fairly.  It seems I liked it even less than reviewer Ms. Trieste "CF", below, but I am in general agreement with her points.  There are just so many things wrong with this book that even the grating "famous names" don't really stand out for me.  Let's see, where to begin:  the naive political ranting, the unspeakable dialogue, the corny love interest, the wholly implausible technology, the absurd coincidences, the distractingly disjointed structure, the proliferation of minor characters, the talky explanations of the detective's thought processes, the total incompetence and corruption of the police - I can't go on; it's hackneyed and poorly written, and that's all there is to it.
  