Good Reads: The Last Clinic

The Last Clinic: A Darla Cavannah Mystery by Gary Gusick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As a Southerner that spent her life working in public safety I can tell you that this well written mystery novel was right on the money. The characters, no matter how eccentric and racially biased, ring true.

Darla is a detective that has been transplanted from Philadelphia to Jackson, Missippi. While on leave after her husbands death she receives an early morning call from her boss, the Sheriff. A prominent local minister has been found murdered, hanging from a cross, in front of an abortion clinic.

Forced out of her mourning Darla is tasked with solving the murder case while burdened with being a Yankee in the South and being partnered with the mayor's nephew, an Elvis impersonator and right wing bigot. The investigation is intriguing and the suspects fascinating.

This isn't Southern noir, but comes close. Sometimes I found myself laughing at the extreme situations while also shaking my head in disgust. I was never bored with this book and I think it is well worth reading.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.