This is one of the author's earlier works, and while it is not one of his best efforts, it is still a cut above what is currently proffered by other writers of this genre. Jeffrey Deaver writes with a decidedly contemporary feel, his prose always spare and lean. While he does not dwell unduly on character development, it does not deter from the book, as it is wholly plot driven, with enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing until the last minute. It makes for a quick, enjoyable read. The book revolves around a decades old bank robbery in which the million dollars heisted was never recovered. This robbery was memorialized in an old bete noire film entitled "Manhattan is My Beat". Enter the story's unlikely heroine, twenty year old Rune of the purple hair, who works in a video store, squats in an abandoned loft that she calls home, and has an imagination that doesn't quit. When one of her video customers is killed execution style in his apartment, Rune is drawn into events of the past, as they converge upon the present. The now dead customer had repeatedly rented the film, "Manhattan is My Beat", and Rune firmly believes that there is a connection between his death and the age old bank heist. Her do-or-die resolve to discover why her customer was killed leads the moxie endowed Rune on a merry and dangerous chase. It is one that keeps the reader fully engaged and entertained.