Women Writing the West WILLA Award FinalistFrom "the reigning royalty of Minnesota murder mysteries" (The Rake) comes a striking new heroine: a young Irish immigrant caught up in a deadly plot in nineteenth-century DeadwoodWhen I was fifteen and my brother Seamus sixteen, we attended our own wake. Our family was in mourning, forced to send us off to America.The year is 1880, and of all the places Brigid Reardon and her brother might have dreamed of when escaping Ireland's potato famine by moving to America, Deadwood, South Dakota, was not one of them. But Deadwood, in the grip of gold fever, is where Seamus lands and where Brigid joins him after eluding the unwanted attentions of the son of her rich employer in St. Paul—or so she hopes. But the morning after her arrival, a grisly tragedy occurs; Seamus, suspected of the crime, flees, and Brigid is left to clear his name and to manage his mining claim, which suddenly looks...

A grisly death near her new homestead draws Brigid Reardon into a complicated mystery soon after her arrival in Cheyenne, Wyoming, in 1881 After the harrowing events that entangled her in Deadwood, Brigid Reardon just wants to move west and get on with her new life in America. But shortly after traveling to Cheyenne to join her brother Seamus, she finds herself caught up in another deadly mystery—beginning with her discovery of a neighbor's body on the plains near their homes. Was Ella murdered? Are either of the two men in Ella's life responsible? With Seamus away on a cattle drive, her friend Padraic possibly succumbing to a local's charms, and the sheriff seemingly satisfied with Ella's fate, it falls to Brigid to investigate what really happened, which puts her in the crosshairs of one of Cheyenne's cattle barons, called "big sugars" in these parts. All she really wants is something better than a crumbling, soddy homestead on the desolate plains of...

From Publishers WeeklyDeputy sheriff Claire Watkins is on the case once again in Logue's latest mystery (after Bone Harvest), set as usual in the small but not-so-sleepy town of Fort St. Antoine, Wis., population 142. The story opens on ruthless gold-digger Patty Jo Tilde as she idly watches her husband, Walter, suffer a stroke, hoping he'll die so she can sell the family farm. A how-will-she-solve-it rather than a whodunit, the novel's fun is in rooting for Claire as she first suspects and then resourcefully tries to prove what the reader knows all along. With the exception of the nasty Patty Jo—the lone Fort St. Antoine resident with a penchant for murder and arson rather than baking cherry pies—the novel offers an endearing cast of characters. When not busy sleuthing, Claire enjoys a smalltown camaraderie with charming fellow citizens, who include farmers, a retired schoolteacher, a bookstore owner, an artist and Claire's live-in steady, Rich Haggard. Except for a few tense moments, this is a kinder, gentler novel of suspense, engagingly but slowly paced. Logue's fans who have followed Claire's evolution from big city policewoman to smalltown cop and from new widow to contented girlfriend will be cheered by her resilience and continuing crime-solving adventures. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistAs this and the previous entries in her Claire Watkins series prove, Logue knows how to create suspense. Where she truly stands out, however, is in her depiction of relationships: complex bonds between lovers, spouses, siblings, and parents and their children. The bad guy in her latest is identified almost immediately, and one level of suspense concerns Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins being able to prove it. But the fascinating part of the story involves the residents in tiny Fort St. Antoine, Wisconsin, population 142. People know each other in Fort St. Antoine, which makes violent crime all the more shocking. As Claire and her sixth-grade daughter, Meg, adjust to their new live-in relationship with Rich Haggard, Claire's sister Bridget leaves her husband and moves into Claire's old house with her toddler. Amidst these personal upheavals, Claire must prove that a cruel woman is responsible for several fires--and possibly two murders. While escaping to the country may be a universal dream, Logue vividly points out that small-town life is not immune to big-time problems. Jenny McLarinCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

The seventh book in the Claire Watkins mystery series. Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins is faced with a difficult case when a friend of the family is suspected of killing his wife. Her investigation puts a great stress on her relationship with her husband. Things are further strained when the suspect attempts suicide, solidifying his guilt in Claire’s mind. But what if she’s wrong?From Publishers WeeklyIn Logue's disturbing seventh mystery to feature Wisconsin deputy sheriff Claire Watkins (after 2007's Maiden Rock), Claire's live-in boyfriend, Rich Haggard, gets a frantic, middle-of-the-night call from an old friend, Chet Baldwin. Rich rushes to Chet's house to find Chet lying in bed next to the body of his wife, Anne, who's been shot in the forehead. When Claire arrives at the scene soon after, Chet gets up and drops the handgun he's been cradling. Rich resents the strictly official posture Claire adopts, and their relationship deteriorates further after Claire conceals the fact that Chet attempts suicide while in her custody. Meanwhile, Claire's protégé on the force, Amy Schroeder, looks into the murder of a stranger found floating in the Mississippi River, a case that, predictably, ends up connected with the Baldwin case. Readers who care more about intelligent depictions of passionate emotions than the details of police work will be most satisfied. (Dec.