Fistful of Rain

The second Sheriff Dawson mystery has lots of twists and turns that stretch back over years, then a mind-blowing ending that puts everything into place (Killer Nashville). Winner2019 Best Book of the Year, Killer Nashville Ty Dawson, now the sheriff of Oregons Meriwether County, is ready to put a trying year behind him, but hes afforded no such luck. In a country still coming to grips with the Vietnam War, Watergate, and Charles Manson, Tys neck of the woods isnt safe from the turmoilespecially when a commune of young so-called hippies springs up out of nowhere . . . A longtime local sheep rancher accuses the Rainbow Ranch residents of livestock theft, putting Ty in the middle of a culture clash. Though Ty finds no evidence of a crime, the rancher brings in his own stock detective. Behind fences topped with razor wire, the commune and its enigmatic guru hold secrets of their ownmany of which have nothing to do with peace, love, and understanding. Tensions flare, setting off a bloody wave of violence that will forever scar the place Ty calls home, unless he can stop it. Elegantly written . . . Ty may strike some readers as almost too smart, too well educated, and too pedantic for a small-town sheriff, but his insights into 1970s social issues make him an irresistible spokesman for the era. Publishers Weekly A modern Western . . . The characters are well developed, and place descriptions make it easy to visualize the landscapes. New York Journal of Books