When a woman visiting Boston is brutally killed in a drive-by shooting it opens the door to a strange case involving a dead hedge fund billionaire and a connection to a village in faraway India.

At first, her murder appears to be a tragic accident – an innocent person in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as Curtis Westcott and his team at Boston Homicide dig in, they discover a link to the death of a wealthy and powerful financier. The case has Detective Aislinn Byrne chasing a dangerous lead in Mumbai, Stan Lamers going face-to-face with a violent suspect, and Bryan Cheung learning how deceptive a homicide investigation can be.

The Vulture Fund is the third book in the Curtis Westcott crime series, and it’s about money, motive, and murder. You know, the good stuff.

I understand that Jeff Buick has now published at least 13 novels, initially through a New York publisher and now independently. That level of experience in writing and publishing is evidenced by The Vulture Fund which is a polished and professional crime thriller that kept my attention throughout. This is the third book in the Westcott series following The Killing Game and The Wrong Side of Murder. I have not read either of the earlier books but that did not disadvantage me in any way.

The story starts in a fairly unremarkable way as two detectives meet at a murder scene and we have a routine procedural investigation. However things are not quite what they first appear and the cases develop from there.

The investigating team is made up of four detectives; Curtis, Stan, Aislinn and Bryan who manage between them to do virtually everything required. During the book we learn little things about their lives but no too much to detract from what I found to be a fascinating crime plot. I thought Aislinn’s trip to India stretched reality but it was entertaining and added an interesting background to the crimes.

There is some mild violence but in the main the investigation is fairly procedural with CCTV, phone records and bank transactions providing much of the evidence. As with all good crime thrillers there are some twists and a lively chase at the end.

The Vulture Fund is not in my opinion a classic novel but if you enjoy a simple to read book with a plot that is easy to follow, I recommend Jeff Buick’s work and suggest you give this book a try. Indeed, why not seek out The Killing Game and read the series in order. I have awarded 4.5 stars.

Want some authentic crime fiction novels – look no further.

Jeff Buick writes fast paced fiction filled with twists you won’t see coming. Lethal people (the bad guys of course) lurk in Jeff’s Boston crime series, but Curtis Westcott and his team of detectives are ready for any murder mystery that comes at them. The Westcott series is action packed suspense, perfect for readers who love Michael Connelly books, especially the Bosch series. ‘A Killing Game’, the first in the series, won the 2021 International Thriller Writers “Best original ebook”, and is a “can’t put it down” suspense thriller.

Then there’s the Bobby Greco series, where a disgraced Orlando Homicide cop tackles a very twisted bad guy in the series opener, ‘One is Evil’. More to come on this series soon, with Bobby matching wits with some devious criminal minds.

Jeff’s latest standalone novel, ‘The Krubera Conspiracy’, rifles along at a face pace and is a globe-trotting mix of thriller and suspense.

Jeff is a Canadian author who loves to read and is always searching for a remarkable new novel, especially book club novels. He devours Tana French books, along with new offerings from Louise Penny and Mary Stone.