Switched identities, an infant who appears mysteriously, a madwoman locked away from the outside world—these and other gothic elements in Hayes's wry, briskly paced second novel (after 2000's Mad Dog and Englishman) would make Mrs. Radcliffe feel right at home. Sheriff English of Buffalo Springs, Kans., shows up at the Sunshine Towers Retirement Home, to try to identify the mother of a tiny corpse that one of the elderly residents has found. The sheriff's part Cheyenne half-brother, Mad Dog, has just liberated the body of Tommie Irons from the Towers and conveyed it for ritual release to the Happy Hunting Grounds, and then a blizzard shuts down the town, except for the Texaco station and the courthouse. Things could not be much worse—but they soon are, as a woman who calls herself Dorothy and wears bright red tennis shoes seems to be leading the sheriff and Mad Dog down the garden path. Juggling the several story lines with aplomb, Hayes shows that even quirky characters can have a sober, thoughtful side when dealing with dilemmas of confidentiality and choice. This macabre, witty look at life and death on the Great Plains should win Hayes new fans. (Feb. 3)
