Dark Sky Island: A Jennifer Dorey Mystery

Dearman’s crisply written sequel to The Devil’s Claw takes Jenny Dorey from Guernsey, where she’s a reporter for the Guernsey News, to the nearby Channel Island of Sark, where a human skeleton has turned up in a cave. Sark—three miles long by a mile wide—has a population of about 450. For police work, the Sarkees depend on the force in Guernsey. At the site where the bones were found, Jenny sees the investigating officer, her friend Det. Chief Insp. Michael Gilbert, who tells her that the skeleton is female and has been there for at least 20 years. Hours later, someone slits the throat of doddering old Reg Carré, leading Jenny to wonder: “What the hell else can have happened on Sark in the last twenty-four hours?” The answer is—plenty. Meanwhile, Jenny remains obsessed with the death of her father, who fell from his boat two years earlier and drowned in what was officially deemed an accident, but she believes was murder. An intricate plot, intriguing characters, and an unusual setting make this a winner. Agent: Kari Stuart, ICM. (Sept.)