Barbara L. (Barbllm) reviewed on 4/16/2013 + 241 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

Every now and then, I find a terrific author and read all of their books as fast as I can. Last year, it was Michael Robotham. This year, it's Linda Castillo and the Kate Burkholder series.

Burkholder is a gun-toting, cursing, former Amish female chief of police in bucolic Painters Mill, Ohio, home to about 5,300 people, about a third of which are Amish. When a serial killer strikes, his signatureRoman numerals ritualistically carved into each victim's abdomenmatches the MO of four unsolved murders from 16 years earlier. The presence of a serial killer shatters the idyllic peace of the town. Council members are convinced that Kate doesn't have what it takes to handle such a case, and bring in help from the sheriff and federal agencies.

Police chief Kate Burkholder, who's reluctant to dredge up the past, must keep secret that she knows why the old murders stopped. Not satisfied with the case's progress, local politicos set up a multijurisdictional task force to assist, including a law-enforcement agent battling his own demons, John Tomasetti. How they get him involved is all too realistic and devious. The added scrutiny and the rising body count threaten to push the chief over the edge. Adept at creating characters with depth and nuance, Castillo smoothly integrates their backstories into a well-paced plot that illuminates the divide between the Amish and English worlds.

Deeply flawed characters in a distinctive setting make this a crackling good series opener, recommended for fans of T. Jefferson Parker and Robert Ellis, whose books take place in very un-Amish settings but who generate the same kind of chills and suspense.

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