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Genre ~ police procedural
Series ~ Kate Burkholder, #17
Others in the series ~ the whole series
Setting ~ Ohio
Publication date ~ July 8, 2025
Publisher ~ Macmillan Audio
Est Page Count ~ 296 (p+ 28 chapters)
Audio length ~ 9 hours 17 minutes
Narrator ~ Kathleen McInerney
POV ~ single 1st, and 3rd
Featuring ~ murder, violence, long chapters
My review:
Kate and her team are back investigating more brutal murders. This time itās 21 year old men just trying to make a decent living, or were theyā¦
I just have to wonder if Kate gets a new Explorer every time because it seems to get beat up every book, just like her. Man she takes a thrashing, but keeps on doing her best for Painterās Mill. The whole teamās investigative skills are top notch. If my death was suspicious I’d want them on the case.
Anyway, another wonderful, brutal and action packed edition to the series.
Series notes:
I think you should read them all in order because theyāre great, but I suppose itās not absolutely necessary. Each book follows a different murder, but Kateās life is progressing.
Narration notes:
A bit robotic at times, but she does well overall.
Add to your never ending TBR ~ goodreads
Iād love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read it.
Book blurb:
In this gripping installment of the Edgar Award winning series, Chief of Police Kate Burkholder investigates a brutal double murder that takes her into the dark underbelly of society and exposes the dangers of Amish lives gone wrong.
Summer has arrived with a vengeance in Painters Mill, and a macabre discovery by three Amish children brings the quiet to a grinding halt. Chief of Police Kate Burkholder arrives on scene to find the dismembered body of 21-year-old Samuel Eicher, a local Amish man who owned a successful landscaping business. What twisted individual murdered him in such a sadistic way?
The investigation has barely begun when, miles away, a second body is found, stuffed into a barrel and dumped in a ravine. The deceased is 21-year-old Aaron Shetler, Samuel Eicherās best friend. What could these two young Amish men have been involved in that led to such violent ends?
With a heat wave bearing down, Kate learns quickly that, for reasons she doesnāt understand, no one is willing to talk about what happened to the men. Just as she begins to fear the case may be hopeless, a mystery woman comes forward and reveals that fun-loving Aaron and Samuel had recently befriended some very unsavory charactersāindividuals who may have ties to a larger, more sinister, black market.
To solve the case, Kate must delve into the most sordid corners of her community, but when she gets too close, the killers target Kate herself. Will the secrets simmering beneath the surface of Painters Mill take another life before she can expose the truth? Or will Kate be the final victim?
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The narration was very off putting at times. It sounded like a robot was reading. The book and suspense was great but the robotic sound was always at the forefront while listening. I donāt remember this in the other books in the series.
It took me a long time to get used to this narrator. I read most of the books from the beginning of the series, so this voice is never what I pictured for Kate.