LAKE OF FIRE

A massive blaze in Colorado’s Flat Tops Wilderness area bares clues to some dreadful secrets.

Devo, who’s constantly followed by camera people for a reality TV show based on his idea of living completely off the grid in the wilderness, is the one to discover that the fire was set and that the fire-ravaged bones he finds nearby may be those of a murdered man. In the meantime, hunting guide Allison Coil, visiting the ranch owned by her boyfriend Colin McKee’s family, decides to stay with them and fight the fire despite a mandatory evacuation order. Devo overcomes his suspicion of the authorities and the objections of his small group of followers enough to tell Allison, whom he trusts, about the body—a decision he’ll live to regret when the police seek him out for more information about the dead man, well-known environmentalist Dante Soto. Meeting with trouble contacting Colin when she needs help, Allison calls on a friend, reporter Duncan Bloom, and his girlfriend, Trudy. Together, they’re caught up in the hunt for Soto’s killer. In the process, they uncover a larger and truly dangerous conspiracy that shakes Allison’s life to the core and will require all her skills to survive.

The harsh and beautiful conditions of the West can spawn independent thinkers or crazy conspiracy theorists, depending on your viewpoint. The thrilling, irresistible fourth in Stevens’ series (Trapline, 2014, etc.) has plenty of both.