Murder Likes It Hot: A Downward Dog Mystery

At the start of Weber’s gripping sixth Downward Dog Mystery (after 2018’s Pre-Meditated Murder), Seattle yoga instructor Kate Davidson and her new husband, Michael Massey, are struggling with fertility issues. Meanwhile, she’s worried about the financial impact on her business of a cut-rate yoga studio that opens directly across the street from her own Serenity Yoga. She’s relieved when a friend offers her a part-time gig teaching yoga at a facility for homeless teens. The class isn’t a roaring success, but Kate makes a connection with a runaway named Rainbow, who ends up being the prime suspect when Gabriel Cousins, the youth center’s director, is shot dead in his office. Rainbow has plenty of problems, but Kate is convinced of her innocence and takes it upon herself to help the girl by finding out who really killed Gabriel. Weber doesn’t hold back on depicting the agony of infertility, or the dangerous and miserable plight of troubled youth living on the streets of Seattle. Those who like their cozies with a dark edge will be rewarded. Agent: Priya Doraswamy, Lotus Lane Literary. (Jan.)