O'Hehir's engaging third mystery (after Erased from Memory)
finds part-time deputy sheriff Carla Day facing a confusing case. In a California community peopled by aging hippies, prophesying teen Tamina Kerry has fallen to her death—or was she pushed? And what's the talk of babies with special indigo auras? When a man is found with his throat slit after Tamina's funeral, Carla knows she needs to find out fast. O'Hehir's spare prose and dab hand with character development render Carla intriguing and slightly remote; readers will plow eagerly through the story just to get to know her better. Her boss, sheriff Cherie Ghent, is also likable, a blonde fashion plate who manages those around her by playing dumb. Running alongside the crime-solving is Carla's intermittent affair with sweet-talking Rob (whom Cherie stole and then generously gave back) and her devotion to her father, who's losing his memory to Alzheimer's. Carla's filial care-giving balances the West Coast occultism and lends this whodunit emotional heft. (Dec.)
