Book Synopsis NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Bradys professional and personal lives collide when her college-age daughter is involved in a missing persons case in this evocative and atmospheric mystery in J. A. Jances New York Times bestselling suspense series, set in the beautiful desert country of the American Southwest. When Jennifer Brady returns to Northern Arizona University for her sophomore year, she quickly becomes a big sister to her new roommate, Beth Rankin, a brilliant yet sheltered sixteen-year-old freshman. For a homeschooled Beth, college is her first taste of both freedom and unfettered access to the internet, and Jenny is concerned that shes too nave and rebellious for her own good. Her worries are well-founded because one day Beth vanishes, prompting Jenny to alert campus authorities, local police, and her mom, Sheriff Joanna Brady--who calls in a favor. Beth is found, but Jennys concern has unwittingly put her in the crosshairs of a criminal bent on revenge. With Christmas vacation approaching, and Beth at war with her parents, Jenny invites Beth to the shelter of the Brady home. While Joanna is sympathetic, shes caught up in a sensitive case--an officer-involved shooting that has placed the lives of two young children in jeopardy--leaving her stretched thin to help a fragile young woman recently gone missing and endangered. Review Quotes Fans of police procedurals with a Southwestern flair will love Joannas determination to manage marriage, motherhood, and policing in this 19th Joanna Brady book. -- Library Journal The two parallel cases provide plenty of action, while keeping a premium on character studies and violence to a minimum. Once again, the compassionate, intelligent Joanna balances a busy home life and a complex job with aplomb. This long-running series consistently entertains.-- Publishers Weekly What is refreshing is the way [Jance] shows how law enforcement are not just numbers and robots but people with families and a personal home-life. As with all her novels, readers will not be disappointed. --MilitaryPress.com