Falling into Green: An Eco-mystery

Fischer’s appealing fiction debut introduces feisty Irish Latina eco-psychologist Esmeralda Green. For two decades, Dr. Green has managed to repress some of her nagging doubts about the suicide of her 16-year-old best friend, Charlene “Charlie” Pryce, who leapt off a seaside cliff, while Dr. Green forged a successful practice in the stunning Majorca Point area of L.A. where they both grew up. But when Charlie’s teenage niece takes a suspicious plunge from the same cliff—and Charlie’s brother becomes the prime suspect in his daughter’s death—Dr. Green can’t resist some sleuthing, even if it puts her directly in the crosshairs of glamazon Det. Suzy Whitney, her rival for the attention of suave TV anchor Gabriel Hugo García. Fischer (Moving from Fear to Courage, with Heather Waite) stumbles occasionally, including patches of overwriting and a head-scratchingly tangled denouement, but the aptly named Dr. Green and her friends are fresh enough to recycle. (May)