Desolation Canyon - (Detective Margaret Nolan) by P J Tracy (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

P.J. Tracy "seems to have found her literary sweet spot" (New York Times Book Review) with her dazzling new series, and in Desolation Canyon, fans get a deeper look into the complex characters who call Los Angeles home.

LAPD Detective Margaret Nolan is struggling to move forward after the death of her brother in Afghanistan and taking a life in the line of duty. Her stoic parents offer little support - they refuse to address anything difficult, and she's afraid their relationship is eroding beyond the point of recovery.

The days off are the hardest, because they give Margaret time to think. A moment of weakness leads to cocktails with a colleague--an attraction she knows could be dangerous --at the luxurious Hotel Bel-Air bar. A stroll through the grounds leads to a grim discovery beneath the surface of Swan Lake: the body of a successful attorney who made his fortune in international trade.

It initially appears to be death by misadventure, but the case is anything but straightforward. As a series of shocking revelations emerge, Nolan finds herself confronting a sinister cabal that just might destroy her and everyone she loves.

Review Quotes

Praise for Desolation Canyon

"With Desolation Canyon, Tracy rises to the rarified level of Michael Connelly and David Baldacci. . . Tracy draws each scene with the skill of a brilliant artist and hits every note like a master maestro." --Jon Land, Providence Sunday Journal

"Peak-excitement...Tracy's plots are growing more intricate and her characters more layered." --Twin Cities Pioneer Press

"With well-developed characters with flaws and faults of their own, this is a mystery with plenty to think about after the story is done, and the suspense plot is great too." --The Parkersburg News and Sentinel

"Outstanding...Tracy should win new fans with this vivid, twisty crime novel." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Something for everyone, and then some." --Kirkus Reviews

"Nolan returns in [Desolation Canyon], and it's even better than the first. . . Fans of the Monkeewrench novels, which also feature a tough, no-nonsense female protagonist, should find the Nolan books very much up their alley." --Booklist

Praise for Deep into the Dark

"Tracy seems to have found her literary sweet spot." --Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review

"Riveting. . . Tracy's characters are richly developed and seriously human, each struggling with how to overcome their dangerous dark pasts. I'm eager for more of Tracy's new gang." --Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Tracy delivers a darker, richer story in Deep into the Dark." --Oline Cogdill, Shelf Awareness

"An intense, unforgettable novel that focuses on the predators and prey that thrive in the city. The intricately plotted story handles Easton's PTSD with compassion while revealing his disturbing torment. Three complex characters, Sam, Melody, and Detective Nolan, are introduced in a gripping story for thriller fans." --Library Journal (starred review), Pick of the Month

"[A] riveting series launch. . . . The suspense rises as the plot takes some unexpected twists and turns." --Publishers Weekly

"The layered storytelling and empathy offered to every character make Deep into the Dark not just a hard-to-put-down thriller, but one that leaves the reader with much to think on, with no easy answers in sight." --BookPage

About the Author

P. J. TRACY is the pseudonym of Traci Lambrecht, bestselling and award winning author of the Monkeewrench series. Lambrecht and her mother, P. J., wrote eight novels together as P. J. Tracy before P. J. passed away in 2016. Lambrecht has since continued the Monkeewrench series solo. She spent most of her childhood painting and showing Arabian horses, and graduated with a Russian Studies major from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. She now lives outside Minneapolis.