The Plank family moved from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to join the small Amish community of Painters Mill less than a year ago and seemed the model of the Plain Life—until on a cold October night, the entire family of seven was found slaughtered on their farm. Police Chief Kate Burkholder and her small force have few clues, no motive, and no suspect. Formerly Amish herself, Kate is no stranger to the secrets the Amish keep from the English—and each other—but this crime is horribly out of the ordinary.
State agent John Tomasetti arrives on the scene to assist. He and Kate worked together on a previous case during which they began a volatile relationship. They soon realize the disturbing details of this case will test their emotional limits and force them to face demons from their own troubled pasts—and for Kate, a personal connection that is particularly hard to bear.
When she discovers a diary that belonged to one of the teenaged daughters, Kate is shocked to learn the girl kept some very dark secrets and may have been living a lurid double life. Who is the charismatic stranger who stole the young Amish girl’s heart? Could the brother—a man with a violent past, rejected and shunned by his family and the Amish community, have come to seek out revenge? As Kate’s outrage grows so does her resolve to find the killer and bring him to justice—even if it means putting herself in the line of fire.
My thoughts
Police Chief Kate Burkholder is called to a murder scene where entire Amish families of seven have been slaughtered; the girls tortured. A former Amish herself, Kate tries to persuade the Amish community to help her. She get assistance from Sate agent John Tomasetti, whom she has some sort of relationship, although neither can determine what that relationship is. Clues have them questioning anyone that may have been in contact with the teenage daughter who had a hidden diary mentioning the relationship she has with a non-Amish man. Although some scenes were gruesome, the writing is superb and had me feeling what Kate was experiencing as she comes to temrs with her own demons as she tracks the killer in their community.
Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.
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