In the Clearing by Robert DugoniMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
One of my favorite things about Robert Dugoni is that he never writes the same book twice when he's writing a series. Another thing I love is that the characters and situations he writes are so vivid and captivating that you can't put the book down until you've reached the end. He's done it again with the third book in the Tracy Crosswhite series, In The Clearing. The first book was deeply personal to Tracy as she literally dug through the past and put herself in the crosshairs. The second book was more suspenseful because she was dealing with an active killer who seemed to be hunting her.
This is another cold case, like her sister's murder from the first book. Yet, it's completely different. This time, the small town is unfamiliar and there's the added tension involving football heroes and Native Americans. Dugoni weaves a fascinating tale of patient detective work as Tracy digs through forensic evidence, brings in experts and talks to witnesses with bad memories and personal agendas. She's not jumping to conclusions. But she eventually digs deep enough to get the killer's attention and put herself in danger.
There's a secondary murder investigation back in Seattle involving a domestic dispute. Of course, something that Tracy learns on the cold case will help her unravel the other mystery. Thankfully, it's not too distracting and it's fun to see the author, and Tracy, stay on top of two separate cases.
Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review.
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