Showboat Medical Examiner Margot Heavner makes it clear that, breaking with her department’s earlier practice ( The Bone Collection, 2016, etc.), she has no intention of calling in Tempe as a consultant and promptly identifies the faceless body herself as that of a young Asian man.

It’s not much of a leap from stealing to murder, but there are certainly other suspects to check out in the writing group and even among the vets, many of whom suffer from PTSD.īelievable characters, romance, and a solid mystery combine for an enjoyable read.Īnother sweltering month in Charlotte, another boatload of mysteries past and present for overworked, overstressed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan.Ī week after the night she chases but fails to catch a mysterious trespasser outside her town house, some unknown party texts Tempe four images of a corpse that looks as if it’s been chewed by wild hogs, because it has been. Mac suspects Lewis of stealing a laptop from a veteran who’s been writing some excellent stories he’s too shy to promote and passing the stories off as his own. Linda was evidently killed with one of her own mallets, which were easily available to anyone, and another mallet has gone missing. Shannon and Mac team up with Shannon’s sister, Chloe, who hosts a building show on TV and is engaged to Police Chief Eric Jensen, to investigate.

Joining Shannon’s construction class for women, Linda plans to do some custom backsplashes for the tiny homes-plans that are canceled when she’s found dead on the beach near the lighthouse. Though the visiting writers are usually a joy, his latest group proves dramatically different, especially cocky, obnoxious Lewis Bondurant, who immediately hits on Linda Rutledge, a glass artist Shannon vaguely remembers from high school. As a sideline, Mac runs writers workshops in his historic home.

Shannon shares her home with former Navy SEAL Mac Sullivan, a bestselling author whose philanthropy is helping build a community of tiny houses for needy veterans in Lighthouse Cove, California. After her harrowing experience in Premeditated Mortar(2020), contractor Shannon Hammer is hoping for a quiet life.

Linda rutledge author