Tularosa

Starred review from April 15, 1996
Few first mysteries are as fresh and powerful as this rich Southwestern tale of tough, credible characters involved in a complex, danger-fraught plot centering around stolen historical artifacts. Kevin Kerney is still recovering from the physical and psychic wounds that forced his retirement from the Santa Fe police force, when his former partner asks him to search for his son-Kerney's godson-who is AWOL from nearby White Sands Missile Range. At the top-secret base, Kerney forges an uneasy alliance with Captain Sara Brannon, an astute Army investigator. Together, they travel on horseback into the restricted San Andres Mountains and the isolated Tularosa Valley, former Apache country where Kerney grew up, and stumble on a plundered cache of military goods from the Civil War era. Escaping with their lives, they follow separate paths to discover who is selling the stolen goods to whom. The search takes them and a vivid supporting cast (notably an Army corporal who disguises himself as jorobado, a hunchback believed in Mexican tradition to bring good luck) to both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border. McGarrity demonstrates firm control of his action-packed material, marking a trail with corpses (of the good and the very bad) to a tense, neatly orchestrated finale in the seamy border town of Juarez. Blending an air of the old West with some very modern characters, McGarrity delivers atmosphere, action, romance and prime satisfaction. (May) FYI: McGarrity is a former member of the Santa Fe Sheriff's Department.

December 1, 1995
The noted economics writer pens an analytical follow-up to his classic text, The Worldly Philosophers (1953).

January 1, 1997
YA-Kevin Kerney is a tough ex-cop turned modern-day private eye. His godson, a soldier assigned to White Sands Missile Range in desolate southern New Mexico, is reported missing. The military authorities believe he has gone AWOL, but Kerney correctly suspects foul play. He travels to Tularosa and joins forces with Captain Sara Brannon to investigate the disappearance. The two face many challenges and risks, including attempted murder, and become romantically involved while determining the innocent soldier's whereabouts. Eventually, his body is discovered. This is a fast read that also informs a bit about the Southwest, the military, and Native American traditions. An engaging mystery.-Mindy Ford, Lorton Library, Fairfax County, VA

March 15, 1996
Kevin Kerney is a bitter former Sante Fe detective forced into premature retirement after a botched stakeout left him with a permanently gimpy knee. When his ex-partner, Terry Yazzi, who botched the stakeout, asks Kerney to help find his son, Sammy, who is AWOL from the air force, Kerney reluctantly agrees. After discovering Sammy's body in the hills near the base where Kerney grew up, the detective finds himself deep in a murder investigation. There's no apparent motive for Sammy's death. Was he onto a clandestine military operation? Was he involved in a romantic triangle turned violent? Was it something from his recent, nonmilitary past? To answer those questions, Kerney forms an uneasy alliance with a military investigator, who happens to be a woman with whom he shares a mutual attraction. This accomplished first novel is well plotted with solid dialogue and complex, believable relationships among the flesh-and-blood characters. Expect to hear more from McGarrity and Kerney. ((Reviewed March 15, 1996))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1996, American Library Association.)