MYSTERY

Dead Broke in Jarrett Creek: A Samuel Craddock Mystery

Seventh St: Prometheus. Oct. 2014. 262p. ISBN 9781616149963. pap. $15.95; ebk. ISBN 9781616149970. M
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OrangeReviewStarThe Texas town of Jarrett Creek is flat broke. Both the sheriff and the lead deputy have quit because who can afford to work for nothing? Samuel Craddock can; he inherited money from his wife's estate and as the former sheriff, he definitely has a dog in the hunt. Gary Dellmore, the heir to the main bank is dead, and someone needs to investigate his murder. As Craddock probes the crime, he uncovers a long line of risky business investments (that water park seemed like a good idea at the time), as well as kickbacks Dellmore took, which helped drive Jarrett Creek into bankruptcy. Everywhere Craddock looks there is a suspect, and, as he well knows, a good sheriff is obligated to poke a lot of sleeping dogs.
VERDICT Shames is spot-on in her depiction of rural west Texas life in this well-plotted story (after A Killing at Cotton Hill and The Last Death of Jack Harbin) filled with extremely affable characters.
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