I adored Wanda’s series of books for Barbour and have eagerly awaited her latest release, Shepherd’s Fall. This book is different from her earlier series – there’s no psychic turned Christian and the sidekick is not a police detective. Instead, the star of Shepherd’s Fall is Nick Shepherd, owner of Prodigal Recovery Agency and the lead bounty-hunter. If you have a skip who’s skipped out of bail, then his agency is the one you’d call.

The book opens with Nick making a choice that leads to the death of two teenagers as he takes in a wanted criminal. Compounding the problem is the fact that one of the teens killed is his daughter’s best friend. Eight months later the killer escapes determined to make Shepherd pay.

This plot bounces around among characters. There’s Zeena, a street hooker that has something that belongs to a crime boss and could get her killed. There’s her sister Annie who is desperate to find Zeena, the twin she hasn’t seen in years. There’s Jessica, Nick’s ex-wife who wrestles with how to reach and parent their grieving daughter. And Nick…the man who carries the weight of the world. And there are many more in this cast…but Nick’s perspective is the dominant one.

The Prodigal Recovery Agency is about to go out of business and Nick won’t even be able to make payroll if something doesn’t happen soon. Then Richie escapes from jail and the pressure is on to find Richie before Richie carries out his threats against Nick’s daughter.

Nick is under an immense amount of pressure and is tempted to do things that seem against his character. Then the pressure skyrockets.

This book has a different feel from Dyson’s earlier books, but is an enjoyable read for those who like a slowly building suspense. It takes some pages to get all the pieces and characters to come together, but once they’re in place, stop the clock because all you’ll want to do is read to the end of the conflict.

I sense this is the first in a series, but it definitely stands alone. So get out there and try this book. It’s going to be a great addition to your summer reading pile.