She gets a break when a killer who she has written a book about confesses to her before his execution that he didn't do it. Starts searching for more evidence, and in the meantime the surviving family of the victim the killer is being executed try to make her stop. Pretty fast paced, a strong believable heroine. Under the Beetles Cellar is also very good. Heroine is a police detective, is gay and in a relationship with a psychologist.
Crime is commited in the hills - looks like a serial kiler who is killing kids.
Kate is paired with veteran detective Alonzo, both being new and them being set up as scapegoats should anything go awry. Examines the peculiarities of this mountain community, and the past of a particular artist who lives there who has been imprisoned in the past for killing a child. A big ending, the results of which are examined in the other two books. The pace of the book liesurely moves along. His main character, Spenser, is a wiseacre, smart mouthed, private eye who is good at what he does.