The Policeman's Daughter: A Detective Sarah Alt Novel

In this third series installment (after Old Bones) and a prequel, Officer Sarah Alt, aka Salt, is not yet a homicide detective. She has been patrolling the Homes district in Atlanta for ten years, the city's toughest section, home to crackheads, drug peddlers, and prostitutes. While she tries to help its occupants, Salt realizes that those born in the Homes rarely leave it alive. When Shannell, a part-time sex worker and full-time drug addict, is found by her young daughter shot to death in her closet, Salt vows to find the killer. Having failed Shannell's son, Lil D, years earlier by not getting him out of the district and into foster care, Salt feels she owes him. Boyce's procedural reveals Salt's human side as well her persistent professional nature that pits her against the pushers and pimps of the Homes. The author also explores her protagonist's own armor that shields her from a colleague's attempts to get to know her better.