Wicked Fix

Everyone in the island town of Eastport, Maine, is cursing the return of Reuben Tate, a bad boy who terrorized half the town in his youth. So no one is too upset when Jacobia ""Jake"" Tiptree, a transplant from Manhattan, and her friend Ellie White discover Reuben's dead body hanging from the cemetery gate. Jake had been busy getting her rambling old house ready for winter and working with her ex-husband, Victor, to open a trauma center, but their plans are jeopardized when Victor's scalpel turns out to be the murder weapon, and he's arrested. Victor and Jake have had their trouble in the past, but she knows he's no murderer. Jake and Ellie's investigation turns up no shortage of suspects; the list of those who might have wished Reuben harm is a mile long, and the annual Salmon Festival has brought many old residents back to the small town. Graves (Triple Witch) skillfully uses these suspicious folk to draw out the suspense. Though the psychological motive for the crime is a bit far-fetched, the oddball characters--especially a preacher and son who form a musical group called the Bible Belters--make for good entertainment. (Apr.)