Deadly Cove by Brendan DuBois, a Mysterious Review.

Review: Former Department of Defense research analyst, now magazine journalist Lewis Cole gets caught up in a confrontation involving supporters and opponents of nuclear power plants in New England in Deadly Cove, the seventh mystery in this series by Brendan DuBois.

The Falconer nuclear power plant in New Hampshire has operated safely for years … but has also been the site of repeated demonstrations by antinuclear protesters. Some have been advocating less peaceful means of protest, but were at most a vocal minority. Until a consortium of ten utilities announce plans to break ground on Falconer-2, a companion facility that will dramatically increase the amount of electricity available to a population whose power needs continue to rise. A group of protesters now want to forcibly occupy the site, and are set to do so when one of their leaders, Bronson Tole, is shot and killed by a sniper's bullet. Cole, standing nearby taking notes, is suddenly a part of the news. His follow-up investigation attracts the attention of someone, someone who is willing to do anything to keep Cole from identifying a cold-blooded killer.

With the recent disaster involving a nuclear facility in Japan fresh in the minds of many, Deadly Cove is an unintentionally topical suspense novel. (The book was completed well before the March 2011 earthquake that devastated Japan.) The author doesn't delve much into the pros and cons of nuclear power — both sides are presented, however — but instead crafts a credible murder mystery involving the diametrically opposed groups of people who are part of the debate, and the potential for conflict that can arise. Important to him both personally and professionally, it's a thrill watching Lewis Cole navigate this political and emotional minefield, picking out details that are relevant to his story, and working to protect not only himself but those he cares about.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Deadly Cove.

Deadly Cove

A Lewis Cole Mystery by Brendan DuBois