No Accident: A Posadas County Mystery
by Steven F. Havill opens with Undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman dealing with
the aftermath of a brutal bar fight at the Broken Spur Saloon. Johnny Rabke is
drunk and bleeding heavily, a tourist family of four is traumatized, and the
unconscious combatant on the floor is Pablo Ramirez. He had pulled out a knife
after exchanging insults, Johnny Rabke had swung a pool cue at least once, and had
also ended the fight by throwing a billiard ball and nailing Ramirez in the
right side of his head.
That fight and the charges and everything around all
that becomes secondary as does life in Posadas when she gets a midnight call
from her son, Francisco. Her first thought is that something has happened to
her grandson but she can hear him in the background and so she knows he is
okay. Instead, the call is about her other son, Carlos, and his wife, Tasha.
Francisco explains that Carlos and Tasha were on
their tandem bike out in California and were run down. Both have suffered
series injuries and are in the Temerly Trauma Treatment Center in Briones,
California. Tasha is doing a little bit better than Carlos who is still in
surgery and in a very bad way. Francisco and his family are headed to the
airport in New York to board their private jet. They plan to fly to Posadas and
pick up mom and dad, Estelle and her husband, Dr. Francis Guzman, and go to California
to be there for Carlos and Tasha.
Before long the entire group is on the ground in
California. As it happens, Eddie Mitchell is a captain with the Briones Police
Department and supervising the investigation as it is clear that this was no
simple hit and run. This was definitely attempted murder. Not only were they
run over once, the driver backed up and hit them a second time. Not only does
he want Estelle and the family to be fully supported as they await to see if
Carlos survives his life-threatening injuries, Mitchell is determined to find
the guilty party or parties and get them off the street and in custody.
To do that, he is going to walk a tightrope as he
wants Estelle’s help, but she has no authority in California. He also knows how
she is and does not want her independently pursuing her own lines of inquiry or
doing anything that could give a defense lawyer ammunition at trial. Things get
more complicated quickly as a body is found that could be tied into the case.
What follows is a complicated read that shifts back
and forth from the hospital and the patients to the actual investigation of the
crime. While there are the occasional brief contacts with the folks back home,
the vast majority of the novel takes place out in California. Along the way, the
author spends considerable time on family dynamics, the predatory behavior of
some men towards women, and other issues as the investigation moves forward on
multiple fronts. It is not until the last chapter and the final eight pages
that the initial event that started the book is resolved.
Overall, while not the best read in this long
running series, No Accident: A Posadas County Mystery was
entertaining and enjoyable. Though the tale was interesting, this reader missed
the New Mexico setting which is often so effectively used a character in its own
right. This reader was also frequently reminded of the idea that it is good to
have friends, but having plenty of money to deal with emergencies helps too. So
too does having your own doctor in the family.
My print reading copy came by way of Aubrey Nye Hamilton to sent it to me after she had read it. Yet another way Aubrey does wonderful things for me and this blog. Thank you, Aubrey. As always.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2022
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