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In the San Cristobal Mountains of New Mexico, a rare jaguar crawls into a cave with a bullet in its head and dies. Years later, Freddy Romero comes across the skull—but that’s not all he finds. Later, after flipping his ATV while supposedly going too fast, he lies dead at the bottom of an arroyo. At the same time, his little brother teases a snake and ends up with the fang of a rattlesnake in his eye. It’s been a bad day for the Romero family.
Though it looks like a cut-and-dry case of recklessness turned tragic, Undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman still seeks answers for Freddy’s death. After talking with his girlfriend, Estelle discovers the exact location where Freddy found the jaguar skull. And, after investigating the cave, she finds the remains of a human. It seems that Freddy stumbled across something that somebody didn’t want him to find—and it cost him his life.
With the help of retired police chief Bill Gastner, Estelle seeks to solve a murder that’s several years old. The case has long grown cold, but there’s still a lot to tell from the remains, and it’s not long before she has a name and several possible motives for the death.
It’s amazing how some authors can create a character that readers are immediately drawn to. Author Steven F. Havill has done just that with Estelle Reyes-Guzman. She’s smart, compassionate, and tough, and she doesn’t shrink away from the dirty work. She’s also tenacious about solving a crime. And those are some of my favorite traits in a character.
Populated with other interesting characters as well, Double Prey will draw you into this unique murder case that’s set in Posadas, New Mexico, where a dead body can go undiscovered for years in the vast mountains and arroyos of its rough terrain. So many questions arise about the man in the cave, whose remains are found face-to-face with the skull of a jaguar (the most obvious being: how did they end up in that position?). You definitely won’t want to stop reading until all of your questions are answered in the mystery’s astonishing conclusion.
Imagery of New Mexico—brought to life by the author’s skillful research and vivid imagination—along a meticulous plot and a great central character make Double Prey one of the best mysteries I’ve read so far this year. You simply don’t want to miss this one!
