Fatal Harbor

DuBois’s absorbing eighth Lewis Cole mystery picks up where 2011’s Deadly Cove left off. In the previous book, Cole’s friend and police contact, Diana Woods, was beaten into a life-threatening coma when a protest against a nuclear power plant in Tyler, N.H., grew violent and protesters attacked a police line. Cole blames the man who instigated the violence, Curt Chesak, a shadowy government operative seeking to subvert the protestors in the interest of rival energy concerns. Cole’s quarry possesses enormous assets, but Cole makes up for his own lone-wolf status with wily moves and an indomitable will to achieve justice. DuBois’s laconic style nicely matches the somber subject matter, and is lightened by his main character’s winning intelligence, courage in adversity, and wit. Cole’s dogged pursuit leads him to unexpected allies, while his unwillingness to compromise renews some relationships from the past and destroys others. The action builds to a rousing climax in the New Hampshire woods. [em]Agent: Nat Sobel, Sobel Weber Associates. (May) [/em]