From the Dust

Swinson’s moody regional mystery (after Sweet Things) works better as a character study than a police procedural. Three years after the death of his wife, workaholic D.C. homicide detective Graham Sanderson has left the force and returned to his hometown in Upstate New York. There, he reunites with his younger brother Tommy, who suffers from PTSD and agoraphobia stemming from emotional abuse the boys’ mother inflicted on them when they were young. Graham’s hopes to leave detective work behind him are dashed when the local police chief, family friend William Finn, calls upon his expertise to help solve two baffling murders. Both bodies, one of which belonged to the chief’s nephew, were found with four stab wounds made by a “tri-edged cylindrical instrument,” possibly a dagger. The victims were both members of Narcotics Anonymous, but as more bodies pile up, Finn and Graham become less and less sure of the killer’s motive. Swinson convincingly evokes his gloomy setting and shades Graham, Tommy, and Finn with care, but the core mystery resolves in disappointingly formulaic fashion. This starts out promising but ends with a whimper. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider. (Mar.)