I love newspapers. I always have. So even though overtime calls are not my favorite things in life I was a little excited to enter the huge building which houses the staff, reporters and printing press of the Cleveland Herald. Usually I am entering broken-down old homes and ratty apartments with dishes in the sink and cockroaches in the corners, where the heat and/or air conditioning does not work—which can be more or less a problem depending on the season, which on the shores of Lake Erie can change every ten minutes. Or I’m picking through a vacant lot where a body has been left atop a molding mattress, or a cramped car’s interior where someone decided to end their life with a bullet to the brain. Or—well, you get the idea.
So, the well-lit, climate-controlled, spacious Herald building would have come as a welcome relief in any case, but filled as it was with images of Lois Lane, Humphrey Bogart and Lou Grant, well, I didn’t mind losing a little sleep. Yes, someone was dead, but after ten years as a forensic specialist, I’ve learned not to get that get to me.
Most of the time.
The nice printing supervisor walked me through the building, explaining and/or griping about the difficulties of print journalism today—readership that’s been declining since the 40’s, the loss of the cash cow known as classified advertising to sites like Craigslist and MSN, lay-offs left and right, the harm done a society when there’s no one watching the gatekeepers—but I didn’t get to see Lois or Humphrey. It was the middle of the night, the stories written, the reporters home, only the printing and delivery to thousands of doorsteps left to do before their workday began anew.
We arrived at the print towers. The three-story high ceiling allowed for four towers of steel machinery to function, squeezing an unbroken stream of moving newspaper between huge, horizontal rollers. The rollers were stacked vertically inside the steel-framed towers, and not all the towers were the same size. The tallest had four sets of rollers, others two or one. The paper ribbon stretched from the top of one to the bottom of the next like a spider’s web. The noise drowned out everything else as the printing manager had to shout to explain: “The aluminum sheets are wound around the rolls, there, but they print on a rubber roll next to it, which then prints on the paper. That’s why it’s called offset. There’s one on each side of the paper, so it prints on both sides at once. Every turn prints eight sheets of newspaper.”
I could see the rolls and the paper but there seemed to be much more than that, from the huge boxes feeding the paper in and suspended vats of what must be ink, feeding through metal tubes to a mechanism that ran parallel to the rollers, an array of scaffolding and even steps surrounding each tower. What appeared to be super heavy duty skateboards moved around in a set of tracks that wound around the bottoms of the roller towers. They carried the huge rolls of paper into place. The manager continued: “The taller towers with more rollers are doing the color printing, the shorter ones, all black. Four colors, of course—red, blue, yellow and black. The paper roll then feeds into the folder, where the paper is folded and cut and sent to binding.”
I could have watched the mesmerizing action all day, but my gaze faltered when I saw the body. An unlucky copy editor hung from a long strap tied to the railing at the highest tower. A sad, silent figure against the cacophony of the press—and perhaps, given all the stresses in the industry which had just been described to me, not that surprising.
But then my empathy turned back on myself when I saw who else awaited on the highest tower—Jack Renner. I stopped in my tracks and my heart began to pound in time with the pounding of the huge metal rolls.
Because Jack Renner is a killer.
You can read more about Maggie in UNPUNISHED, the second book in the Gardiner and Renner suspense series.
Maggie Gardiner, a forensic expert who studies the dead, and Jack Renner, a homicide cop who stalks the living, form an uneasy partnership to solve a series of murders in this powerful new thriller by the bestselling author of That Darkness.
It begins with the kind of bizarre death that makes headlines—literally. A copy editor at the Cleveland Herald is found hanging above the grinding wheels of the newspaper assembly line, a wide strap wrapped around his throat. Forensic investigator Maggie Gardiner has her suspicions about this apparent suicide inside the tsunami of tensions that is the news industry today—and when the evidence suggests murder, Maggie has no choice but to place her trust in the one person she doesn’t trust at all . . .
