Readers’ dilemma
People do the right thing for the wrong reasons, the wrong thing for the right reasons, the right thing for the right reasons, the wrong thing for the wrong reasons. Our acts fall into these categories. As do the characters in books. To this reviewer, doing the wrong thing for the right reason is the most common.
This applies to vigilantes for one. It’s difficult to fault their motives. They and members of society have been illtreated, but the criminal justice system gives their oppressors the benefit of the doubt. Not out of legal conviction, the victims think, but bribes to the authorities.
Needless to say, law enforcement won’t stand for it. Vengeance is their responsibility and nobody else’s. Vigilantes are criminals and must be treated as such. This conflict is the theme of Private Delhi by James Patterson and Ashwin Sanghi.
Jack Morgan’s independent private detective agency is worldwide.
Santosh runs the one in the capital of India. Nisha and Neely are in his investigation team. Morgan makes the rounds, ensuring that his people are on their toes. It’s unclear why governments hire them as they have plenty of police, but they pride themselves on being discreet and avoid the media.
Bodies are found in a basement, victims tortured then murdered. Their identities are shocking: respected, even ranking pillars of the community. Why kill them? Tapped to find out, Nisha gathers evidence with her magic fingers on the computer. All were in on human trafficking. Organ harvesting.
The authors have moved in on Robin Cook, Michael Palmer and Tess Gerritsen territory, who have been writing about this crime for decades. The culprit or hero as the case may be calls himself “The Deliverer”. When apprehended, which is he?
The finish is ambiguous. It is left to the reader to decide. As with Hannibal the Cannibal in Thomas Harris’ The Silence Of The Lambs, the answer is a toughie.