Grand Central Publishing (August 1, 2008)
This was an interesting read though murder mysteries and missing babies are generally not my style the story itself drew me under Letts’ spell and the characters with more than cameo appearances to fill a need of the plot entranced my imagination. When Gaylene Harjo’s murder is discovered and her infant son’s pajamas found on a nearby creek bank, DeClare is horrified that their small town has been so rudely shattered by these tragic crimes. After nearly 3 decades a strange young man appears in town claiming to be visiting from California. His striking family resemblance and persistent digging into the Harjo incident so many years gone begins to raise suspicions both among would be friends and the enemies who will go nearly any length to keep the truth buried that implicates them or those closest to them.
I highly recommend Letts to readers who enjoy a good murder mystery or human interest style novel. Though not my favorite type of book I am definitely impressed by the skill this author displays for riveting prose, a detailed yet coherent plot and characters so realistic they cling to the reader’s attention and imagination like mountain climbers on a vertical cliff face. If this sounds like your type of book be sure and grab a copy to add to your reading list. And for my readers looking for “clean novels†this is mainstream fiction but the language is minimal and there aren’t graphic scenes portraying violence or other offensive material. I would say this is probably a PG or mild PG 13 primarily for language. (ISBN#9780446401142 , 368pp, $7.99)
Codicil:
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