Part of Lucas Davenport, book 24
First published 2014
Layton Carlson Jr. thought he had found the perfect spot for a romantic encounter with his girlfriend. The abandoned farmyard outside Red Wing, Minnesota offered complete privacy among the cornfields. But something reeked terribly in the summer heat. When Layton mentions the smell to a county deputy, the cop discovers a corpse jammed into a cistern. Then another body. And another. By the time investigator Lucas Davenport arrives on scene, police have counted fifteen victims and the number keeps climbing. Davenport uncovers a chilling pattern. Someone has been killing methodically for years, claiming one victim each summer with clockwork precision. The murders span decades, yet nobody noticed the disappearances. The killer must live nearby, probably someone the community sees regularly. Davenport faces a disturbing truth about small town secrets and how a predator can hide in plain sight.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: cat-and-mouse, serial-killer
Setting: Red Wing, Minnesota
Period: Summer
392 pages · Hardcover · G.P. Putnam's Sons
Content warnings: murder, violence