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. About the AuthorAward-winning poet and mystery writer Mary Logue was born and raised in Minnesota. Her most recent books are Maiden Rock,her eighth crime novel; Skullduggery, the second in the Bloodwater mystery series with Pete Hautman; and Meticulous Attachment, her third book of poems. Her most recent awards include: Snatched, the first book in the Bloodwater series, nominated for an Edgar Award; Meticulous Attachment, awarded honorable mention by the Midwest Booksellers Association; and Dark Coulee won a Minnesota Book Award. She has also published a young adult novel, Dancing with an Alien, with HarperCollins. Her non-fiction books include a biography of her grandmother, Halfway Home, and a book on Minnesota courthouses, both published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. She has been an editor at the Village Voice, Simon & Schuster, Graywolf Press, Mid-List Press, and The Creative Company and has had articles published in the Village Voice, the New York Times and the Hungry Mind Review. She has taught for many years at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota, and Hamline University in St. Paul. She lives with writer Pete Hautman in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Wisconsin winter weather plays as important a role as any individual in this nicely paced tale of domestic abuse and murder. Claire Watkins is still adjusting to life in little Fort St. Antoine when she notices the bruises and stiff gait of a local woman named Stephanie Klaus. Small town or big city, Claire knows the signs of abuse when she sees them.Stephanie, however, won't talk, even when her new boyfriend, Buck, is tied into his car, driven out on the treacherous ice of Lake Pepin and left there to sink and drown.When Stephanie, accompanied by Buck's delightful dog, Snooper, tries to leave town, she is once again beaten; this time, she barely survives . . .From Publishers WeeklyWisconsin winter weather plays as important a role as any individual in this nicely paced tale of domestic abuse and murder. Police officer Claire Watkins, last seen in Dark Coulee (2000), is still adjusting to life in little Fort St. Antoine when she notices the bruises and stiff gait of a local woman named Stephanie Klaus. Small town or big city, Claire knows the signs of abuse when she sees them. Stephanie, however, won't talk, even when her new boyfriend, Buck, is tied into his car, driven out on the treacherous ice of Lake Pepin and left there to sink and drown. When Stephanie, accompanied by Buck's delightful dog, Snooper, tries to leave town, she is once again beaten; this time, she barely survives. Still she won't identify her attacker. Claire, in between Thanksgiving details involving her daughter, her sister, her boyfriend, Rich a teensy bit tiresome in his devotion and Rich's mother, tracks down Stephanie's creepy parents, ex-husband, brother and a police officer full of attitude. Claire still can't identify the culprit, but Stephanie has some protection in the form of her neighbor Sven Slocum, a retired executive with a generous heart. As a massive snowfall begins to pile up, visibility is practically nil, but Claire at last begins to see things clearly. The finale is not as fully developed as it might be, but a powerful sense of place and good clean writing greatly enhance this somewhat unremarkable plot. In addition, Claire Watkins is an appealing heroine who, in a refreshing break from the standard modern female protagonist, leaves her political agenda at home. Agent, Jane Chelius. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.From BooklistThe third entry in a popular series continues the saga of deputy sheriff Claire Watkins, living and working in western Wisconsin with her daughter, Meg. Claire is settling into a relationship with Rich Haggard, a local farmer, and preparing for the long winter ahead when she is awakened one morning by a mysterious and abruptly disconnected phone call from a distraught woman. After running into Stephanie Klaus at the post office and noting her battered face, Claire is fairly certain that she has identified the caller. Before she can act, another local resident is killed when his car falls through the ice of a frozen lake--Stephanie's boyfriend, Buck. As Claire works to determine whether Stephanie's bruises and Buck's death are related, all the while planning holiday festivities with her family, Stephanie struggles with the secrets that are placing her in grave danger. An atmospheric mystery whose engaging subject matter