First published 2009
Sheriff Hackberry Holland took the job in a small Texas border town hoping to escape his troubled past and memories of his deceased wife Rie. That hope dies when nine illegal immigrants turn up machine-gunned and buried behind a church. Holland and Deputy Pam Tibbs work to solve the mass murder while young Iraq veteran Pete Flores runs for his life with girlfriend Vikki Gaddis. Pete witnessed the killings but fled in drunken terror, unable to identify the shooters. Now multiple dangerous figures hunt the couple: crime boss Hugo Cistranos who hired Pete for the job, strip club owner Nick Dolan seeking revenge, and the mysterious killer-for-hire Preacher Jack Collins. Federal agents and ruthless criminals close in from all sides. Holland must find Pete and Vikki first, uncover the truth behind the massacre, and prevent more deaths in a case that threatens to consume everyone involved.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Texas, Border Town
Period: Contemporary
434 pages · Hardcover · Simon & Schuster
Content warnings: murder, violence