First published 1995
Susan Wren left her career as a San Francisco police officer behind when she accepted the position of Chief of Police in Hampstead, Kansas. The small town seemed like a fresh start, but Wren quickly discovers that rural law enforcement brings its own complications. When a well-known local resident dies under suspicious circumstances, Wren finds herself navigating more than just the unpredictable Kansas weather. The investigation pulls her into a complex network of lies that reaches deep into the community's fabric. Small-town politics and hidden relationships create obstacles at every turn as Wren works to uncover the truth. Her outsider status becomes both an advantage and a liability as she attempts to earn the trust of locals while exposing secrets they would prefer to keep buried.
Genres: fiction, mystery, crime, contemporary
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, outsider-perspective
Setting: San Francisco, Hampstead, Kansas
Period: contemporary
251 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Worldwide