I have read Steven F. Freeman’s first three Blackwell Files books this week – Nefarious, Ruthless, and T Wave. After reading the description of T Wave, I was prepared to be captivated by this story of Alton Blackwell and Mallory Wilson as they find themselves in parallel investigations in a Washington, D.C. hospice. Mallory is called in to discover why drugs are missing from patient rooms, and soon afterward, Alton must determine why patients are suddenly dying at a startling rate.
Freeman’s plot is solid, Alton and Mallory continue to develop and grow in their relationship, and he does a very good job of creating multiple suspects for the reader to consider, at least in regards to the murder portion of the mystery. It is clear very early on who is responsible for the missing medications; the only question is whether there is someone else killing patients.
I had problems with believability in this book. I had difficulty accepting a situation where the FBI would call in a citizen (Alton Blackwell) to handle the investigation of the deaths at the Stokely Medical facilities, despite the attempt to explain this by referring to his previous experience in Ruthless. In fact, I’m not sure this would be an FBI case at all. That part of the story line just felt rather contrived for me. However, Mr. Freeman did quite a good job of giving us just enough clues to eliminate suspects so we have a chance to figure out the killer just before the person is caught. Like the other two books, there is a group wrap-up session, but this one serves to tie up loose ends, not to actually reveal the culprits, as that has already been determined.
Was I captivated by T Wave? No, I’d have to say that I was mildly disappointed. I liked the basic story and the multiple likely suspects. I enjoy watching the romance between Alton and Mallory grow, and the surprise vacation was one of my favorite parts of the whole book. But I’m comparing T Wave to Nefarious, so I have to give T Wave 3 stars.