Welcome to the High Peaks of the Adirondacks. Beauty surrounds you. So does evil. Police Chief Frank Bennett patrols the not-so-mean streets of Trout Run, New York, an idyllic town nestled in the rugged Adirondack Mountains. But natural beauty is no protection against the evil in people's hearts. Secrets...deception...con games...murder--there's never a dull moment fighting small town crime. This boxed set contains three Frank Bennett mysteries.
- The Lure
Police Chief Frank Bennett has his hands full when a group of environmental activists shows up in Trout Run trying to close down Raging Rapids, a popular tourist attraction.
Frank thinks they're all noise. Until their leader turns up with a bullet in his heart. Now Frank must figure out why this group targeted Trout Run. And how they're connected to a feral family who live off the grid.
As Frank untangles the clues, he confronts the lure of cash, the lure of power, and the lure of a happy family.As he navigate the dangerous intersection of love and greed, one wrong turn could spell death to those he most wants to protect.
- Blood Knot
When a tough-love school for troubled teens opens its doors in Trout Run, Frank Bennett worries about the arrival of so many juvenile delinquents on his turf.
When a North Country Academy teacher is mauled to death by a bear while leading wilderness expedition, Frank's worst fears are confirmed. Evidence points to sabotage.
As Frank investigates, he learns more about the school's controversial techniques: isolation, restraints, and mind control. . He meets students who might be terrified...or might be brilliant liars. And he uncovers disturbing information about the Academy's headmaster. What is more impressive? His track record of putting teens back on the right path? Or his skill in covering up past scandals?
Then an Academy student turns up dead, and Frank must unravel a knot of deceit and revenge whose threads lead right into the heart of the Trout Run community.
- Dead Drift
Frank Bennett investigates three puzzling crimes in these short mysteries with big twists.
In the Christmas mystery βChainsaw Nativity,β Frankβs relentless pursuit of the thief who stole the Joseph statue from the townβs Nativity scene brings him up against the limits of compassion.
In βLosers Weepersβ, a locket thatβs lost, found, and stolen holds the secret to past betrayals.
And in βCoyote Justiceβ Frankβs simmering attraction to Penny the librarian threatens to divert him from the path of justice. These three mystery short stories explore twisting Adirondack mountain trails just as surely as the dangerous terrain of the human heart.