In Harm's Way

July 5, 2010
In Pearson's subpar fourth crime thriller featuring Idaho lawman Walt Fleming (after Killer Summer), Sheriff Fleming is honored to receive a request for help from legendary Seattle homicide detective Lou Boldt (another Pearson series lead), who's after the killer of Caroline Vetta, a woman with a history of dating professional sports figures. Fleming assists his colleague by setting up interviews with two persons of interest in his jurisdiction, sports agent Vince Wynn and former football team owner Marty Boatwright. When another person connected with the victim, retired linebacker Martel Gale, is found bludgeoned to death, Fleming's inquiries lead him to some uncomfortable conclusions. The identity of Gale's killer may strike some as a cop-out, while Fleming's romance with subordinate Fiona Kenshaw never rises above formula ("If I could wrap up all the happiness in the world into a package, if I could give you that, I would"). With any luck, Pearson will get back on track in the next installment. Author tour.

September 1, 2010

Pearson's (Killer Summer, 2009, etc.) Sun Valley sheriff Walt Fleming tries to sort out his knotty personal life as he hunts for a killer, with a little help from Seattle cop Lou Boldt, another Pearson character.

Things have gotten complicated for Walt Fleming. He's a busy cop who still wants to be a part of his young daughter's lives. He has to work not only with Fiona, the crime-scene photographer with whom he has a budding romance, but also with the man who is currently shacked up with his ex-wife. And as always, he has to deal with the tension between the folks who live in Sun Valley and the rich sports agents and Hollywood types who keep homes there. When someone kills former linebacker Martel Gale on Fleming's turf, the complications in his life threaten to boil over. For one thing, he's going to have to spend more time away from his kids. Fiona has been acting strangely since right around the time they found the body. And suspicion for the murder quickly falls on a couple of pro-sports big shots with vacation homes—and good lawyers—one of whom threatened to kill Gale just a few days before his body was found. Luckily for Fleming, Pearson's Seattle cop Lou Boldt is in town working on a murder of his own, one in which Gale, who had a violent past, may have played a role. The two form an easy working relationship, and continue to compare notes via Skype after Boldt returns to Seattle. Much of the book deals with Fleming's feelings about his increasingly thorny private life. While explorations of Fleming's inner turmoil are fine in small doses, adding welcome depth to his character, the emphasis on his emotional life sometimes threatens to derail Pearson's pace. But Fleming is a supremely likable character, and this book has plenty of gripping moments, which do much to temper the sappy stuff.

An excess of melodrama doesn't quite derail an otherwise cracking procedural.

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

July 1, 2010
Idaho sheriff Walt Fleming makes his fourth appearance (after "Killer Summer" in Pearson's latest page-turner. Struggling with his feelings for photographer Fiona Kenshaw, Fleming begins to suspect that she is hiding a terrible secret. A murder in Seattle brings detective Lou Boldt, the star of Pearson's other popular series, to Sun Valley to investigate a possible link between the victim and a famous resident in town. Then a corpse, the victim of a fatal beating, is found, and it appears that Fleming and others he cares about are in serious jeopardy. VERDICTMore noir mystery than thriller, this novel is still vintage Pearson. Fans will love seeing Boldt back in action, though it's not more than an extended cameo. The character of Fleming, the small-town atmosphere, and terrific writing make this another standout. Pearson is on the rise owing to his success with his YA books, so adults might and should be seeking him out. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ"3/15/10.]—Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2010
Its clear from the beginning that Idaho sheriff Walt Fleming loves Fiona Kenshaw, caretaker of a local estate and part-time sheriffs photographer. Its also clear that Kenshaw loves him back, but she has a secret she wont share. Her heroic rescue of a small child pushes her face on the front pages of the Sun Valley paper, and her past finds her. But before she comes clean, shes knocked on the head by an unknown assailant, whom Fleming thinks may be linked to a local murder and possibly to the death of young Seattle woman. As his investigation spreads out, however, he discovers Fiona isnt the only one who has secrets, several of which are linked to the crimes. Pearson shows his talent for thrills early on in Fionas dynamite rescue sequence, but excitement takes a backseat to a muddied plot with some distracting, oddly stunted dialogue. Pearson has written a number of edge-of-seat thrillers, but although this novel is sufficiently entertaining, it lacks both the taut plotting and intricate excitement of his best work.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)