Don't Go
Writing for the first time from a male perspective, Scottoline tackles a number of heavy issues in this story of a soldier returning from Afghanistan who is forced to deal with even more dire crises on the home front. Mike Scanlon finds his skills as a podiatric surgeon in increasing demand in Afghanistan as a result of the proliferation of IEDs and feels grateful to be able to help so many wounded soldiers. Then he learns his wife has died as the result of a freak household accident, leaving their newborn baby girl without a mother. Overwhelmed, he agrees to let his sister-in-law and her husband take over parenting duties, and re-ups for another tour. But a devastating injury sends him home once again, where he learns a shocking secret about his wife, one that presents the possibility that her death was not an accident. Although this novel feels, at times, overstuffed with issues and superficial in its treatment of PTSD, it will no doubt find a ready audience among Scottoline’s enormous fan base.      HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Best-selling Scottoline’s hugely popular Rosato & Associates series as well as the success of her recent stand-alone titles guarantee an audience for this one. --Joanne Wilkinson