cover image No One Can Know: A Stillwater General Mystery

No One Can Know: A Stillwater General Mystery

Lucy Kerr. Crooked Lane, $26.99 (336p) ISBN 978-1-68331-462-2

Headstrong ER nurse Francesca “Frankie” Stapleton once again turns sleuth in Kerr’s solid sequel to 2016’s Time of Death. Frankie’s return to her hometown of Stillwater, Ill., was supposed to be temporary, but lately she’s finding reasons to stay—namely her job in the Stillwater General ER and a newfound connection with her family and with her ex-fiancé, sheriff’s deputy Noah MacLean. When a nervous young man comes into the ER with a dislocated shoulder, Frankie senses something amiss. Before she can pursue her hunch, an ambulance brings in crash victim Kathleen Tibbs, the pregnant wife of congressional candidate Steven Tibbs. Kathleen dies, but her baby boy is delivered alive. When Frankie returns to the exam room, the young man has disappeared. Did he run Kathleen off the road, and if so, why? Was it because Kathleen worked for Child Protective Services, or because of Steven’s political ambitions? When the Tibbs baby is kidnapped, Frankie determines to find him and bring a killer to justice. A distinctive setting and relatable characters are a plus. [em]Agent: Joanna Volpe, New Leaf Literary. (Feb.) [/em]