Bad Cop by Angela McCallister
NOTE: While Bad Cop is easily a standalone novel, to get the best understanding of the vampire politics and the character references, it is advisable to read Bad Mouth prior to Bad Cop.
Val asks Alice to take over her duties as Vice Director at VLO during her pregnancy and for a few months thereafter. The only problem is Alice’s hatred of cops. She saw them as swaggering, bullying cocks, one and all. She needs the massive pay raise to get out of debt and care for her brother, Zach.
No sooner had she taken a seat than the phone rang with a murder case requiring her presence. It appeared a freshly turned vampire had been killed.
Ian, a vampire Tracker, arrived at the scene to find it overrun with humans. He was furious; humans were messing with evidence. This was a vampire murder. Once he examined the murder, he was chilled. It bore a striking similarity to a murder case that was closed 50 years ago.
In order to get to the bottom of the crime, Ian and Alice are going to have to work together. Can Alice put her deep-rooted prejudices regarding police officers behind her?
Bad Cop has all the elements of a great book: murder, mystery, intrigue, passion. Angela McCallister is great at creating believably flawed, but lovable characters. While often such flawed characters are traditionally men, in this case, the flawed character is Alice, a strong-willed, but often irrational woman in her beliefs about police officers. Her beliefs could cause some serious problems.
McCallister has created the wonderfully scrumptious Ian to work beside Alice. Ian, who almost walks off the page he is so alive. He is kind, funny, sweet, tender, passionate, and only barely flawed. He is almost every woman’s panty-dropping dream.
Angela McCallister has been well recognized for her world-building skills and she expands those skills in Bad Cop. The world created in Bad Mouth grows and takes even more shape. The secondary characters become more recognizable, laws more familiar, and primary characters stop in to say hello. Characters are all believable.
McCallister has a knack for creating life on the page. She spins words into breath for her characters and who then walk into life in the readers’ heads. Few authors can create characters with the level of cult following as McCallister.
Readers should definitely dive head-first into Bad Cop.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.