Product Description
It has been two decades since Detective Francis X. Loughlin solved his first big case, the brutal murder of a woman doctor. The young man convicted of the killing, Julian Vega, is back on the streets now, released on a technicality after years of appeals. Not long after his release, another murder takes place, one so similar to that long-ago case that Julian is the first suspect in Detective Loughlins sights. However, the DNA evidence that is now a routine part of policework points in an impossible direction. If the evidence is correct, Loughlin has to rethink decades of certaintyand Julian may be the only person alive who can help him make it through this case. With his laser-sharp vision for motives and secrets of human nature, Peter Blauner has crafted a crime story of the highest order, in which the ending is an unguessable shock and the characters are unforgettably real. Blauner is at the top of his form in this chilling tour de force, a novel that will keep readers guessing until the very last page.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 28 reviews)

interesting book

it's a turning page book. not my favorite ever but a good one. the story and characters are well built.
February 23, 2008

Brilliant Writing and Great Characters, But...

Let me begin by saying this; Peter Blauner can WRITE. There are very few "mainstream" authors with as much literary talent as this man. He takes a description of a simple act and turns it into something beautiful and poetic in ways that few others can. If you like James Lee Burke, you'll be a fan of Blauner's from the start.

That being said, though, Blauner's literary flair sometimes slows down the pace of the story. Slipping into Darkness is a nice character study of two men; a convicted---and then pardoned and released---killer, and the cop who put him behind bars. We spend the entire book getting to know these two men while wondering if the "killer" really did commit the crime, and when a second victim is killed in a similar way, the stakes are raised even higher. Did the prison system release this man so he could kill again, or is he part of some huge set-up?

The story moves slowly because Blauner spends so much time letting us get to know his characters. Also, as I mentioned before, the description of something simple like a man taking out the trash or drinking a cup of coffee---acts that another author might spend one sentence on---get a long, drawn out, and very lyrical description from Blauner. The "big secret" at the end of the book was a bit too formulaic for my tastes, but I still found Slipping into Darkness to be far and away one of the best mysteries I've read in years, and I'll definitely seek out Blauner's other books.
December 21, 2007

The skewed scales of justice

Peter Blauner"s "Slipping into Darkness" is a crime mystery which has a refreshing twist. The novel's two protagonists Julian Vega and Francis X. Loughlin are positioned on opposite ends of a crime committed 20 years ago. Vega, then a naive 17 year Puerto Rican old schoolboy was convicted of the brutal murder of young doctor Allison Wallis, a tenant in the apartment Vega's dad worked as the super. An aggressive interrogation without legal council, by Loughlin, a young police officer, recently reinstated after alcohol rehabiliatation helped cinch the conviction.

As the novel commences the victim, Wallis' body is being exumed. Vega had been released from prison on a technicality and was now being represented by an aggressive defense attorney. Loughlin was directed to reopen the investigation to retry Vega using DNA evidence not available then but now implicating the now hardened ex-con in the crime.

Loughlin who railroaded Vega for the murder, ignoring certain conflicting aspects of evidence is stunned when a similar crime occurs, the murder of a young doctor, once again impicating Vega. Evidence however presents a muddled picture as the DNA profile of the original murder victim is found at the scene of the new crime.

Throughout the novel both protagonists plod through their penitent existence trying to come to grips with the harsh twists of fate life presents. Vega, robbed of the most productive years of his life and lacking social experience is trying to become assimilated into a society that has no affection for a high profile criminal. Loughlin, plagued with self doubt about implicating Vega is seemingly being punished for perceived misdeeds as a progressive eye disease in slowly robbing him of sight.

Both characters come into conflict as the investigations into both crimes progresses to a mildly startling conclusion.
July 29, 2007

Held My Interest

I purchased this book based on the reviews by other readers, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The ending is not what I'm used to or expected, and that makes it all the more interesting.

I will be buying more books by Peter Blauner.
July 13, 2007

Working Class Poet

I've long been a fan of James Lee Burke's novels, never expecting to find another author with the same depth of characters and moral labyrinths. After stumbling upon an online interview with Mr. Blauner, I decided to give this book a shot.

"Slipping into Darkness" parallels the story of Julian Vega, a young man convicted of murder, and Francis Loughlin, the one responsible for putting Vega away for twenty years. Now, released from prison on a technicality, Julian tries to restore his good name and that of his deceased father--an immigrant whose reputation was tarnished during the decades-old investigation. Julian also tries to find his footing back in the free world, while struggling with his prison-survival mentality. At the same time, Francis is facing his own weaknesses as a cop and a human being, as symbolized through the deterioration of his eye sight. Even as he tries to hide his handicap from his wife and his new partner on the Job, Francis is confronted with a new murder investigation that points fingers once again at the recently-released Julian.

Aside from the completely believable characters that Blauner creates in this story, the most amazing accomplishment is the empathy he stirs in the reader for both Julian and Francis. Neither man is perfect. Both make horrible mistakes. Both are subject to poor decision-making. And yet, both are so human and normal and real, that we are caught up in their internal and external conflicts. These conflicts are intensified by a satisfying mystery plot that leaves things unfinished till the final thirty pages.

This is not squeaky clean fiction, with tidy answers, and diatribes on forgiveness. Despite this--or perhaps, because of it--"Slipping into Darkness" manages to pack a powerful punch, showing the results of bitterness, stubborness, and potential redemption. Blauner has stormed onto my fictional radar. And I'm sure he'll be there for a long time.
February 28, 2007

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