Vigilante by Stephen J. Cannell is the 11th and final book in the “Shane Scully” thriller series. Pubisher: St. Martin’s Press, December 2011
In the last novel by acclaimed producer and New York Times bestselling author Stephen J. Cannell, LAPD detective Shane Scully and his partner Sumner Hitchens investigate a crime with ties to the sometimes violent world of reality tv.
Lita Mendez was a thorn in the LAPD’s side. An aggressive police critic and gang activist, she’d filed countless complaints against the department. So when she’s found dead in her home, Detective Scully and his partner Hitchens fear the worst: that there’s a killer in their ranks.
Outside the crime scene, Nixon Nash and his television crew have set up shop. Nash is the charismatic host of a hit reality show called “Vigilante TV,” dedicated to beating the cops at their own game: solving murders before they can. Now he has the murder of Lita Mendez in his sights. He presents the detectives with a choice: either join his team, or prepare for a public takedown.
But Scully knows that Nash isn’t the folk-hero he seems. He will do anything in the name of self-promotion. If a detective got in his way, would he be prepared to kill? In this new novel, Scully will have to risk everything to save himself and the job he loves.
The murder of an outspoken advocate against the police brings a reality-TV star to the scene who proclaims that he’ll solve this case, alluding to police corruption. Shane suspects something else is going on and will have to derail the star’s rise to the stop. What a rollercoaster ride! From the first page to the exciting conclusion, I knew I would not be able to put this book down. I was pulled right into the non-stop, fast-fury action of Shane and his team as they investigated a murder mystery with plenty of viable suspects. The villain is clever, but so is our hero who is determined to put an end to his shenanigans once and for all, even if it means sidestepping legality. This is another great book in this engaging and thrilling series and I’ll forever miss seeing Shane Scully and the team again.