i LOVE VI Warshawski. she's so awesome, i want to be her when i grow up. i always enjoy paretsky's novels set in chicago. this one took a bit longer to get into but about halfway through, it kicked in and i couldn't put it down. VI was up against a pretty formidable foe, someone who could ruin her career, and it was very personal. i didn't find "hard time" to be as good as "blacklist" but i enjoyed it all the same. shout out to my friend pw for introducing me to VI and paretsky. she's a keeper!