The Drop Edge of Yonder
by Donis Casey
Who killed Uncle Bill? Alafair Tucker is desperate to find out. One August evening in 1914, a bushwhacker ended a pleasant outing by blowing a hole in Bill McBride, kidnapping and ravaging Bill’s fiancee, and wounding Alafair’s daughter Mary. All Mary knows is that the crime had something to do with the Fourth of July.
Or is there more? The answer seems to be working its way through the fog of Mary’s shock and grief and floating to the surface of her consciousness. Several malicious acts suggest that Bill’s killer is still around and attempting to cover his tracks.
The law is hot on the bushwhacker’s trail. Alafair thinks there is little she can do to help the sheriff, but that will never stop her from trying. She has no qualms about driving Mary to distraction with her persistent snooping and constant hovering. Can Mary remember the crime before the murderer manages to eliminate everyone who could identify him?
(64,000 words; available as ebook, print, and audiobook)
“Casey’s books are a very enjoyable, and indeed, believable combination of historical background and amateur protagonist. As in prior offerings, she layers her narrative with colorful turns of phrase, and provides an after word with mouth watering recipes. And although Alafair’s psychic abilities to ‘tune in’ to her subtle knowledge of personalities and events are a part of the story, there is no ‘woo-woo’ factor here. Instead, Alafair is presented as an insightful, intelligent woman, a strong and loving mother to her children, and a character to look forward to reading bout in the future!” —CrimeSpree Magazine
“With an uncanny knack for solving mysteries, the fiercely protective Alafair almost loses her life in the final confrontation with the killer. In this third in a series, set on a farm in 1914 Oklahoma, Casey lovingly protrays the Tuckers’ close extended family, immersing the reader in both the domestic aspects and the harsh realities of everyday farm life.” —Booklist
“Casey’s mellow third Alafair Tucker whodunit is as laid-back as its 1914 Oklahoma setting. Alafair, farmer’s wife and busy mother to a flock of youngsters, searches grimly for a killer after mysterious gunmen shoot her brother-in-law Bill McBride and abduct and rape Laura Ross, Bill’s fiancee, while they’re out riding with Alafair’s daughters, Mary and Ruth. Mary, who suffered a head injury from a stray bullet, struggles to remember a ‘mighty important thought’ that might help identify the miscreants. Even the Tuckers’ once trusted farm hands, Kurt and Micah, fall under suspicion as another attempt is made to end Laura’s life. Cousin Scott, the sheriff, is leaving no stone unturned in his official investigation, but he’s quietly confident that Alafair will use her skills and intuition to ferret out a solution. Casey gives convincing voice to the early Midwest much as Sharyn McCrumb does for her Appalachians, including period recipes that help to convey the literal flavor of the era.” —Publishers’ Weekly
“As with the previous Tucker tales, the atmosphere is incredible so much so that the audience will believe they are spending the summer of 1914 on the Tucker farm. The whodunit is cleverly devised as Alafair knows Mary has the truth if she can only remember. Fans of historical mysteries will appreciate this supurb Sooner story as it is Oklahoma just before WWI that makes Donis Casey’s saga an excellent read.” —Book Review Forum
