From Publishers Weekly
In Armstrong's sharp second mystery to feature former army sniper Mercy Gunderson (after 2010's No Mercy), Mercy stumbles late one night on the shot and slashed body of Maj. Jason "J-Hawk" Hawley, who once saved her life in Indonesia, outside Clementine's, the bar where she's been stuck for months in a dead-end temporary job. When her boyfriend, Eagle River County (S.Dak.) sheriff Mason Dawson, doesn't do enough to investigate, Mercy goes into action. Concerned that J-Hawk's murder may have been related to his job as a front man for Titan Oil's controversial project to run a pipeline through the county, Mercy uncovers some disturbing information about her old army buddy. While the flashbacks to Mercy's military career slow the action in places, an intriguing new character, FBI agent Shay Turnbull of the Indian County Special Crimes Unit, will leave readers eager to see how their relationship plays out in the next installment. (Jan.)
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From
This tough-mouth novel begins with a hymn to the beauties of the outdoors, all primrose and yarrow. Then Mercy Gunderson, belly down, adjusts her rifle and blows away prairie dogs. โBye-bye, Theodore.โ Well, farmers know theyโre destructive, and Mercy is a South Dakota farmer. Sheโs also retired military, back home again. She tends bar, and one night in walks another destroyer, an oil company man. Heโs also Mercyโs army buddyโsaved her life once. All these contradictions become the vehicle for the great message of crime fiction: things are not as they seem. The baddies seem more sad than bad. The sheriffโs foot-dragging inspires Mercy to go after his job, but he has reasons for his inaction, and we donโt learn them until nearly the end. And the gorgeous man who breaks hearts just by showing up? Heโs not what you think, either. This is country-western land, beer and Beam, music by George Strait and Dwight Yoakam. Readers easy with that side of America will enjoy Mercyโtough, funny, and hardly a girl in a guy suit. --Don Crinklaw