''A Grave Talent'' (1993) is the first book in Laurie R. King's Kate Martinelli series. Concerning the search for the murderer of several young girls, it won the 1994

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

for Best First Novel. It is followed by '' To Play the Fool''.

Plot summary

The strangulation of four children in the vicinity of San Francisco leads the police force to appoint inspectors Al Hawkin and Kate ("Casey") Martinelli to discover the criminal. Suspicion falls on renowned artist Vaun Adams, convicted of murdering a young girl years before. When someone attempts to murder Vaun herself, the police are forced to conclude that someone else must be behind the murders, and they discover that Vaun's ex-boyfriend, maniacally egotistical Andy Lewis, must be the perpetrator. Hawkin convinces a reluctant Kate to set the trap for Lewis in her home by letting Vaun recover there. He arrives and declares that he will kill Kate and her lover Lee and leave Vaun to take the blame. Lee alerts the police to his presence, but the

sniper A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

who kills Lewis does not do so in time to prevent him from shooting and permanently disabling her.

Characters in ''A Grave Talent''

*Kate Martinelli is a member of the San Francisco Police Department. She is extremely reserved. *Lee Cooper is Kate's lover. A

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

, she is nearly Kate's opposite in personality. At the end of the book, she is recovering from a bullet wound. *Al Hawkin is Kate's partner at work. He falls in love with one of the witnesses in their case. *Vaun Adams is a highly talented artist targeted by her psychopathic ex-boyfriend from high school. Instead of using more modern techniques, she prefers a realistic method and is thus criticized. Kate and Lee take her in while she is recovering from Lewis's first attempt to kill her. *Andy Lewis murders several girls and disposes of the bodies near Vaun Adams's house in order to frame her for the murders. When this does not work, he attempts to kill Vaun but fails. He tries again after she has temporarily moved into Kate and Lee's home. Although a police sniper eventually kills him, he does shoot Lee.

Allusions/references to other works

*Kate and Lee's dialogue at the beginning of the book references

Dorothy L. Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers (; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime writer and poet. She was also a student of classical and modern languages. She is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between th ...

's detective

Lord Peter Wimsey Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey (later 17th Duke of Denver) is the fictional protagonist in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers (and their continuation by Jill Paton Walsh). A dilettante who solves mysteries for ...

. *Lewis's pseudonym, Dodgson, is an allusion to

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...

's real name.

Awards and nominations

''A Grave Talent'' won the

for Best First Novel in 1994.

Release details

1993, USA, St. Martin's Press, , Pub date 1993, Hardback

External links

*
''A Grave Talent'' on Laurie King's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grave Talent, A 1993 American novels Kate Martinelli (novel series) Edgar Award-winning works Fictional portrayals of the San Francisco Police Department Novels set in San Francisco 1993 debut novels