Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.
If you are not familiar with author John Galligan and his books this 2nd book in his Bad Axe County series takes a bit to get used to, but once you do the book speeds headlong at breakneck speed as we follow County Sheriff Heidi Kick as she confronts a myriad of issues and evil in remote Axe County, Wisconsin.
After a baffling preface, we encounter a murder of a homeless man, which quickly spirals into all the behind the scenes evil that is happening in the most isolated portion of the County. And not only are there bad intentions, one of the main adversaries is the swelteringly hot weather that the area is experiencing during this time period. Galligan’s book is divided into sections and he uses as unique way of dividing the action. His sections are not made up the time of day, or the days of the week, but rather the temperature ranges during the period of the books plot. Every day the temperature is between 94 and 100+ and it drives lots of the action in the book.
Not spending a lot of time on typical character development, he is able to use the actions to help us understand the characters and their points of view in the book. There are multiple parts of the plot, none of which seem to be related until we get to the dramatic last chapters of the book.
Not only do we deal with multiple murders, Sheriff Kick also has many issues with her own family that helps drive the action, and makes us realize how hard it is for law enforcement to be concentrating on their work when their family has as many issues as Kick’s does. Throw in a bitter election campaign, sex slaves, crazed environmentalists/back to the earth people who live in caves, and a host of other unique characters and you will be reading at breakneck speed to reach the conclusion.
This may not be a book that some will like to read, but nonetheless it is a book that also makes us confront many of the issues of our day, and how such evil exists within our society. Fast-paced and well written this book leaves Galligan’s fans anxiously awaiting the next volume in his Bad Axe County series.

This book was previously reviewed at www.historyandsuspense.com

Wow, what a story. I'm not going to spoil the book by revealing the plot but if you like mysteries, small town situations, rural policing or just great characters, then consider this book. It reminds me a bit of some darker Appalachian novels. This author was new to me but I'll definitely be looking for more books. Books with strong female leads in unusual situations, especially when they do a great job in very complicated circumstances (moms with demanding outside jobs can relate) are some of my favorites - complexity built into the plot! This book is chock full of great, well developed characters like Fanta, the aging, alcoholic newspaperman. What you'll find in the book: a small town sheriff dealing small town issues (animosity from the town board and the one relatively wealthy family who challenges her authority); some big city weirdness compounded someone who long ago separated from reality; two genuinely freaky characters; some stressful family dynamics; and several wonderful supporting characters doing their thing and complicating the sheriff's job. The writing has just the right amount of tension to pull you along without ratcheting the reader into an anxiety fit and eases up enough at times to let you breathe before reeling you back in. This one gets a rare four stars from me.

This wasn't predictable for me, and it is a pretty good mystery. Although it's a bit dark, it does contain some good elements -- a mostly interesting plot, well-written characters, and an engaging style.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

A couple years ago I stumbled across the first book in this series, and I have no intentions on looking back. If Galligan keeps writing in this world, I will keep on reading them. I am thoroughly enjoying these books about Heidi Kick and her quest for a perfect family while keeping Bad Axe County as safe as she can.

Galligan does a great job at balancing the "evil" in the book and the main character's personal life. While both things do always intertwine, they still have their own places separately. This one takes Heidi on such a personal journey, I couldn't help to be heartbroken by the end.

This book reads pretty quickly. Between the mystery of the murder and who is who and Heidi tackling such a heavy load with her family, the book took me on a journey I couldn't have imagined. I was captured from the beginning to the end. Another winner for the Bad Axe.

This is now the third book in the series I have read and the author has a winner on his hands. Maybe it is because I live in the suburbs that all the characters in the book are almost from another world in the sticks in Bad Axe County, Wisconsin. In this book the Sheriff, Heidi Kick, is still fighting to do good for her constituents while also fighting a reelection campaign against and unscrupulous competitor who will sees nothing as too low in his attacks to smear Kick's name. I don't want to ruin the plot but some really awful stuff comes to light that Kick must deal with while also maintaining her humanity with her minor league baseball husband and children who also need their attention. I hope book 4 comes out soon as I can't wait to see what happens in Bad Axe County next. A must read.
Thank you Netgalley, John Galligan and Atria Books for the ARC for my honest review.