The second book in the William Warwick series continues on his career progression up the ranks of the London Metropolitan Police. The events documented in Hidden In Plain Sight follow on closely after those chronicled in Nothing Ventured, although Warwick (and much of his colleagues) have been assigned to the Drug Squad.
Fair warning before we go much further, this is an ongoing series and there are unresolved issues by the time Archer chose to draw a line under this book. If you’re planning on reading this one, be prepared to pick up the 3rd book in the series to find out if or how things are resolved.
It’s the mid-1980s and Warwick has now been promoted to Detective Sergeant. But with that comes a promotion away from his preferred Art Fraud Squad and he’s now part of the Major Drug Squad. The case he’s been handed is a big one and involves huge quantities of heroin that have been passed through London in increasing numbers as a result.
The man the investigation focuses on, who runs this drug trade, is known only as the Viper and he’s particularly careful when it comes to his movements. Infiltrating the Viper’s nest is going to be an all-consuming and difficult job.
The only task that holds greater importance for William is the fast approaching day of his wedding to Beth. They have become devoted to one another since the turmoil experienced as part of the previous book, Nothing Ventured. And so, on the big day, the only thing that can - and does - disrupt their happy day comes in the form of William’s nemesis, Malcolm Faulkner. But despite his best attempts at ruining the day, his plans are foiled, as has become routine, and William and his bride embark on their honeymoon.
While away on his honeymoon, the case to bring down the Viper continues to build. Not only that, Faulkner continues his brazen flaunting of his ill-gotten wealth and, in so doing, provides the Major Drug Squad a possible link to the Viper, with the help of an informant nurtured by William, that could finally be his undoing.
Once again, Jeffrey Archer has built up a rapidly expanding storyline that benefits from multiple subplots running at the same time. Two high profile cases, both of which require extensive coordination, exhaustive planning and quite a bit of luck, result in plenty of tense moments. It also gives Warwick the opportunity to cut his honeymoon short to get into the thick of the action.
Although the main focus of the story is William Warwick himself, Archer does a good job at juggling his other main characters, namely the fellow members of the Major Drug Squad. As well as the returning members from the previous book, a new up and coming officer, DC Paul Adaja, is introduced and promises to be a great foil for the deep thinking that Warwick does.
Once again, the story benefits from a sharp, crisp delivery that demands your attention and is filled with snappy dialogue, a compelling court scene and repeated blindsides designed to throw everyone off balance.
This is another enjoyable entry in the William Warwick series although I’m not particularly a big fan of the “to be continued” nature of the ending. That being said, I’ll definitely be reading on to find out what happens with the unfinished business.