Lady Jail by John Farrow

How I’ve missed the Emile Cinq-Mars series is baffling. Though not perhaps as baffling as the locked-room crime that Emile solves in this book. John Farrow writes beautifully, and I savored/devoured this crime/detective novel.

My thoughts

If you like locked room mysteries and getting into the heads of cons, criminals, and cops, then you don’t want to miss this detective novel. It’s from the Emile Cinq-Mars series but can easily be read as a standalone. (Though somehow, I think you may be looking up previous titles in the series, like I am!)

Characters

Though I haven’t read any previous titles in the series, Emile won my respect and affection almost immediately. He originally intended to be a priest but became a detective instead, though he is still a devout Catholic. Though curmudgeonly and blunt, he struck me as a man who treats everyone with respect. He’s a winning character, and I would gladly spend more time with him.

We get to know the various inmates in the first few chapters before the murder. The pace is a bit slower because of that, but the voice is clear and engaging. Then the story quickly picks up pace.

At first I often flipped back to the chapter describing the inmates’ crimes. But after a few more pages, their characters became clear. Clearer, at least. Nothing is as it seems in this jail, not even their previous crimes.

Florence, the future victim, had thrown acid in a rival’s face. Doi slashed up her daughter with a hatchet, yet still writes letters to persuade her daughter to visit. Jodi shot a man during a robbery. Temple, the only black woman, is jailed for smuggling. (Smuggling what? She doesn’t specify to Abi.)

And then there’s a batch of murderers. There’s painfully silent Rozlynn, a Native woman who killed her father; Courtney, who killed her best friend for flirting with her boyfriend; and Malka, a former city councilwoman who poisoned her husband.

Farrow doesn’t flinch from showing the inmates’ violence or criminality. Prison-wisdom dictates much of their behavior. Stay silent. Don’t volunteer details. Stay on the good side of certain people, and far away from others. Even apart from that, their thinking is skewed. Yet he writes with compassion, understanding, and empathy, never forgetting the humanity of each convicted criminal. (No matter what genre I’m reading, I appreciate this type of empathy from the author.) I found myself sympathetic to almost all the inmates, particularly Rozlynn, the young Native woman, and Abi, the con artist. (It probably helps that she didn’t bilk me out of my savings.)

Multiple Points of View

As the story progresses, details emerge that make it clear every woman in Lady Jail had motivation to murder Florence. And even though she was much stronger than many of her fellow inmates, they all have the capacity to kill her. The method of murder, a wire around the neck, quickly incapacitates a victim.

Farrow tells the story from multiple points of view: Emile, Abi, the other inmates. Much of the early suspense comes from knowing that not everyone is telling the entire truth and wondering who is lying about what. Even when they tell the truth, their minds skew it until it bears little resemblance to reality. Emile’s handling of the interviews is impressive. He’s intelligent and never lets them (or the reader) know every card in his hand.

But when the Hells Angels bikers show up, the suspense takes a step up. Way up. Now the danger isn’t only inside the jail, it’s outside it, too. There’s a turf war brewing between rival gangs. If Emile isn’t careful, he might be caught in the crossfire.

Nothing is as it seems

I thoroughly enjoyed how nothing is as it seems on the surface. The truth is hard to dig out beneath the layers of half-truths and distortions and distractions. Farrow does a terrific job building the suspense to an almost unbearable level.

By the climax, I was reading breathlessly, waiting for the revelation. (This despite having first read the ending and knowing who the culprit is.) And the story takes plot turn after twisty turn to get there. Farrow takes a cue from Emile’s interrogation technique and frequently changes course to divert the reader from the truth. The plot thickens as multiple plot lines emerge. Everything came together beautifully (and bloodily). Farrow works all the disparate elements together.

One thing I particularly enjoyed . . .

Florence (and later, other characters) spend time “in the hole”: solitary confinement. Farrow has good observations and insights on the effects of solitary confinement (and imprisonment in general) on humans. He’s done his research. For example, whenever guards move one character inside the penitentiary, she hopes to see a window. Though she isn’t surprised not to find one, she’s still disappointed. Or when a character in solitary finds the aloneness mentally unbearable.

Recommended

Overall, this is a terrific novel. I highly recommend it to any mystery or thriller fans.

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

Like this? Read that!

So now John Farrow is on my list of “favorite Canadian writers.” Several others include Martin Michaud (I reviewed his book Never Forget here) and Louise Penny.