Review from Arizona Daily Star, December 3, 2022 by Helene Woodhams
“Eco-tour guides see people at their best and their worst,” observes amateur sleuth Madrone Hunter. As chef of Adventure Calls Tours, she sees plenty of both, but few clients can match bad-tempered Violet Brock for pure cussedness. As a traveling companion Violet left much to be desired and Madrone was happy to part company at the tour’s end. But as luck would have it, their unhappy relationship is far from over: when she discovers Violet’s lifeless body while walking along the Verde River, Madrone becomes obsessed with finding her killer.
In this second installment of her Arizona-based mystery series, author Kathy McIntosh sets the action in Cottonwood, a town with a down-home vibe — not bustling like Tucson or posh like Sedona, but a place where everyone knows everyone and news travels fast. There’s no shortage of opinions about Violet, giving Madrone plenty to investigate, but things turn dark when she starts receiving anonymous threats. Some of the friendly townsfolk, it appears, have secrets that won’t stand the light of day.
Kathy McIntosh interweaves intrigue, humor, lively dialogue and an authentic Arizona setting in this, her fourth novel. Two of them are set in Idaho, where she lived before relocating to Tucson.
