Three years ago, Nicky Bellington vanished over Bridal Veil Falls, so why is his body, with the throat torn out, lying in the Cedar Valley morgue? As lead detective on the case, soon-to-be-mom Gemma Monroe, quickly discovers that Nicky had been living as Reed Oliver and working as a clown in a traveling circus. She also learns that his disappearance has ties to a 1985 case of missing cousins Tommy and Andrew McKenzie, whose skeletons were found in 2011 by Gemma and her boyfriend. What kind of secrets are buried in Cedar Valley, and who is intent on exposing them-or keeping them concealed? VERDICT Debut novelist Littlejohn writes with assurance and skill. The story's plotting is sure-footed, and the characters are well developed and believable. Gemma has been hurt but desires a full life, nonetheless. Highly recommended for fans of Susan Dunlap and Tricia Fields. © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Detective Gemma Monroe is the first on the scene when a traveling circus performer has his throat cut in Cedar Valley, Colorado. Gemma senses that this crime is somehow tied to two other unsolved cases that stretch back to 1985, and sets about to prove it. Although this is a series debut, it seems as if the fully fleshed character of Gemma has jumped into an ongoing series midstream. But then, the author drops little crumbs of backstory that the hungry reader will gleefully devour. A series to watch.--Keefe, Karen Copyright 2016 Booklist

The shocking identity of a murdered clown leads an investigator to wonder how much she really knows about the town she calls home.When six-months-pregnant Gemma Monroe, a seasoned deputy in Cedar Valley, is called in to investigate the murder of a clown at the traveling circus, shes astonished to discover the identity of the victim. Though the circus has known the clown as Reed Tolliver (3), the coroner identifies the body as that of Nicky Bellingham, the mayors teenage son everyone thought was killed in a hiking accident three years earlier. The discovery reopens the file on Nickys death, prompting Gemma to pair with the departments rookie cop, Sam Birdshead, to investigate. When their interviews with the Bellinghams lead to nothing more helpful than the reopening of the familys old wounds, Gemma and Sam turn to Reed Tollivers life to see if they can find a motive within Nickys new identity or his carny family. Interviewing Reeds girlfriend, Tessa, and her roommate reveals a love triangle, but is it a strong enough motive for murder (69)? Gemma has a sense that the case is somehow related to the murder of two young boys some 30 years before, though her only evidence for this connection is her own nightmares. She almost wishes her partner, Brody, were back from his research trip to Alaska, but knows that when he returns, hell want to know whether shes in this relationship for good (35).Presenting investigations into two different worlds gives Littlejohn, in her mystery debut, an opportunity to show her skills in drawing real characters and presenting them from the viewpoint of her appealing protagonist. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

At the outset of Littlejohn's engrossing debut, Deputy Gemma Moore examines the body of circus clown Reed Tolliver, who was found inside a storage tent with his throat cut. Nicky Bellington, the teenage son of the mayor of Cedar Valley, Colo., was supposedly killed in a fall from a cliff three years earlier, but no body was found. When a database search of the victim's fingerprints identifies Tolliver as Nicky, Gemma launches an investigation that reaches back three decades to a summer of crimes that continue to haunt the mountain town-and to which she has a personal connection. Littlejohn effectively captures the tensions of a community struggling with its demons while seeking to attract tourist dollars, and Gemma-six-months pregnant with her first child, uncertain of the future with her partner, and paired with a charming bad-boy cop she doesn't trust-is a compelling lead. Readers may solve the mystery early on, but the charming setting, engaging characters, and adroit pacing will keep them turning the pages. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.