When the body of a woman is found in a crab pot in the chilly waters of Puget Sound, she has to be identified before Tracy Crosswhite and her colleagues in the Seattle Police Department's Violent Crimes Section can begin to look for her killer.
The victim seemed to have gone to great lengths to conceal her identity, and when evidence comes to light that she may be a woman who disappeared months ago under suspicious circumstances, Tracy is reminded of her own sister's murder. Each clue Tracy and her team uncovers seems to contradict the last, but a tale of betrayal and greed slowly begins to come to light-- and Tracy is determined not to give up until she has the killer behind bars.
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I don't know why I wait so long between the books in this series. I suppose I consider Robert Dugoni's Tracy Crosswhite mysteries to be "sure things"-- books guaranteed to be good reads so they're saved for times when I need to recuperate from unsatisfying stories. Regardless of the reason, I once again find myself vowing to read them faster.
Tracy Crosswhite is the type of main character you can sink your teeth into. Her life was irrevocably changed when her beloved younger sister disappeared. Tracy gave up her teaching job and ultimately became Seattle's only female homicide detective. Her goal was to find out what happened to her sister. As the years have passed, her closed-off life has begun to change-- mostly importantly by being in a committed relationship. Her experiences with her sister have made her extremely sensitive to any case involving missing and murdered women she and her team are called to investigate.
The woman in the crab pot is definitely a compelling story. Readers hear The Trapped Girl's story from Andrea Strickland's point of view as Tracy and her team investigate. As facts being to emerge, readers will begin to question what Andrea is telling them. Is she telling the truth? Is she lying? Or is she just leaving a lot of things out of her story? Andrea is a sympathetic character with her tragic life and her bad choice of husband. She is so shy and introspective that it's no wonder she chose to live in Portland, Oregon. You see, all the rain means that she'll be free to stay home and read book after book after book instead of dealing with people.
With a riveting story involving a smart, determined, reflective victim and an equally intelligent woman determined to find out what happened to her, The Trapped Girl is almost impossible to put down. If you haven't made Tracy Crosswhite's acquaintance, I would suggest starting with the first book, My Sister's Grave, because of the character development. You're in for a treat!
The Trapped Girl by Robert Dugoni
eISBN: 9781503940406
Thomas & Mercer © 2017
eBook, 423 pages
Police Procedural, #4 Tracy Crosswhite
Rating: A-
Source: Purchased from Amazon.
Well, this review won me over, but alas, when will I read this? I will look for it at the library. Spending too much time watching streaming shows when I used to use the time to read. Not always a good choice.
ReplyDeleteI have sleep-inducing meds cutting into my reading time. :-(
DeleteReally? I am in the vortex of a series I never would have thought I'd watch. It's like a drug. I was up all night watching it. And it is the type of series I would normally scoff at -- paranormal, sci-fi or something mysterious. And here are my piles of books.
DeleteI have such a set block of time for watching TV/knitting that it's been a few years since I've binge watched anything.
DeleteI do like an interesting protagonist, Cathy. And I get the impression she's grown as the series has gone on, and that's even more appealing. I like the setting, too. Now, where to shoehorn in the time to start another series...
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean, Margot!
DeleteAnother series I'm not familiar with but it sounds like a winner.
ReplyDeleteIt is, Dorothy. Dugoni is very good at writing female characters-- probably because he grew up with several sisters.
DeleteI've read a couple of books in this series and really do like Tracy Crosswhite. I'm looking forward to reading even more in this series. I can see why you'd want to save them for when you need a really good book to read. :D
ReplyDeleteSometimes a reader just needs to keep a sure thing or two in reserve!
DeleteI'm a big Robert Dugoni fan, but primarily because of his Charles Jenkins series which is still at three titles last time I checked. I only recently started reading the Tracy Crosswhite books...unfortunately with book number 8 in the series because it's the one I found first. I've now gone back and read the first one - really like the series and I agree with you that they should be read in order to get the most out of them. A new one comes out in October, by the way.
ReplyDeleteI know-- I'm keeping my eye on it even though I'm not ready for it yet. :-)
DeleteI enjoy the Tracy Crosswhite series, and happen to be caught up, for once. While I enjoyed your review, I was a little disappointed that it wasn't for a new entry (good writers never work fast enough!).
ReplyDeleteIsn't it a point of pride to have at least one series that you're caught up with? ;-)
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