It’s been three
years since Bridget Quinn, retired FBI agent, married Carlo, a former
priest and university philosophy professor. They’re living in
Tuscon, trying to adjust at retirement age to the emotional demands
of marriage.
Bridget has always
been fascinated by the murder of the Walker family in Florida in
1959. The case had much in common with the Clutter case immortalized
by Truman Capote in his epic novel, In Cold Blood. Although the cases
were similar and the murderers in the Kansas case were in the area at
the time, no one was ever charged. One other remaining mystery is
whether a third person was with the murderers in Kansas. It has never
been proved and the person has never been located.
Jerry Beaufort, a
long term prisoner, who has been jailed for drug dealing among other
crimes, wants to live out his life in peace, but he fears that papers
may lead investigators to his involvement in the Walker killings.
Carlo, who was at times a priest at the prison where the Clutter killers were held, may have papers relating to the old crime. Jerry
needs those papers.
This is not a book
where the reader doesn’t know who the killer is. It’s plain from
early on that Jerry was involved in the crimes. The question is
whether he can be stopped before he commits other crimes in trying to
erase the evidence. I found the connections between the Walker and
Clutter crimes fascinating. However, the book was rather slow.
I found Bridget hard
to relate to. She is obsessed with Carlo’s first wife. She spends a
great deal of energy on her obsession, rather than the crime. Carlo
is much more likable. He is very patient with Bridget.
For me, the most
interesting part of this book was the information on the older
crimes. However, it’s an easy read for if you like cold case
novels.
I received this book
from Dutton for this review.
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