Sabotage in the Secret City: A Libby Clark Mystery

Early in Fanning’s enjoyable third Libby Clark mystery (after 2016’s Treason in the Secret City), Libby, a scientist working on the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge, Tenn., learns that President Roosevelt has died. Speculation on his successor, Harry Truman, an unknown entity to Libby, provides a diversion from her often mundane chores in the lab, but she soon has a more immediate concern to worry about. When a series of childish but destructive pranks starts plaguing Oak Ridge, Lieutenant Colonel Crenshaw, the commander in charge, focuses his investigation on Libby’s team. After the pranks turn deadly, Libby and her colleagues must act fast to uncover the truth. But whom can she really trust? Oak Ridge offers rich terrain for examining the difficulties facing women in the 1940s, and Libby, a refreshingly independent and astute sleuth, does her best to deal with the sexism she faces almost daily. Readers will look forward to her next outing. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel & Goderich. (July)