Was hair stylist Lynn Ashton murdered because someone was having a bad hair day? Or was it because she was dating just about every male in town and maybe dabbling in a little blackmail on the side? It is up to Sheriff Dan Rhodes to sift through the clues, both the real and the red-herring kind, to track down the murderer.
Rhodes believes he is making progress when he has some run-ins with a couple of illegal itinerants who are responsible for a number of copper wire burglaries in the county; but when another murder occurs, he is back to square one and looking for a villain much closer to home.
There are many factors that contribute to the pleasure and popularity of Crider’s Dan Rhodes series—writing that flows easily, a sense of fun, puzzling mysteries, interesting characters, and, at the head of the list, Dan Rhodes himself. Although no Sherlock, Rhodes is a shrewd observer of human nature with a quick wit and a keen intelligence. Here he deals with not only the locals of Blacklin County, Texas, but also Mafia henchmen, illegals, and even pesky feral hogs (see Rhodes’ preceding outing The Wild Hog Murders). Does this latest book hold up to its predecessors? Not only yes, but hell yes! Start it and you won’t rest until you close it.
"For me, the books I read were the call—the call to adventure, to thinking, to acknowledging other points of view. But to complete the ritual, I needed to respond."
I am surrounded by books. Every room, every space in my large, sprawling 1750s house is full of books...
Our history and experiences can define us, inspire our actions, and as writers impact our words and stories. Mine most definitely has: my father was a small-time gangster. Really.
"My ah-ha moment came when I read The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.... That was it for me – I was off to the races."
Nietzsche once wrote, “There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.”
"Mystery books were daring and exciting, firing up my imagination and making me yearn to become a girl detective or even a secret agent. They also empowered me to make up impromptu ghost stories around the campfire for my Girl Scout troop and sneak into the cemetery at night on a dare."
Fire and Ashes, the latest Angela Richman Death Investigator mystery, is an exploration of a fatal fire. To research this novel, Viets delved into the devastating consequences of junk science and arson investigations.
