Review: Superior Position

Bill Tatum, a deputy sheriff in a small mountain town, enjoys his job and easy-going lifestyle. His peaceful life is shattered when while on his regular morning run he finds a dead woman. She has clearly been murdered, and her body dumped where he was sure to find it.

The early investigation into her death reveals some of the small town's secrets, but more shootings are committed before the investigators have had time to get very far with their work. It now seems obvious that there is a serial killer in Mineral County; one who is an excellent marksman. Bill needs all he learned in his previous career as an Army sniper as well as his investigative skills from his new job as deputy sheriff to solve the mystery.

The plot becomes quite complex, especially towards the end of the book. There numerous red herrings, and at least one loose end - it is never really explained why, in such wild country, the body would be left where Deputy Bill would be sure to find it; and why the second attack occurs.

As seems to be increasingly common, the book contained minor errors in the text. These were not particularly (or annoyingly) frequent, but 'Declare Marshal Law?' (p. 85) was unintentionally amusing, particularly as the book also referred to 'Mayor Jeff', 'Sheriff Dale', 'Dr. Ed' and 'Deputy Bill'. I wondered if these forms of address are typically used in Colorado mountain towns. I am not familiar with such forms of address used routinely and found them slightly jarring until I became used to them.

The strength of this book is the feel the reader gets for Mineral County, and for the arcane skills a sniper must acquire. We can almost see the small town, the local businessmen ranging from the powerful civic leaders, big fish in a small pond, to the merely useful tire repairman. And we get some appreciation for the skills and training required to be a sniper - or to catch one.

I enjoyed this book, especially the vivid descriptions of the small town, its people, and the mountain trails. I also found the descriptions of how snipers - and those who hunt them - work interesting. The mystery plot itself was almost too complicated, particularly towards the end, when I suspected the solution when Bill still had to work through few more twists before he got it. That's a minor point in an otherwise good book.

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Cheryl - RAM

Book Review: Superior Position