FIRE PRAYER

An island paradise harbors a deadly secret from the past.

Storm Kayama welcomes the call for help from her old school friend Tanner Williams. It gives her a chance to return to the unspoiled island of Molokai with her lover and law partner Ian Hamlin (The Green Room, 2005, etc.) and spend time with her Uncle Keone and Aunt Maile, who are over from the Big Island to buy horses for the ranch where Keone is foreman. Tanner has mental problems and is divorced from his wife Jenny. He’s worried that Jenny’s drinking and bitterness may be putting their diabetic son Luke in danger. Hamlin has a brief to investigate the disappearance of Brock Liu, whose wealthy father lost another son on Molokai. While they’re out horseback riding, Storm, Hamlin and her aunt and uncle discover Brock’s corpse. Then Jenny is murdered and Luke takes off from the hospital where he’s being treated for diabetes. The murders clearly have roots in the death of Brock’s brother, a mysterious fire, an effort to keep the island untouched and the disappearance of the daughter of another of Storm’s old acquaintances. Storm’s sleuthing leads to a harrowing experience for her and her family, a possible rift with Hamlin and still more fatalities before the truth comes out.

Interesting insight into Hawaii’s growth problems and cultural clashes wrapped around a suspenseful mystery.