by Todd Ritter
First published 2025
Two corpses turn up in a quiet town, and Detective Alex Sinclair takes the case. The killer strikes again, then again. Each crime scene contains deliberate clues meant for Sinclair alone. The murderer wants his attention. The detective realizes someone from his past has returned to settle old scores. Bodies accumulate as Sinclair digs into his own history. The killer constructs intricate displays at each murder site, taunting the detective who must decode the messages. Sinclair races to identify his tormentor before the next victim dies. He confronts buried secrets and past mistakes while hunting someone who knows him intimately. The case forces Sinclair to examine his own actions and their consequences. Personal history becomes the key to stopping a methodical killer bent on revenge.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
383 pages · Hardcover · Dutton
Content warnings: murder, violence