makes up for somewhat awkward dialogue and an unrelated, unnecessary subplot concerning a little old lady. Recommend to fans of J. A. Jance's Joanna Brady series. Carrie BisseyCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Claire Watkins, deputy sheriff of Pepin County, Wisconsin, makes a strong second showing that ought to gain her new fans. In spite of recurrent panic attacks associated with the death of her husband, Claire is starting to find the peace and security she's been seeking for herself and her 10-year-old daughter, Meg, since leaving her promising career with the St. Paul-Minneapolis police department for the small bluff town of St. Antoine.One summer evening, while her sister Bridget takes care of Meg, Claire and Rich Haggard, a local pheasant farmer she's been dating for three months, attend a street dance in nearby Little Rock. Just as the fun gets under way, screams for help stop the music and put romance on hold. Someone has stabbed well-liked farmer Jed Spitzler in the chest. Members of the close-knit St. Antoine community join Jed's children in searching for Jed's killer.Long-hidden town secrets are revealed as Claire seeks the truth and continues to struggle with her own demons.From Publishers WeeklyClaire Watkins, deputy sheriff of Pepin County, Wis., makes a strong second showing (after 1999's Blood Country) that ought to gain her new fans. In spite of recurrent panic attacks associated with the death of her husband, Claire is starting to find the peace and security she's been seeking for herself and her 10-year-old daughter, Meg, since leaving her promising career with the St. Paul-Minneapolis police department for the small bluff town of St. Antoine. One summer evening, while her sister Bridget takes care of Meg, Claire and Rich Haggard, a local pheasant farmer she's been dating for three months, attend a street dance in nearby Little Rock. Just as the fun gets under way, screams for help stop the music and put romance on hold. Someone has stabbed well-liked farmer Jed Spitzler in the chest. Members of the close-knit St. Antoine community join Jed's children in searching for Jed's killer. Long-hidden town secrets are revealed as Claire seeks the truth and continues to struggle with her own demons. Logue uses her talents as a poet to depict smalltown life and give rich insights into the hearts of her characters, from the kindly retired school teacher, Ella Gunderson, to the troubled children of Jed Spitzler. Claire performs her duties with intelligence, skill and caring, and readers are left at the conclusion only wanting more. Agent, Jane Chelius. (Nov.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. From School Library JournalAdult/High School-Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins and her 10-year-old daughter Meg are still adjusting to their new life in Fort St. Antoine, WI, when a local farmer, Jed Spitzler, is murdered. Claire finds his three children to be hiding lots of family secrets, which must be ferreted out gently but diligently, and with a great deal of patience. Evidence points to the fact that their mother's death, denoted as an accident at the time, was murder, and to Jed as the perpetrator. Plus, it is revealed that Jed had been molesting his oldest daughter, Jenny. Although the physical abuse isn't discussed in detail, Logue paints a detailed portrait of a young woman who uses drugs and alcohol to hide her pain, shame, and humiliation. With much twisting and rearranging, the murder is solved and Claire begins to recover from her husband's death and past events in her life as well. Logue smoothly carries readers into the hearts and minds of these characters. She just as easily transfers the focus of the story centered on the Spitzler family to the minor plots surrounding Claire's life, and the action never stops. Young adults who enjoy J. A. Jance's series featuring Sheriff Joanna Brady will like this series as well.-Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VACopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

"In her seventh series entry, Logue writes beautifully about rural Minnesota life while telling a good mystery. For fans of J.A. Jance and Margaret Maron." --Library Journal Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins has had an easy summer in Fort St. Antoine, Wisconsin; the only problem is that her daughter Meg is leaving for college soon. When Claire walks down to the park to watch the Burning Boat--a large replica of a Norwegian longboat set on the shores of Lake Pepin, burned at the autumnal equinox--she has no idea that more than just a wooden structure is going up in flames. The next day, the bones of a young woman are found in the ashes. When Claire learns that the new deputy she has hired, a vet returning from Afghanistan, was the young woman's former boyfriend, and that he is now dating her daughter Meg, she is desperate to find out who is responsible for the death. In order to get to the heart of this mystery, Claire must understand what happened in an attack in the mountains of Afghanistan, which left one man wounded, one man killed, and one man disturbed. Could one of those two remaining men be the killer?

