A Stranger in Town

How it reads

A Stranger in Town is mystery (police procedural mystery, specifically), and its dominant mood is tense. The suspense is the kind you feel in your shoulders. The pace is moderate — neither a page-turner nor a slow burn — so it holds up whether you read it in long sittings or short ones.

It's set in a small town setting, in the present day, told in the third person, staying close to one character. Its central concerns are justice, secrets and family. In weight it sits in the middle: substantial without being heavy going.

It's a later book in a series — you'll usually want to start earlier. The ending resolves happily. At 356 pages it's an ordinary novel's length. It's well known, the kind of book most keen readers have heard of.