Dodge and Burn: A Sophie Medina Mystery

Crosby’s uneven fourth adventure for news photographer Sophie Medina (after Blow Up) undermines its devilish central whodunit with some far-fetched backstory. Sophie once jetted around the world at a moment’s notice for the International Press Service, but she left that job to be closer to her family in Washington, D.C., after her CIA agent husband was murdered. She still takes private gigs, however, and one afternoon receives an inquiry from philanthropist and art collector Robson Blake, who wants her to photograph a rare patent apparently prepared by Thomas Jefferson that he stumbled across while browsing used books. Sophie agrees, and promises to turn over all her work to Blake once it’s complete. The commission takes a deadly turn when Sophie discovers Blake dead in his home with one of his valuable antiques missing. Authorities find blood on one of Sophie’s tripods, and determine that Blake was bludgeoned to death with a blunt object, placing Sophie near the top of the suspect list. In the attempt to clear her name, she uncovers secrets about her own lineage that cause her to believe someone in her family may have set her up. Crosby’s prose and characterizations are top-notch, but her plotting becomes unwieldy in the third act, and she wraps everything up with a predictable reveal. Here’s hoping the series returns to form next time out. (May)