Eagle Harbor Book Company will host a suspenseful double bill of thrill-filled mystery authors Ingrid Thoft and Glen Erik Hamilton at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 17.
Thoft will discuss her new book “Brutality,” the latest Fina Ludlow novel, and Hamilton, the latest adventure of his beloved hero Van Shaw, “Hard Cold Winter.”
In “Brutality,” gutsy, relentless, wisecracking Boston P.I. Fina Ludlow is back with her most hard-hitting case yet.
When soccer mom Liz Barone is attacked in her kitchen and left with a life-threatening injury, Ludlow is hired by Liz’s mother to identify her attacker.
It’s unusual for Fina to take a case that isn’t connected to the family firm, but Liz was in the process of suing her alma mater New England University — a suit that could be a legal gold mine.
Twenty years earlier, Liz was a soccer star known for her physical toughness. However, a serious cognitive decline has soured her soccer memories.
She’s convinced that her aggressive style of play — and the university’s willingness to ignore head injuries in favor of a win — has put her health and her future in jeopardy, and someone needs to be held responsible.
Was Liz attacked to stop her lawsuit or were there other secrets in the seemingly innocent woman’s life?
Fina convinces her father to take the case and discovers that wading into the financially lucrative and emotionally charged world of collegiate sports requires nerves of steel.
As the list of suspects grows and hidden agendas are revealed, Fina wonders if any game is worth the price.
In “Hard Cold Winter,” former Army Ranger and thief Van Shaw is thrust into danger as lethal and unpredictable as the war he left behind in this follow-up to the acclaimed “Past Crimes.”
When an old crony of Van Shaw’s late grandfather calls in a favor, the recently-discharged Ranger embarks on a dangerous journey to the Olympic Mountains in search of a missing girl tied to Van’s own criminal past.
What he finds instead is a brutal murder scene, including a victim from one of Seattle’s most influential families.
But the dead bodies are only the start of Van’s troubles.
A fellow Ranger from Afghanistan turns up at Van’s doorstep, seeking support from his former sergeant even as Van wrestles with his own reemerging symptoms of PTSD. The murder investigation leads to heavy pressure with a billionaire businessman on one side and vicious gangsters on the other, each willing to play dirty to get what they want.
The price of his survival may be too high, demanding moral compromises that could destroy Van’s relationship with his iron-willed girlfriend Luce.
And when a trusted friend’s betrayal pushes him to the edge, Van has to enlist help from some unexpected places — including someone he believed was lost forever.