Car mogul Daniel Walker is celebrating New Year’s Eve alone. Or at least he thinks he is. At midnight, he runs outside naked for a quick roll in the snow. But when he tries to get back in the house, he can’t. He’s been locked out.From Publishers WeeklyAt the start of Logue's tepid eighth mystery featuring Pepin County, Wis., deputy sheriff Claire Watkins (after 2008's Point No Point), Dan Walker, who's been celebrating New Year's Eve alone in his cabin's new sauna, finds himself locked out of his cabin after a brief naked roll in the snow. Subzero temperatures ensure that he's frozen stiff by the next morning. Miraculously, Dan revives, but is unable to recall what happened to him, though it appears someone deliberately locked him out. Suspicion falls on Dan's soon-to-be-ex-wife, Sherri, as well as his spoiled daughter, Danielle, but other suspects soon emerge. Meanwhile, a possible change in Claire's long-term relationship with Rich Haggard, among other personal issues, complicate Claire's hunt for who wanted Dan dead. Series fans may enjoy the rough Wisconsin winter and revisiting old friends, but Logue fails to generate much suspense or excitement. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistIt is New Year’s Eve in Pepin County, Wisconsin, 20 below zero with lots of snow. Daniel Walker is relaxing in his sauna, enjoying a bottle of vodka and a cigar and contemplating a new land deal and a divorce. At midnight, he leaves the sauna for a nude roll in the snow, but when he tries to get back inside, the door won’t open. When his soon-to-be-ex discovers him frozen in a pile of snow the next morning, she calls for help and the paramedics take him to the hospital to see if he can be saved. Sheriff’s investigator Claire Watkins has to figure out whether the incident was an accident or a crime. Daniel Walker made many people unhappy: his wife, his daughter, those on the wrong sides of his land deals. As she investigates, Claire ponders her own relationship with boyfriend Rich. After the death of her husband many years ago, she has been hesitant to remarry. The freezing weather echoes the relationships in this story. Some are frozen, while others, previously icy, show signs of thawing. A satisfying entry in a consistently entertaining series. --Barbara Bibel

### From Publishers Weekly Set in the scenic bluff country along the Mississippi River of western Wisconsin, this first in a series launch introduces Claire Watkins, a deputy sheriff for the Pepin County Police Department. Claire, a former Minneapolis police detective, and her 10-year-old daughter Meg fled the Twin Cities after her husband, Steve, also a cop, was killed. When Landers Anderson, an elderly neighbor who befriended Claire and Meg, dies of a heart attack after being sideswiped with a shovel, Claire determines to find the culprit. This involves delving into Landers's family history and investigating the machinations of a right-wing group, Homeowners of America, that is buying up property to build an environmentally unsound development. At the same time, Meg fearfully admits to Claire that she saw the man who killed Steve. Claire contacts her former partner, Det. Bruce Jacobs, and prods him into accelerating the investigation into Steve's death. The murderer, who has a mysterious police informant, tries to kidnap Meg but instead grabs Claire's pregnant sister Bridget, who gets away. Meanwhile, Claire's complex relationship with Bruce (they slept together once, he carries a torch for her, she's not sure she's ready) is challenged by her attraction to a neighbor, Rich Haggard. While the Anderson case has a satisfying solution, the mystery surrounding Steve's murder concludes with a killer most readers will have identified long before he's revealed. Although the plot development is heavy-handed and the dialogue often stilted, Logue has created some appealing characters in an attractive, offbeat setting. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. ### From Library Journal In this new series start, Claire Watkins, a deputy sheriff in Fort St. Antoine, WI, investigates the murder of her next-door neighbor, a pleasant, aging gardener with no apparent enemies. When she encounters the man's bitter brother and community controversy surrounding a new townhouse development, however, she begins to think otherwise. Then, too, there's the hit-and-run driver who killed Claire's husband a year ago and may be tracking her daughterAwho just happened to witness the incident. Surly suspects, small-town surroundings, and solid prose make this a welcome addition to most collections. