From Amazon:

Detective Inspector Andrew Hicks thinks he knows all about murder. However horrific the act, the reasons behind a crime are usually easy to explain. So when a woman is found bludgeoned to death, he suspects a crime of passion and attention focuses on her possessive ex-husband. But when a second body is found, similarly beaten, Hicks is forced to think again. When more murders arrive in quick succession, Hicks realizes he is dealing with a type of killer he has never faced before, one who fits nowhere within his logic. Then the letters begin to arrive . As the death toll rises, Hicks must face not only a killer obsessed with randomness and chaos, but also a secret in his own past. If he is to stop the killings, he must confront the truth about himself.

My Thoughts:

There is plenty of action in this tale but its strongest point is in the characters. Family relations play a very important role especially between fathers and sons. In the novel, author Steven Mosby looks at how domestic violence can have devastating and long-lasting effects throughout generations. He also looks at the nature of evil and whether people are doomed to repeat the sins of the parents or whether they have free will to break the cycle. The Murder Code is a good... but not great read. While there are many interesting common personal conflicts and histories, the pace of the story was up and down and sometimes just where the plot was going was hard to follow.
( )

Detective Andrew Hicks is convinced that there is always a pattern to be found in the actions of a serial killer even if they only make sense to the killer. It is just a matter of discovering this pattern and the culprit will be revealed. However, he is faced with a new killer who seems to defy this logic - murder after brutal murder and there seems to be no links, no logic, nothing to point to the killer. Worse, Hicks receives a CD showing one of these murders as well as a letter saying that there is a code behind his actions but the police will never be able to `crack' it. As the bodies pile up and still there are no clues or suspects, Hicks is forced to confront his own violent past and the very real possibility that this is one murderer who will go unpunished.

With its well-drawn characters, its many twists and turns, and it refusal to go for the simple answers, The Murder Code is a step above the usual run-of-the-mill murder mystery. One caution, however: some of the murders are extremely graphic and grisly and there is some very disturbing violence against animals which may be hard for many readers. ( )

This is police procedural that fit snugly onto my "okay" shelf.
The MC is DI Andrew Hicks, a cool & detached detective in an unnamed city who believes there's nothing that can't be solved through calm logic & statistics. The only thing that's rocking his world even slightly is the fact he's about to become a father. He never wanted kids (why will become evident) & his relationship with partner Rachel is on shaky ground.
Then the murders start. They are violent, graphic and have Hicks & colleague Laura chasing their tails. Neither doubts they're related but they can't find a single tie between the victims.
In alternating chapters, we eavesdrop as a detective attempts to interview a young boy following a traumatic event in the family home. The little guy is almost catatonic but the cop can't shake the feeling he's not getting the whole story. As these interludes progress, the boy's horrific childhood id slowly revealed but the line between victim & perpetrator begins to blur.
This is a book that got better as I stuck with it. Initially, I found the MC difficult to connect with. He's portrayed as reserved & emotionally stunted, almost removed form the chaos around him. But as the author gradually doles out tidbits of his history, he becomes a much more sympathetic character & we catch glimpses of the fragility behind the hard outer shell.
There are several viable candidates for "bad guy" but be prepared to suspend your disbelief when the perpetrator is revealed. His motive is sketchy & how he achieved his goal seems beyond his reach intellectually, not to mention a tad excessive....kind of like using a steamroller to squash a bug.
Still, I found the evolution of Hicks an interesting journey. His conversations with fellow detective Laura provide moments of wry comic relief & there are several other characters of note. It was just a case of enjoying his personal story (past & present) more than the murder mystery aspect of the book.
It's a modern take on Faulkner's philosophy that the past is never past. What you don't deal with or learn from just might sneak into the present. ( )

Detective Andrew Hicks is convinced that there is always a pattern to be found in the actions of a serial killer even if they only make sense to the killer. It is just a matter of discovering this pattern and the culprit will be revealed. However, he is faced with a new killer who seems to defy this logic – murder after brutal murder and there seems to be no links, no logic, nothing to point to the killer. Worse, Hicks receives a CD showing one of these murders as well as a letter saying that there is a code behind his actions but the police will never be able to ‘crack’ it. As the bodies pile up and still there are no clues or suspects, Hicks is forced to confront his own violent past and the very real possibility that this is one murderer who will go unpunished.

There is plenty of action in this tale but its strongest point is in the characters. Family relations play a very important role especially between fathers and sons. In the novel, author Steven Mosby looks at how domestic violence can have devastating and long-lasting effects throughout generations. He also looks at the nature of evil and whether people are doomed to repeat the sins of the parents or whether they have free will to break the cycle.

With its well-drawn characters, its many twists and turns, and it refusal to go for the simple answers, The Murder Code is a step above the usual run-of-the-mill murder mystery. One caution, however: some of the murders are extremely graphic and grisly and there is some very disturbing violence against animals which may be hard for many readers. ( )