Hunting Sweetie Rose

In Fredrickson’s excellent third mystery featuring unlicensed—and certainly unorthodox—Chicago PI Dek Elstrom (after 2009’s Honestly Dearest, You’re Dead), Elstrom looks into the bizarre death of a clown who plunged off the roof of a building. Just as Elstrom connects the clown’s demise to rich Chicago socialite Sweetie Fairbairn, she disappears, leaving behind a dead security guard and a faded postcard of a covered bridge. Elstrom, fueled by an endless supply of Ho Hos, follows and fuses threads of the investigation until he finds himself in Hadlow, Minn., a small town with not only a giant statue of Chief Winnemac but unexpected plot complications, all deftly revealed. Meanwhile, Elstrom, with his quirky sense of humor, quick intelligence, and essential sweetness, wins the affections of news reporter Jennifer Gale, though his heart still longs for his philanthropic ex-wife, Amanda. Readers will root for Elstrom every step of the way. Agent: John Silbersack, Trident Media. (Feb.)