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Review: Picketsville (Virginia) Sheriff Ike Schwartz takes a vacation to the shores of Chesapeake Bay but that doesn't mean he's not on the job in Choker, the fifth mystery in this series by Frederick Ramsay

Just three days into his break he receives a call from his old friend and former colleague at the CIA, Charlie Garland. Charlie needs a favor. A young pilot, inexperienced in night flying, left an airport in Maryland and flew over the Bay on the foggy night of July 4th. He and his plane disappeared. Nick Reynolds, the pilot and the fiancé of Charlie's niece, left a cryptic message prior to leaving. The FAA and Coast Guard have searched for the plane but have found nothing. Maybe, reasons Charlie, Ike can take a fresh look at the case from his perspective on the Delaware border.

Meanwhile, back in Picketsville, a skull and bones have been found in an age-old sink hole once known as "Passion Pit", now simply the "Kaldron". Acting Sheriff Frank Sutherlin teams up with the Reverend Blake Fisher, who has lost some silver communion chalices recently, to look into it. Has a mysterious cult formed in the local high school?

Ramsay has a real flair for combining a little suspense, a dash of comedy, and a touch of romance into his novels. Choker is no exception. Taking place in a completely different setting than the other books in the series (and in some ways, introducing a different tone as well), it's a real pleasure following Ike on his investigation of the missing pilot and plane, working with (and sometimes in opposition to) a most remarkable cast of characters. It's all the book really needs to keep the reader's attention; the subplot back in Ike's home town is interesting, but adds little of value to the rest of the story.

Choker by Frederick Ramsay — An Ike Schwartz Mystery

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Format: Hardcover
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-635-8
Publication Date: June 2009
List Price: $24.95