by P. J. Tracy
Part of Monkeewrench, book 11
First published 2025
Minneapolis detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth thought their case was closed. They had arrested Wolfgang Mauer and his partner for killing multiple women, with help from their tech-savvy allies at Monkeewrench. Mauer's accomplice died in jail, and Mauer himself was locked away in a maximum security psychiatric facility in rural Minnesota. But Mauer never stopped planning. With assistance from his mother, a former militia leader turned reclusive assassin, he orchestrates his breakout. Now he roams free with one goal: eliminate everyone responsible for his imprisonment. An inexperienced county sheriff discovers three fresh corpses and realizes Mauer has taken a young boy hostage. The escape was merely his opening move. Magozzi, Gino, and the Monkeewrench team join the frantic search, knowing they are his primary targets. Each hour Mauer remains at large means more death, and he will not stop until he settles the score.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-allies, revenge
Setting: Minnesota, Minneapolis
Period: 21st-century
288 pages · Hardcover · Crooked Lane Books
Content warnings: violence