Part of Susan Wren, book 1
First published 1993
Susan Wren traded her career as a San Francisco cop for marriage to Daniel Wren, police chief of Hampstead, Kansas. Ten days after their wedding, a sniper's bullet kills Daniel. The town council names Susan as his replacement, making her both the investigating officer and the grieving widow. The locals view her with suspicion. She's an outsider from the city, a woman in a man's job, and personally connected to the victim. Susan must navigate small town politics while hunting her husband's killer. Her investigation uncovers a web of criminal activity hidden beneath Hampstead's quiet surface. Toxic waste dumping and cattle rustling operations run deep in the community. The winter wheat fields hold more secrets than Susan expected. As she digs deeper, she realizes the killer isn't finished. Susan faces a choice between seeking justice for Daniel and protecting herself from whoever wants her dead.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, fish-out-of-water
Setting: San Francisco, Hampstead, Kansas
Period: 20th-century
252 pages · Paperback · Worldwide Library