Description:

From Publishers Weekly

In Pearson's subpar fourth crime thriller featuring Idaho lawman Walt Fleming (after Killer Summer), Sheriff Fleming is honored to receive a request for help from legendary Seattle homicide detective Lou Boldt (another Pearson series lead), who's after the killer of Caroline Vetta, a woman with a history of dating professional sports figures. Fleming assists his colleague by setting up interviews with two persons of interest in his jurisdiction, sports agent Vince Wynn and former football team owner Marty Boatwright. When another person connected with the victim, retired linebacker Martel Gale, is found bludgeoned to death, Fleming's inquiries lead him to some uncomfortable conclusions. The identity of Gale's killer may strike some as a cop-out, while Fleming's romance with subordinate Fiona Kenshaw never rises above formula ("If I could wrap up all the happiness in the world into a package, if I could give you that, I would"). With any luck, Pearson will get back on track in the next installment. Author tour.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From

It’s clear from the beginning that Idaho sheriff Walt Fleming loves Fiona Kenshaw, caretaker of a local estate and part-time sheriff’s photographer. It’s also clear that Kenshaw loves him back, but she has a secret she won’t share. Her heroic rescue of a small child pushes her face on the front pages of the Sun Valley paper, and her past finds her. But before she comes clean, she’s knocked on the head by an unknown assailant, whom Fleming thinks may be linked to a local murder and possibly to the death of young Seattle woman. As his investigation spreads out, however, he discovers Fiona isn’t the only one who has secrets, several of which are linked to the crimes. Pearson shows his talent for thrills early on in Fiona’s dynamite rescue sequence, but excitement takes a backseat to a muddied plot with some distracting, oddly stunted dialogue. Pearson has written a number of edge-of-seat thrillers, but although this novel is sufficiently entertaining, it lacks both the taut plotting and intricate excitement of his best work. --Stephanie Zvirin