Fractured Truth

4.5 Stars Brynn Callahan is an ex-Marine and a newly sworn-in deputy facing her first official homicide along with Wilco, her trained K-9. Brynn and her dog are rather unique characters. Brynn is still suffering from PTSD, using pills and alcohol to help get her through her days. She was injured during her time of service, half her body is covered with burn scars .. but most of her scars are inside. Wilco suffered a hit the same time as Brynn. He lost a leg and his hearing. He's been trained to sniff out human remains. Brynn is an Irish Traveler, which are somewhat like gypsies. They pretty much keep to themselves, handle their own problems and definitely do not trust the police. This puts Brynn in a precarious position. The mutilated body of a young woman is found in a cave. Brynn is shocked when she recognizes who the victim is ... a fellow member of the Travelers. Caught between two people .. the Travelers and the 'settled' people .. neither of whom trust her to do her job. It doesn't help when her fellow law officers don't particularly like her. Brynn must put her career on the line and her life at risk to find justice for a woman not unlike herself—haunted by her past, and caught in a vicious cycle she may never escape. The mystery is a good one, pitting people of one side against the other with Brynn caught in the middle. She's a unique character, and I found myself more engaged by her and her dog rather than the who-dun-it. It seems like she's fighting everyone coming at her from every direction .. and she's getting tired of defending herself against them all. If it weren't for Wilco, she'd feel totally alone. There are many suspects, several motivations for the murder of a young girl. The Travelers say that someone from the settled people must be responsible, while the settle people are sure that the Travelers did this awful thing. Old secrets will somehow find their way into the light. Although second in a series, this works quite well as a stand alone. I highly recommend reading SPLINTERED SILENCE, the first book. Many thanks to the author / Kensington Books / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this well-written crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

@vroyra