Faithful unto Death: A Sugar Land Mystery

Set in Sugar Land, Tex., Evans’s unassuming, mild-mannered debut introducing preacher Walker “Bear” Wells still packs a considerable punch. When prominent attorney Graham Garcia turns up on the town’s golf course, his head bashed in with an oversized club, Det. James Wanderley questions Bear about a quiet meeting Bear had with the victim a week earlier. Bear, a former University of Texas football player, thinks his encounter with Garcia deserves confidentiality. Wanderley insists otherwise. While Bear is overscheduled with committee meetings, marital counseling, and his own scholarly writings, his deepest commitment is to his wife and two feisty teenage daughters. As Bear gets more involved with the Garcia family, he finds that his troubled younger daughter might have some serious ties to the dead man’s son. Readers will look forward to seeing more of Bear, with his formidable intellect, tart sense of humor, and resolute sense of justice. Agent: Janet Reid, FinePrint Literary Management. (June)