Bitter Recoil

"Havill delivers an evocative tale of hard lives on the edge of society. His portly detective is a genuine low-key pleasure."—Publishers Weekly

When Undersheriff Bill Gastner heads to New Mexico's mountains for some respite, the last thing he expects to find is a dead body. But he's a cop through-and-through, and he can't let a criminal walk...

Aging Posadas County Undersheriff Bill Gastner has weathered his quadruple bypass and is taking a rare vacation up in New Mexico's northern mountains. He's escaping meddlesome medical providers and small town gossip, but he's looking forward to reconnecting with his former detective Estelle Reyes who is working in San Estevan County. Arriving a day early at the Steamboat Rock Campground, his camping plans are interrupted by sirens. Suddenly, Gastner, Reyes, and her new doctor husband reunite over the body of a pregnant young woman.

At first the detectives assume she was a hit-and-run victim. Then the medical exam reveals she was instead thrown from a moving vehicle after a rape attempt. Gastner's curiosity is piqued but he's on vacation—he should leave the case up to local law enforcement. Then four more deaths follow and the still-to-be-reckoned-with lawman steps in to stop the rash of murders....

He's not in Posadas County, but Undersheriff Bill Gastner can't ignore an unsolved case when a body turns up in the New Mexico mountains. Steven F. Havill's next police procedural finds the aging undersheriff taking on a disturbing case far from home.

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