DEATH IN THE DARK WOODS

A cryptozoologist helps police investigate a pair of deaths in remote Door County, Wisconsin.

The Chequamegon National Forest is noted for its Bigfoot sightings because the remote, heavily forested area offers many opportunities for residents and tourists alike to catch brief glimpses of large, hairy creatures who appear for a few moments and then vanish into the brush. So when Jon Flanders, chief of police for Washington Island, asks Morgan Carter to look into the deaths of a hunter and a fisherman, both of whom, according to witnesses, were dispatched by humanoid primates in the Cheq, she jumps at the chance to confirm or dispel rumors that Bigfoot was to blame. Department of Natural Resources warden Charlie Aberdeen is on the “confirm” side, since she believes that Bigfoot was also responsible for killing her father as she hunted by his side as a child. But Deputy Buck Weaver is solidly in favor of “dispel,” since he’s already filed the reports listing both deaths as the result of bear attacks. When it comes to cryptids, Morgan likes to keep an open mind. So she begins by viewing the death scenes and interviewing witnesses. But the more she digs, the more complicated her investigation becomes, with conflicting testimony from unreliable witnesses and physical evidence that conflicts with both her knowledge of animal behavior and established cryptid lore.

Fast-paced and ingenious, though mystery fans will have to overlook some grisly accounts of the attacks to savor the puzzle.