Fractured Families: A Lottie Albright Mystery

The discovery of the body of a college kid and 4-H member in the sculpture-filled Garden of Eden, “the strangest place in all Kansas,” kicks off Hinger’s solid fourth Lottie Albright mystery (after 2013’s Hidden Heritage). The subsequent discovery of a frozen baby in the arms of a statue called Reaching Woman raises the stakes. Lottie, the full-time director of the nascent nine-county Northwest Kansas Regional Crime Center, investigates, aided by her deputy sheriff husband, Keith Feine; mystery writer Dorothy Mercer, Keith’s aunt who’s visiting from New York; Lottie’s twin sister, Josie Albright, a forensic psychologist; and abrasive psychologist Dr. Evan Ferguson, a political choice foisted on the NKRCC team. Mercer proves an astute observer with a sharp intelligence as the team uncovers similar infant deaths and possible links to unsolved missing person cases. The diary of a severely handicapped child proves both riveting and pivotal in a tale in which personal relationships and the rural Kansas setting are more satisfying than the mystery itself. [em]Agent: Phyllis Westberg, Harold Ober Associates. (Mar.) [/em]