The Company of Demons by Michael Jordan is a wonderful blend of crime and mystery, a riveting story with sophisticated characters. Lawyer John Coleman is shocked, like everyone else, at the murder of his friend, a murder that is brutal and that looks like the handiwork of a serial killer who had cooled off over the years, the Torso Murderer. Hired by Jennifer, the dead man's daughter, to take care of the estate, John finds himself unwittingly developing romantic feelings for her. But this is just the beginning of trouble for him because he faces a ruthless biker gang, a cop with a questionable past, and the addict son of the dead man. Is the murderer watching his every step?
There is just such a lot that this author does impeccably well. First, he opens the narrative with a dramatic moment, presenting the crime and introducing the protagonist. He captures the scene with descriptions that are terrific and detailed with forensic clarity and goes on to create a premise that implicates the protagonist and subtly links him to the murder. The suspected murderer is someone his detective father had failed to apprehend in the past and fact that the newspapers are talking about it leaves a moral obligation in his mind. The prose is unique and the narrative is awesome in the first person narrative voice. The imagery is vivid and this makes readers feel like they are also part of the plot. Michael Jordan is a great storyteller and he has the ability to keep the narrative emotionally intense and psychologically disturbing. The Company of Demons is a real page-turner.