by Shelley Civkin Richmond Public Library

Thriller's appeal is no mystery

When the first page of a mystery novel has a female cop finding a newborn baby in a dumpster, you pretty much know that you're in for a riveting ride.

The interesting plot notwithstanding, Faye Kellerman's newest book, Street dreams, reads more like a romance novel than a mystery to me. Yes, the premise of the book is mystery-based, but the feel of the book is more romance than anything else.

The novel features LAPD officer Cindy Decker, daughter of Lieutenant Peter Decker (of Decker and Lazarus fame). Cindy is not only an intelligent, moral, tough cop, but she's also a 'babe.'

So when she goes looking for the abandoned baby's mother and winds up meeting a handsome, black pediatric nurse who's taking care of the infant at the hospital, the romantic sparks fly.

This element of the story doesn't quite overshadow the rest of the book, but it certainly becomes one of the main focuses.

Critical care pediatric nurse Yaacov "Koby" Kutiel is a sensitive, observant, Ethiopian Jew who immediately falls for Cindy. Their common religious beliefs bring them even closer together and form the basis for a strong relationship. And a very steamy one.

With a great deal of legwork and gumption, Cindy manages to track down Sarah, the developmentally-challenged mother of the abandoned baby. After some careful and tactful interviewing, Cindy believes that Sarah may have been raped, and is on a mission to find the creeps that did it.

Accompanied by her longtime cop father, Peter, and her new boyfriend Koby, Cindy uses some pretty unorthodox tactics to track down the suspects. Her mission takes her and Koby to the seediest areas of town where they encounter not only danger, but also racial discrimination.

Kellerman uses the novel to make a statement about the strength of religious beliefs as well as the destructive power of racism, but she doesn't bludgeon the reader over the head with it.

Throughout the book there are a couple of other subplots fighting for attention, including a hit-and-run accident that may be connected to the suspected rape, and the murder of Cindy's step-grandmother in Germany in the 1920s. The latter subplot is pretty weak and seems like nothing more than padding, but considering what a good read this is otherwise, it doesn't really matter.

Fans of Faye Kellerman will enjoy this book-it moves quickly, Cindy Decker is a likeable character, the love interest with Koby is sweet and sexy, and the writing is good. And as usual, Kellerman adds lots and lots of interesting information about the Orthodox Jewish faith and its traditions.

For those of you who didn't know, Faye Kellerman is the wife of bestselling author Jonathan Kellerman. Now there's a team!

Shelley J. Civkin is the Communications Officer at the Richmond Public Library. For other popular reading suggestions, check out Richmond Public Library's Web site at www.yourlibrary.ca/goodbooks.