After Sunshine "Sun" Vicram moves back to her hometown of Del Sol, NM, she's elected as the new sheriff in a race she never entered, thanks to her well-meaning parents. While Sun faces her first day on the job, her 14-year-old daughter Auri starts at the local high school, where she is soon targeted by bullies. Events rapidly deteriorate for the new sheriff, with a missing deputy, an escaped prisoner, and an abducted teen. With the help of various deputies and other law enforcement officers, and Auri, Sun must unravel all the mysteries and find the missing teen. As the investigations continue, Sun is also forced to face her own history and tell her daughter the truth about their past. Jones (Summoned to the Thirteenth Grave) departs from her usual paranormal fiction and creates a smart and sassy mother-daughter team in a small-town setting where anything can happen. VERDICT Though readers may find it difficult to keep track of the minor characters, this series opener provides plenty of action. Recommended for fans of Linda Castillo and J.A. Jance.--Margaret Bentley, Shiawassee Dist. Lib., Owosso, MI

After ending the long-running Grim Reaper series (Summoned to Thirteenth Grave, 2019, etc.), Jones introduces a sexy, funny, tough new heroine in Sunshine Vicram, the police chief of Del Sol, New Mexico. Sun fled her hometown years before after the horrifying experience of being kidnapped when she was 17--an experience she doesn't talk about, though it's never out of her mind. After becoming a police officer, she worked most recently only half an hour away in Santa Fe before her parents nominated her for chief without telling her. Now that she and her 14-year-old daughter, Auri, have settled into a cottage in her parents' backyard, she lands a case that brings back all her worst fears and cracks open suppressed memories. Auri's first day at school is blighted by mean girls and rumors that identify her as a police snitch. The best part of her day is meeting heart-stopping Cruz De los Santos, a talented poet who's the coolest guy in school. Del Sol has a reputation as a place where weird things happen, but the toughest ordeal for Sun is seeing the man she's loved forever. Levi Ravinder, owner of Dark River Shine distillery, is the successful member of a dysfunctional, crime-ridden family. At first he responds to her coolly, but the atmosphere between them is combustible. Then Marianna St. Aubin literally crashes into the police station to report the kidnapping of her daughter, Sybil. For years Sybil told her parents about dreams that she'd be taken and killed before her 15th birthday, but they never believed her. A desperate hunt for Sybil and Levi's nephew, Jimmy, who has autism and is also missing, reveals the long-dead body of Levi's uncle and the shack Sun suddenly realizes she was kept in after her abduction. Both Sun and Auri must fight to overcome the dangerous secrets that spring up from nowhere. Compelling characters and a sexy, angst-filled bunch of mysteries add up to a winning series debut. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

When Detective Sunshine Vicram vowed she'd never return to her hometown, Del Sol, New Mexico, she probably should have made sure her parents were on board, because, 15 years later, they've somehow engineered her victory in a sheriff's election she didn't enter. The move definitely has silver linings, however: her teenage daughter, Auri, is thrilled, and Sun's best friend, Quincey, has signed on as lead deputy. Plus, her new post will definitely benefit her covert investigation into her own kidnapping 15 years ago. Clearly, the universe knows Sun has kidnappers on her mind; her tenure begins with the disappearances of Auri's closest friend and the nephew of Sun's lifelong crush/nemesis, Levi Ravinder. Before she manages to prepare her heart (and her libido), Sun is forced to work alongside Levi, Del Sol's best tracker, while overseeing Auri's grudgingly authorized sleuthing into the teen angles. Fans of Jones' best-selling Charley Davidson series and Janet Evanovich's romps will devour this steamy series launch, which introduces both an irresistible pair of crime-busting Gilmore Girls and a quirky, mysterious setting.