BACK OF BEYOND

Cody Hoyt is the only member of the sheriff’s department who is convinced that Hank Winters’s fiery death in a remote Montana cabin was not suicide. But as a struggling alcoholic whose career is in a death spiral, Hoyt has little credibility. Holter Graham depicts Hoyt’s sharp deductions in the midst of sporadic alcoholic fogs. Graham adds layers to Hoyt’s fierce determination when he learns that his estranged teenage son may be in the killer’s path. As the author describes the gorgeous scenery of Yellowstone, Graham tempts one to momentarily linger—and then wrenches one’s attention back to the hunt for the killer. Hoyt’s investigative partner and other key characters are voiced with color, yet Graham conceals the murderer’s identity until the climax. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2011]