When several days pass without her appearing, he investigates. He finds she has committed suicide and, after talking with the police, learns that Mitchell was an assumed name. The police are not putting a lot of effort into tracing her. Jim finds her landlady and goes through her effects, discovering a book that had been taken from the library in Beulah, Nevada.

Driven to do something with his own apathetic life, he takes his vacation and travels there to investigate. He finds out she was Anna Roebuck, the mother of a young daughter, Tess and married to David Roebuck. After their grizzly murders, she fled to the Bay Area. Though never formally charged, the town was convinced that she was the murderer, and she was universally reviled.

Jim is persuaded that she was innocent and doggedly starts asking questions. He finds her sister Dacy and nephew Lonnie, only to discover that they are convinced of her guilt as well. The town’s people resent his dredging up this tragedy, and he is urged to drop it and leave town. The longer he stays, the more serious threats to him become.

Bill Pronzini is a very gifted writer. With the use of very few words he poignantly creates characters with so much depth that one becomes totally immersed in their emotions. He then fashions most of the story in a small Nevada desert town that is so graphically portrayed that one can almost feel the heat of the sun and the drive that is necessary to beat out a living on a hardscrabble ranch.

Unexpectedly, a touching love story develops that provides an unforeseen balance to the acidic loneliness that permeates almost every character.

Building upon one small clue Messenger logically discovers the truth. For anyone who reads a lot of mysteries the ending is not a surprise. The novel is not overburdened with twists and turns, but it is noteworthy for its lyrical style. I am still not certain if it is intended as a mystery with strong powerful characters or if it is a treatise of loneliness challenged by a mystery.

--Thea Davis