FIRE IN THE WIND

This fourth mystery in a series pits a psychic Nebraska attorney against local racists.

For a small-town lawyer, Megan Docket leads a dramatic life. She hears eerie voices of the dead in the wind that sweeps through the dry, rugged land of Dexter, Nebraska, and she gets strong premonitions of trouble to come—and there’s always trouble, it seems. Megan has “killed four men in the last four years, which must be a record for Nebraska attorneys under the age of thirty.” It was self-defense, but sadly, the most recent attack killed Megan’s unborn baby and destroyed her marriage. This time, trouble starts when a burning cross is set aflame on her land, apparently to intimidate Megan’s family friend/father figure, James Wilson, 65, one of Dexter’s few black citizens. He suffers a stroke, which brings friends and family to town for help. Megan’s uncle brings along Raz and Nori Peters, Lebanese Christians like Megan’s maternal side of the family, who are lying low after political troubles at home. As Megan forms a Night Posse to investigate the cross burning (and additional hate crimes), she becomes uneasily attracted to Raz. When another death occurs, Megan is arrested. Events build to a violent confrontation with a dangerous killer as James’ health worsens. Though Megan uncovers several truths, her experiences severely test her faith in friends and God. As in her previous novels, Bruce (Cries In the Wind, 2016, etc.) presents a distinctly realized, fully populated world. At times, the welter of names and interrelationships can become daunting, but Bruce provides good exposition to help keep track. Megan’s personality interestingly combines practicality and ruthlessness with thoughtfulness and deep compassion. She’s good at her job, skilled with a gun, serious about her faith, appreciative of hot men, and generous with money. Bruce keeps the plot moving at a crackling pace, and the action nicely intertwines with Megan’s personal crisis regarding James’ living will and tragic losses she’s suffered.

Another good entry in this series, starring a thoughtful, earthy heroine who’s a magnet for danger.