Jack Renner is a killer with a conscience, a vigilante with his own code of honor. In the past, Jack has used his skills and connections as a homicide detective to take the law into his own hands, all in the name of justice. He has only one problem: Maggie knows his secret. She insists he enforce the law, not subvert it. But when more newspaper employees are slain, Jack may be the only person who can help Maggie unmask the killer– even if Jack is still checking names off his own private murder list.
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About the author
Lisa Black has spent over 20 years in forensic science, first at the coroner’s office in Cleveland Ohio and now as a certified latent print examiner and CSI at a Florida police dept. Her books have been translated into 6 languages, one reached the NYT Bestseller’s List and one has been optioned for film and a possible TV series. Connect with Lisa at lisa-black.com.
All comments are welcomed.
Giveaway: Leave a comment below for your chance to win a print copy of Unpunished. US entries only, please. The giveaway ends February 1, 2017. Good luck everyone!
Books are available at retail and online booksellers.
Sounds like a good read Dru. I’m sure one of the boys would be interested in it. Either the cop of the new head of E.M at DEP.
Sounds like one I could get into! Thank you for the chance!
This is a new author to me. I’d love to win this new book! Thanks for the chance! lindaherold999@gmail.com
What a great duo to solve crimes; Maggie, the forensic expert, and Jack, a homicide cop. Who better to guide them than an author who was in forensic science for twenty years. It should be a great read.
I haven’t yet read anything by this author, but it sounds very intriguing!
A fascinating plot dealing with the inner circles of newspaper printing and publishing.
Wow! This duo sounds so unusual and fascinating. And I still love newspapers. Thanks for the chance to win.
Forensic investigator and vigilante cop — great combination! Thanks for a chance to enter.
Oh! My! Vigilante justice can be a problem. Maggie and Jack really do have a problem. Great intro to a new author, new read. A most intriguing post and even more intriguing read. Thanks for the chance to read this sooner. Rather than later.
Oooooooooooo! Me, please!
Dru Ann your blog is a wonderful source to find new authors and their books. I love the character in Lisa Black’s book. It’s great to see women portrayed as such smart and strong individuals.
Unpunished would be enthralling. Thanks.
Yikes! This is sure to be a heart pounding book. New author and obviously not to be missed! Thanks Dru Ann for today’s post! Thank you to Lisa for the generous offer of a print copy of Unpunished!! ;o
I love all of Lisa’s books! Can’t wait to read this one.
Thank you for letting us know about this new book, Dru. It sounds really interesting .
Cynthia B
this sounds great. thanks for the chance.
Another heart stopper from Lisa. Since I live near Cleveland this one is special to me. Thank you for the giveaway too. Good luck to all.
Wow — this book sounds really good — I would love to have the chance to read it. Thanks so much for the giveaway, Dru Ann!
Love this author. Thank you for the chance to win a copy of her newest title
I’ve seen printing presses but never in a stack the way it’s described in the review here, sounds interesting. And the suspense is killing me! Thank you for reviewing this book Dru!
Wow, definitely on my TBR list. Thanks for the chance!
A murder at a newspaper sounds like an interesting storyline and an interesting read. This is a new author to me and I look forward to reading the book.
What a great sounding series, I’d love to get started. Thanks for the chance to win a copy of Unpunished.
Love Lisa Black’s books. I can’t wait to read this new one!!t
Printing process is fascinating.
I love serial killer books. This sounds interesting.
Another new-to-me author to try. Thanks for a chance to win a copy.
A new author to me and I am so happy about discovering her. I love books that deal with forensic. Thanks for a chance to win a copy of Unpunished.
Interesting duo – a forensic expert and a vigilante cop.
Thanks for the chance to win a copy.
Thanks for the chance to win this book. It is a new author & series to me & sounds interesting.
That’s a really beautiful cover! It’s interesting about loving newspapers–I’m crazy about magazines!
WOW – sounds like a terrific read!
Sounds interesting—I like that the author actually has forensic experience.
suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com
I’m really interested in reading this, especially after reading about the character, Jack Renner. Sounds like a classic anti-hero.
**** WINNER ****
of UNPUNISHED by Lisa Black is Robin Coxon.
Congratulations!