A Cold Trail

A Cold Trail is the seventh book in the Tracy Crosswhite series by best-selling award-winning American author, Robert Dugoni. New mum Tracy Crosswhite and her two-month-old baby, Daniella have moved to Dan O'Leary's parents' weekender in Cedar Grove while their Redmond farmhouse is demolished and rebuilt. Dan has some work locally, and Tracy is trialling a nanny for Daniella.

Tracy is surprised to see retired Chief of Police, Roy Calloway back in uniform, and dismayed to learn that the current chief, Finlay Armstrong is on leave after the death of his wife in a house-fire. With little encouragement from Roy, but disapproval from Dan, Tracy agrees to review three cases.

Kimberley Armstrong was a local journalist gathering research for a book about the 1993 murder of her best friend, eighteen-year-old Heather Johansen. Her investigations include the murder of Montana lawyer, Jason Mathews, who had been reviewing Heather's case, at the request of her parents, in 2013.

Certain facts about Heather's murder, not revealed at the time, could implicate Finlay in all three deaths, but Tracy is wary of assuming motive. And as she revisits scenes of crimes and interviews witnesses, it becomes clear that someone is not happy to have the cases re-examined. When she persists despite the danger, Roy observes that Tracy has inherited her father's stubbornness, and reminds her she has a family to consider.

Meanwhile, Dan's client is suing the city of Cedar Grove, the mayor and the city council, and while building his case, Dan discovers evidence pointing to underhand dealings by the council.

The story is carried by several narratives and enhanced by flashbacks which gradually reveal the true facts of each death. Even astute readers who manage to pick the perpetrator from a number of suspects will be hard-put to deduce the entire motive. This instalment features Leah Battles, known to readers from Close To Home; Vic Fazzio and his wife also play significant roles. Once again, excellent crime fiction.