Booklist had some nice things to say about A SECRET ABOUT A SECRET…
One of the top scientists at a biotech company specializing in advanced research into genetic
engineering is murdered. In this police procedural set in an unspecified future, murder
investigations are handled by the much-feared Standard Division, whose executives send Myles
to find out what happened. As first-person narrators go, Myles is a risky choice: he’s abrasive
and immediately unlikable, a rude, brusque man who seems to alienate people intentionally. He
appears to be a workaday cop, good at his job but not inspired, but is he using an off-putting
demeanor as a means of disarming people, the way Columbo did? Readers will be asking
themselves that question at the outset, but soon other questions will come to the fore, questions
about the murder victim’s private life, the biotech company’s secrets, and even the motivations of
Standard Division itself in choosing Myles to work the case. Spiegelman (Dr. Knox, 2016) is a
top-notch storyteller, and his latest will appeal equally to those who enjoy mainstream
procedurals and to genre-blending readers who relish crime novels set in the future. — David Pitt