Black Sheep

Lyons's labored second thriller featuring FBI Supervisory Special Agent Caitlyn Tierney (after 2012's Blind Faith) casts new light on Caitlyn's early years. Nine-year-old Caitlyn's life drastically changes when her father, Sean, commits suicide after his best friend, Eli Hale, confesses to a brutal murder. Sean initially spun an alibi for Eli, and his guilt was too much to bear. Twenty-six years later, incarcerated Eli wants to meet with Caitlyn, claiming she's the only one who can save his youngest daughter, 26-year-old Lena, from certain death. A reluctant Caitlyn returns home to Evergreen, N.C., in order to search for Eli's missing daughter. While trying to prove her father's innocence, Lena has been kidnapped by a biker gang. As Caitlyn attempts to locate Lena, she tangles with her own deep-seated questions surrounding her father's death. Caitlyn is a reckless and relentless heroine, ready to take on anyone who gets in her way as she susses out the truth behind years of misinformation. Agent: Barbara Poelle, Irene Goodman Literary Agency. (Mar.)