by Linda Barnes
First published 2002
Carlotta Carlyle poses as a secretary in a construction trailer, hunting for fraud on Boston's Big Dig. The towering redhead private investigator expected more excitement from infiltrating the fourteen billion dollar tunnel project beneath downtown Boston. The engineering marvel that protesters call a boondoggle offers little action until Carlotta takes a side case. She searches for missing Veronica James while maintaining her mild-mannered cover. Both investigations stall. Dead ends pile up in the missing persons case. Her fraud work on the construction sites yields nothing. Then someone breaks into Veronica's place. A construction worker dies under suspicious circumstances. The two cases collide and Carlotta finds herself trapped. She must navigate the dangerous intersection of corruption and murder while keeping her identity secret. The Big Dig becomes more than Boston's largest urban construction project. It becomes the backdrop for a deadly game where Carlotta fights to stay alive.
Genres: adventure, mystery, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, secret-identity
Setting: Boston, The Big Dig
Period: 21st-century
Audio Cassette · Brilliance Audio