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Fall comes to Pepin County with a vengeance as Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins confronts a new evil festering beneath the placid surface of the Wisconsin farm community. A refugee from the Twin Cities, Claire has slowly adapted to small-town life-especially now that she loves and lives with Rich Haggard. But in this rural area, other folks are dangerously restless. One is Daniel Reiner, a wealthy part-time resident who's been buying up too much land-at least as far as the locals are concerned. Another is gambling addict and aging gold digger Patty Jo Tilde, who recently married a widower twenty years her senior. Patty is itching to inherit her husband's property, sell it to Reiner, and leave the countryside behind. The only stumbling block-her husband must die. Add to the mix a suspicious goat-herding daughter-in-law and a wounded elk, and things quickly reach a boiling point. As Claire Watkins delves deeper into the mystery, she believes she's uncovered a deadly history of lies, deceit, arson, and poison. Her problem is to prove it-and then she learns what happened to Patty Jo's last husband. . . . Evoking the strong community values and the natural beauty of the Mississippi River Valley, this new Claire Watkins novel is Logue's most exciting yet. Poison Heart is a riveting tale of those who live off the land-and those who end up six feet under it.

Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins is back, in this tragic, personal follow up to Poison Heart. Claire’s daughter Meg is struggling with depression - after an all-night high school Halloween party, Meg’s best friend was found dead of an apparent suicide at the foot of Maiden Rock. Krista and Meg had fought at the party, over a boy, and Krista had run off. Meg feels responsible, but what shocks the deputy is that Krista was found with meth in her system. Now Claire is faced with a growing trend in her rural town - meth labs, doped-up teenagers, and young girls just looking for a way to escape their small-town lives.From Publishers WeeklyWhen Meg, deputy sheriff Claire Watkins's 15-year-old daughter, doesn't come home from a Halloween party hosted by close friend Krista Jorgenson at the start of Logue's harrowing fifth mystery set in Pepin County, Wis. (after 2005's Poison Heart), Claire fears the worst. Early the next morning, Claire discovers Krista, still wearing her Halloween costume, lying dead at the foot of a high limestone ledge called Maiden Rock. Two hours later, Claire and Meg, who had spent the night making out with a boy in his car, have a tearful reunion. After Meg learns of Krista's apparent suicide, she blames herself because the two had had a falling out at the party. But when meth turns up in Krista's bloodstream and a woman manufacturing meth in her trailer dies in an explosive fire, it becomes clear there's a serious drug problem among the community's young people. With minimal detail, limited characterization and few plot twists, this cautionary tale may be too straightforward for many mystery readers. (Nov.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. About the AuthorMary Logue is an award-winning poet and mystery writer. She was born and raised in Minnesota. Her most recent books are Snatched, a middle-grade mystery she wrote with Pete Hautman; Poison Heart, her seventh crime novel; and Meticulous Attachment, her third book of poems. Meticulous Attachment was awarded honorable mention by the Midwest Booksellers Association in 2006 and Dark Coulee won a Minnesota Book Award in 2000. She has also published a young adult novel, Dancing with an Alien, with Harper Collins. Her non-fiction books include a biography of her grandmother, Halfway Home, and a book on Minnesota courthouses, both published by the Minnesota Historial Society Press. She has been an editor at The Village Voice, Simon & Schuster, Graywolf Press, Mid-List Press, and The Creative Company. She has taught for many years at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis and at Hamline University in St. Paul. She lives with writer Pete Hautman in Minnesota and Wisconsin.