'Lazybones' lacks ample focus on murder, mayhem

The novel's theme and subplots only slow the action.
By RON BERNAS
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
"Lazybones," by Mark Billingham (William Morrow, $24.95)
Mark Billingham's "Lazybones" is pretty much your typical police-procedure novel about the tracking down of a serial killer. But deft touches with character and humor help set it apart from the crowd.
London Detective Inspector Tom Thorne is running an investigation into the sadistic murder of a rapist released from prison.
To Thorne, and many of the officers working on the case with him, you couldn't ask for a better victim: If someone is going to die violently, better that it be a scumbag than an innocent. Therein lies Thorne's conflict: murder's murder and the killer must be caught. But there's more: As the facts shake out, it becomes increasingly possible the murderer is a cop.
The case isn't the only thing Thorne is agonizing over. He's starting a relationship with a feisty florist -- improbably named Eve Bloom -- yet can't commit himself enough to really get things off the ground.
Billingham alternates the chapters detailing the investigation with the story of a marriage destroyed following a rape 25 years earlier. That the unsolved case weaves itself in a major way to the rapidly mounting body count should be no surprise to anyone who reads mysteries. It's a mystery writer's common MO and Billingham, after two other Tom Thorne novels, knows what he's doing.
Adding humor
Billingham also plays a bit with such a book's expectations. In a scene in which Thorne puts together a major piece of the puzzle, Billingham describes that moment as it would be filmed in a movie: "The camera zooms toward the face of the hero ... it goes in close and stays there, showing the light of realization growing in the eyes." Billingham is a top comedian in England, and these touches of humor are welcome.
There are a few flaws, though. When Billingham writes from the killer's point of view, he gives away too much. And early on, it's difficult -- knowing little of the hierarchy of British police forces -- to determine where the characters fit on the food chain. Eventually, it doesn't matter, because the story takes over and interoffice politics fade away.
Billingham adds a welcome bit of depth to the genre: a theme. In "Lazybones," most of the characters are dealing with family issues. Thorne is stifled by the demands placed on him by his ailing father; another detective about to become a father worries over the changes the baby will inevitably bring; and a third officer seems oddly troubled by compliments about her perfect family. Billingham carries it through, showing the truly ugly side of family in the motive for the murders.
Unfortunately, some of this theme play and a few of the subplots do little more than slow the action. Or perhaps Billingham is just setting things up for a fourth Thorne book. One that focuses a bit more on murder and mayhem would be welcome.