Review - UNTIL THE DEBT IS PAID, Alexander Hartung

Translated from the original German, UNTIL THE DEBT IS PAID is a combination police procedural and energiser bunny styled action thriller which starts out running when Detective Jan Tommen wakes up beside his beloved girlfriend one morning to find himself as the chief suspect in a vicious murder. Unfortunately the killing occurred during a time period that he has no recollection of, and the evidence linking him to the crime scene is as strong as his alleged motive. Escaping from his own police station, he goes on the run with the support of a good friend, a medical examiner, and a reclusive computer expert. Everything the well-equipped fugitive needs to conduct their own investigation.

Because of his band of supporters, Tommen bounces a bit between his lone wolf character, and somebody that has to rely heavily on the kindness of friends. He's also a man who can absorb a lot of physical and emotional damage in the pursuit of the truth. There's a good cast of baddies and, just for a slight change, there's an unsupportive police colleague (and Tommen's preferred suspect) rather than superior.

Lots of pace, lots of action, and a strong story arc with a twist at the end, the interactions between Tommen and his supporters are the real highlight in this book. Less a character study though, this is about building relationships between an ensemble cast, whilst also ensuring that Tommen remains front and centre of the investigation, and on the run. The individual eccentricities of the others is, in some ways expected, yet believable and engaging and the interactions between them often dryly funny. The twist is well delivered, and reasonably unexpected. The only minor quibble is that sometimes the dialogue seems a little formal, stylised if you like. But that's a very minor point as UNTIL THE DEBT IS PAID is an entertaining thriller with a all-round good guy done bad central protagonist.