Prolonged Exposure

Steven Havill has crafted yet another winner in the Bill Gastner series. As usual, the descriptions of people and place are outstanding, and the plot twists and turns well. The only complaint (and its a small one!) is that the novel couldn't have been another 50-75 pages or so. Good job!

When an author entices an urbanite like me to want to visit a place where there's more dust than coffee choices, the book is a find. Havill has created a mystery series that keeps you turning pages and looking forward to the next book, with a protagonist whose profile we all stare at in the mirror, in some form or fashion. Prolonged Exposure is the most gripping tale yet, and Gastner ups the bar, once again. I've come to feel like a fly on the wall in Estelle's home, and when her kid is snatched, it's like opening the door to the terror that lurks nearby the children in your own life. Bring on the next!

New Mexico Undersheriff Bill Gastner is recovering from major surgery in the Flint, Michigan home of his daughter and her family. Bill is starting to become bored with the daily routine. Though he loves his oldest daughter, her spouse, and his grandchildren, he cannot wait to get back to his home in Posedas County. His planned departure abruptly changes when his Chief of Detectives, Estelle Reyes-Guzman calls to tell him his home has been burglarized. Bill and his daughter Camille quickly fly to New Mexico where he learns that a three year old child is missing from a campsite, probably a kidnapping victim. Due to these two incidents and a third mystery involving a potential murder, Bill's recuperation is put on hold as his law enforcement experience is needed on all three investigations even as he secretly (from Camille) devours burritos on the side. The sixth novel in the Gastner mysteries keeps all the freshness found in the previous five tales due to Steven f. Havill adding health problems, a change of environment, and the intrusion of family members to keep Bill alert. The trio of who-done-its are well designed and the support cast add much to the tale. However, in the end this book, like its predecessors, is all about Bill, a wonderful character, who brings a lot to any novel he graces. Harriet Klausner