Aftershock

Andrew Vachss stabs his trademark hard-boiled style into the heart of a quaint little seacoast village . . . one seething with corruption beneath its idyllic facade.

After a life in various war zones, Dell and Dolly have settled in this town, fulfilling Dolly's lifelong dream. Both have had to sacrifice their prior identities: Dell had been a mercenary originally trained by the French Foreign Legion, and Dolly had a nursing career with Médicins Sans Frontières. She transitions smoothly into civilian life, becoming a part-time foster mother to dozens of teenagers, while Dell has no interest in the town or its people. But when the shining star of the girls' softball team shoots and kills the most popular boy in school, Dolly asks Dell to uncover the true motive behind this inexplicable crime. Dell treats the job as he would any other mission - no boundaries. So it doesn't take him long to uncover a horrifying rite of passage demanded of the town's most vulnerable girls. The star pitcher's guilt is not in doubt, yet she insists she deserves a trial, so Dell and Dolly must join forces to put together a defense. What they discover culminates in a decision to put the town itself on trial . . . a lengthy, complicated trial with a shocking verdict.


Genre: Mystery