Title: Burning Ridge by Margaret Mizushima
Timber Creek K-9 Mystery Book Four
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 279 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
Featuring Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo, Burning Ridge by critically acclaimed author Margaret Mizushima is just the treat for fans of Alex Kava.
On a rugged Colorado mountain ridge, Mattie Cobb and her police dog partner Robo make a grisly discovery—and become the targets of a ruthless killer.
Colorado’s Redstone Ridge is a place of extraordinary beauty, but this rugged mountain wilderness harbors a horrifying secret. When a charred body is discovered in a shallow grave on the ridge, officer Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo are called in to spearhead the investigation. But this is no ordinary crime—and it soon becomes clear that Mattie has a close personal connection to the dead man.
Joined by local veterinarian Cole Walker, the pair scours the mountaintop for evidence and makes another gruesome discovery: the skeletonized remains of two adults and a child. And then, the unthinkable happens. Could Mattie become the next victim in the murderer’s deadly game?
A deranged killer torments Mattie with a litany of dark secrets that call into question her very identity. As a towering blaze races across the ridge, Cole and Robo search desperately for her—but time is running out in Margaret Mizushima’s fourth spine-tingling Timber Creek K-9 mystery, Burning Ridge.
Review:
Burning Ridge by Margaret Mizushima is an intriguing and poignant mystery. Although this newest release is the fourth installment in the phenomenal Timber Creek K-9 Mystery series, it can be read as a standalone. However, I highly recommend the entire series.
Veterinarian Cole Walker and his daughters, Angela and Sophie, are enjoying a pleasant outing in Redstone Ridge when they make a grisly discovery: charred human remains. Deputy Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo join the search effort to locate the primary crime scene and the remainder of the body. Mattie also notices an anomaly in a meadow which in turn leads to the skeletonized remains of three other victims. The MO in both cases is eerily similar but the two crimes have taken place over twenty years apart. Is it possible the same perpetrator is responsible for both crimes?
Mattie has slowly but surely been working to overcome her troubled past. When she was six years old, her father went to prison and she was abandoned by her mother. She has few recollections of her life with them but after recently reconnecting with her older brother, Willie, some of her repressed memories have surfaced. With her relationship with Willie improving, she has become more open to the two of them meeting. So when Matt’s girlfriend, Tamara, calls to let her know that Willie is missing, Mattie is concerned. He is a recovering addict and initially, she is worried he has relapsed. But upon further discussion Tamara, Mattie has reason to believe that there might be a more ominous reason for his disappearance.
Mattie joins Detective Stella LoSasso as she questions possible suspects but the murder investigation remains slow going due to a lack of evidence. Once they have identified the newest victim, the case takes a shocking turn. Mattie is shaken but determined to help solve the murder, but the situation becomes incredibly dangerous as the perpetrator grows more desperate.
Burning Ridge is a fast-paced and engrossing police procedural. Mattie remains an absolutely fascinating protagonist who has grown and changed over the course of the series. Her relationship with Robo is exceptionally heartwarming and she is making progress with her slow-moving romance with Cole. The storyline is very clever and the identity of the perpetrator is truly surprising. With descriptive prose, Margaret Mizushima brings the setting vibrantly to life. Although the mystery is completely wrapped up by the novel’s action-packed conclusion, stunning revelations will leave readers eagerly awaiting the next installment in the Timber Creek K-9 Mystery series.
