(Minotaur Books)
Richly written with a captivating story and a complimentary cast of characters who add depth and heart to the tale, “Hearts of the Missing” is a gripping police procedural which won the 2017 Tony Hillerman Prize. Carol Potenza’s debut novel takes place in the stunning scenery of New Mexico. With an intricate plot that deftly weaves narrative strands and significant clues into a tapestry that is difficult to decipher, the pace is blunt-nosed, fast but not blistering. The main character, Pueblo Police Sergeant, Nicky Mathew is a believable and likeable narrator, perhaps slightly flawed, who is also an outsider, yet she has the seeing eyes, prized by the Fire-Sky tribal members. Just gaining the trust of her community is a puzzle Matthews has to work out before she even attempts to work through a case. There are numerous instances when Nicky’s character and integrity are evident, she is a law enforcement officer for whom you can root. When she uncovers a string of crimes that even have the attention of the F.B.I., she uses her closest friends as allies and her enemies as informants, and pieces together a solution that has eluded, and endangered, many before her.
— Reviewed by Jenny Lyons of The Vermont Book Shop in Middlebury.
9 books about women who get the (police) job done
The Stranger Diaries, by Elly Griffiths
The Trespasser, by Tana French
As Long as We Both Shall Live, by Joann Chaney
Dark Sacred Night, by Michael Connelly
Liar Liar, Harriet Blue #3, by James Patterson
Connections in Death, by J.D. Robb
Left to Die, by Lisa Jackson
The Vanishing Season, by Joanna Schaffhausen
Inherit the Bones, by Emily Littlejohn