Beast of the North Woods

Wisconsin cryptozoologist Morgan Carter returns in Ryan’s delightful third Monster Hunter mystery (after Death in the Dark Woods). Rita Bosworth, an employee at Morgan’s Door County gift shop, comes to her one morning with a desperate request: Rita’s nephew, Andrew, is the prime suspect in the murder of a young man named Brandon Kluver, who was killed in Wisconsin’s north woods. The two men had a history of antagonism, and Andrew’s account—that Brandon was butchered by the Hodag, a legendary beast with a froglike face, tusks, and clawed feet—is ridiculed by the police. Rita begs a skeptical Morgan to look into it, and she agrees, recalling a recent, unrelated sighting of a creature that resembled the Hodag in the same region. As Morgan prepares to go trudging through the north woods in pursuit of the amphibious menace, she receives anonymous threats attempting to dissuade her from pressing any further, which only increase her sense of urgency. Ryan once again delivers the goods, serving up a cheeky, atmospheric investigation that goes down as smoothly as an episode of Scooby-Doo but with far more narrative intricacy. This series continues to impress. Agent: Adam Chromy, Movable Type Management. (Jan.)