Trace of Evil: A Novel

Trace of Evil by Alice Blanchard has Natalie Lockhart along with her sister, Grace and niece, Ellie remembering her sister, Willow who was murdered twenty years ago. Though Willow’s killer is serving time, Natalie has her doubts that the right man is in prison. Natalie followed in her father’s footsteps becoming an officer with Burning Lake Police Department. She uses the wisdom she learned from him to help her solve cases. Natalie is now the newest detective on the force handling the cold case of the Missing Nine. For twenty five years transients have gone missing in the area and not one detective in all that time has been able to solve the crimes. Natalie takes Brand Buckner home one evening after he has had too much to drink, to find his pregnant wife, Daisy dead in the kitchen. As Natalie works the case, she uncovers startling information. Natalie finds clues regarding the Missing Nine along the way and her doubts about Willow’s killer may be justified. The results of Natalie’s investigation will change her life and others forever. Trace of Evil is the first book in a new series starring Natalie Lockhart. Trace of Evil has multiple storylines making it a complex novel. I was unable to get into Trace of Evil despite my best attempts. The descriptions were detailed which led to dry reading plus the dialogue was off putting. I soon found myself skimming through the book (this is not a good sign). I easily kept up with what was happening, and I kept reading to see if I had picked out the correct guilty party. I do want to let you know that there is foul language and detailed violence. I also thought Trace of Evil was a little long with 370 pages. Trace of Evil has all the aspects for a good mystery, but it did not quite come together. With the right writing, Trace of Evil could be the beginning of a good mystery series. The beauty of books is that we each view them differently. I suggest you obtain a sample of Trace of Evil to see if it appeals to you and if you can uncover the killer’s identity.

Trace of Evil pleasantly surprised me. What I expected was a police procedural, but turned out to be a dark twisted web about the darkness that plagues small towns. Set in the quiet town of Burning Lake, New York, Trace of Evil follows Natalie, a young female detective, haunted by the murder of her sister Willow when she was a child. When Daisy, the wife of a fellow police officer is found murdered in her home, Natalie is assigned the case. As she begins to investigate the murder, she starts to draw similarities to her sister’s murder and begins to suspect the two might be linked. I was fascinated by the town of Burning Lake. Once the sight of witch trials and murders, teenagers in the town dabble in Wicca rituals. Much of the novel deals with the consequences of witchcraft. Where Wicca rituals in a small town would typically be seen as occult and generally be discouraged, Burning Lake seems to more or less embrace them, and that made it all the more interesting. Trace of Evil was an incredibly quick read. I read it over the span of two evenings, and I had a very hard time convincing myself to put it down. I held my breath through the last fifty pages as everything was revealed and all the loose ends were tied together. The ending thoroughly shook me, and I have a feeling it will stay with me for a long time to come.