A brutal killing of a school teacher starts off this novel from first time writer Tyler Dilts. Detective Danny Beckett usually spends his weekends trying to drown the loss of his wife in a bottle of Vodka, but when his partner Detective Jennifer Tanaka calls him he is ready. With no strong suspects and almost no clues the investigation seems hopeless. On top of that nightmares about his wife's death in a car crash continue to haunt him. He believes that there is more to this case than meets the eye. He only hopes to catch the murderer before he strikes again.
A King of Infinite Space is an enjoyable book. Mr. Dilts has create some characters who, while not compelling, are enjoyable. Mr. Dilts, an English instructor, infuses the work with literary references. The title referes to the line from Hamlet "I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space--were it not that I have bad dreams." While the story is well written for the most part there are some issues that the author should take into account. For a short novel there are a lot of extraneous sub-plots added. For example, the relationship of the victim and her sister to her father make for an interesting aside, but are unnecessary and ultimately unbelievable. The ending of the story also feels a little rushed.
Those few issues aside it is still an enjoyable book and I look forward to reading more about Detectives Beckett and Tanaka.
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