Flame Out - (June Lyons) by M P Cooley (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

June Lyons, the former FBI-agent-turned-small-town-cop introduced in the acclaimed Ice Shear must solve two connected cases whose roots stretch back decades in time--and dangerously touch the lives of those closest to her.

As a police officer in the rust belt town of Hopewell Falls, New York, June Lyons keeps an eye on the abandoned factories that line the Mohawk River. Spotting a slick of gasoline running across the parking lot of an old apparel factory, she quickly heads inside the building, where she discovers an unconscious woman too close to the flame. The fire destroys the building down to its sub-basements, and the badly burned woman June rescued is in a coma. No one knows who she is or how she got there.

Thirty years ago, June's father made a name for himself when he arrested the factory's owner, Bernie Mede, for killing his wife and child, though their bodies were never found. Sifting through the factory's ruins, June and her partner Dave Batko discover a woman's body sealed in a barrel. Surely, it's Luisa Mede and the case file can be closed. But the body isn't Bernie's wife, it's Dave's mother, a troubled party-girl who disappeared when Dave was young.

As June and her neighbors discover, beneath Hopewell Falls' charming façade lies some unbearably ugly truths--secrets that are only beginning to surface. With the case growing more complex, she teams with FBI Special Agent Hale Bascom to find answers--before everyone she loves, and the town itself, spin dangerously out of control.

From the Back Cover

"A haunting, expertly constructed mystery."--Lou Berney, Edgar Award-nominated author of The Long and Faraway Gone

As a police officer in the Rust Belt town of Hopewell Falls, New York, June Lyons keeps an eye on the abandoned factories that line the Mohawk River. On patrol she spots a slick of gasoline running across the parking lot of an old apparel factory; inside, an unconscious woman lies near smoldering piles of old fabric. The fire destroys the building down to its subbasements, and the badly burned woman June rescued is in a coma. No one knows who she is or how she got there.

Thirty years earlier, June's father arrested the factory's owner, Bernie Lawler, for killing his wife and child, though their bodies were never found. Sifting through the factory's ruins, June and her partner discover a woman's body sealed in a barrel. They're sure that the body will be Luisa Lawler's and her cold case file will finally be closed. But the body isn't Bernie's wife's, and the discovery triggers a new cycle of violence and revenge that threatens to destroy her family and friends.

Beneath Hopewell Falls's small-town facade lie secrets that are only beginning to surface, and with the case growing more complex, June teams with FBI Special Agent Hale Bascom to find the truth--before everyone she loves, and the town itself, spins dangerously out of control.

Review Quotes

"As chilling as its title, a small-town police story that grows and grows into the bigger themes of power, corruption, and coverup." - Andrew Gross, author of Everything to Lose
"Excellent debut . . . a strong, fast-paced narrative and an intriguing heroine propel the believable twists in a plot involving politics, a burgeoning meth industry, and biker gangs." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Praise for Ice Shear: "Captivating, original and brilliant. Seamlessly natural--Ice Shear shines with the remarkable confidence and authority of true talent. - Hank Phillippi Ryan, author of The Wrong Girl and an Agatha, Anthony, Macavity, and Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning author
"Fast-paced mystery that brings readers in quickly and endears them to June right away . . . will anxiously await June's next adventure." - RT Book Reviews
Praise for Flame Out: "Solid second police procedural . . . assuring readers that today's women cops and perps can both be tougher than their male counterparts." - Publishers Weekly
"A haunting, expertly-constructed mystery in which the past is a burning fuse that leads straight to the present." - Lou Berney, Edgar Award-nominated author of The Long and Faraway Gone
"Cooley's writing has an easy flow . . . the pacing is excellent and the storyline so engrossing that it's difficult to believe Ice Shear is a debut novel . . . Cooley's characters are bursting with vitality, practically leaping off the page." - Los Angeles Review of Books