Going, Gone by Laura Crum, a Mysterious Review.

Review: Horse veterinarian Gail McCarthy travels with her husband and young son to the Sierra Nevadas for week of camping on an old friend's ranch only to learn he's under arrest for murder in Going, Gone, the 11th mystery in this series by Laura Crum.

Lonny Peterson is accused of murdering two people, a brother and sister who operate a local livestock auction house. A witness places Lonny at the scene of the crime, and his gun was the murder weapon. Gail can't believe Lonny capable of murder, and for that matter, neither can anyone else. Lonny doesn't deny being there, nor does he dispute ownership of the gun, which he says he hadn't seen in months and anyone could have taken. Inquiring about the murder victims, she discovers nearly all the local residents have intertwining relationships, either personal or professional, and several of them may have had a motive for murder. But the real question remains: which of the brother and sister was the intended victim, with the other happening to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or did someone have a reason to kill both of them?

Crum has a real talent for painting beautiful backdrops for her novels, with the wide open expanses of the Sierra Nevada foothills in Going, Gone being no exception. She can also craft thrilling action scenes, including a heart-stopping one that comes near the end of this book. But the murder mystery plot here isn't all that strong, in part because, rather inexplicably, much of what will constitute the ending is given away about midway through. Gail asks all the right questions to all the right people at just the right time so there isn't much surprise at the who and why.

Crum often includes long philosophical passages on the meaning of life, something of a recurring theme in her books. Though they have little bearing on the main storyline, they are interesting and provide a unique perspective into the character of Gail McCarthy. In Going, Gone, she is mourning the loss of a cherished dog. When she sees the body of a cat lying alongside the road, killed by a passing car, she asks "Did his spirit still exist somewhere, somehow?" And then ...

Why was life so? Why not something tranquil, harmonious, gentle, stable? Why not something that stayed? What good God could possibly have created this brief, brutal, transitory, painful experience, spirit wedded to body for just long enough to yearn for permanence, to learn to love others who were equally impermanent?

Relatively short at less than 200 pages, Going, Gone can easily be read in one sitting. Though the mystery itself may be somewhat disappointing, the journey is a satisfying one.

Acknowledgment: Perseverance Press provided an ARC of Going, Gone for this review.

Chasing Cans
Perseverance Press (Trade Paperback), March 2008
ISBN-13: 9781880284940; ISBN-10: 1880284944

Barnstorming
Perseverance Press (Trade Paperback), April 2012
ISBN-13: 9781564745088; ISBN-10: 1564745082

Going, Gone

A Gail McCarthy Mystery by Laura Crum