Open Season

Archer Mayor

Joe Gunther works for the Brattleboro, Vermont police department. An elderly woman kills a man she thinks is breaking into her home. He believes he is picking up his missing dog. A woman is attacked by a man with a memorable tatoo. A man is set up for theft. Although apparently unrelated, Gunther discovers an odd pattern. All the victims and some of the accused served together on a murder trial. The man was new to town and an outsider. The evidence pointed to him. He was convicted quickly despite his claims of being framed. Now it appears someone is either avenging him or making the police look at the case again.

He goes to his closest friend and mentor, Frank Murphy. Murphy, now a captain in the department, was one of the police officers involved in the earlier murder. He doesn't want to see the case reopened. But Gunther knows there is something wrong. Plus there's another player. A man they nickname Ski Mask keeps interfering, saving Gunther's life once. They're not sure what Ski Mask's involvement is, but he is also tied into their re-examination.

Gunther starts tracking down people from the time of the original murder. When he does, someone follows in his wake, attacking the people who Gunther has interviewed. He and Frank drove to Connecticut for some blood testing. While returning in a blizzard, they are run off the road into a river. Gunther is lucky to survive the crash. Will they be able to solve the new mystery? Will it change the conviction of the old case? What does Ski Mask have to do with all this? Gunther has to keep following the clues, trying to avoid whoever is behind him who also is "interested" in the case.

Open Season is Archer Mayor's first book in his Joe Gunther series. Open Season is told in first person by Gunther. The plot twists in on itself. Each answer discovered leads to two more questions. The only thing Gunther becomes convinced of is that the wrong man is in prison.

This small town in Vermont is a good setting for Open Season. The small town culture is as much of a character in the book as any of the people are. Mayor's descriptions bring the town and area alive. I didn't quite feel the cold of the blizzard and fog, but certainly could picture all of them. The tone of the book is steady, not explosive. That adds to the color and feel of this detective novel.

I have read one of the later books in the Joe Gunther series and was glad to come across this one in a free selection of books. I will have to find more of Mayor's work.

Notice:  Non-graphic violence, Suggestive dialogue or situations

Open Season
Borderlines
Scent of Evil
The Skeleton's Knee
Fruits of the Poisonous Tree
The Dark Root
The Ragman’s Memory
Bellows Falls
The Disposable Man
Occam's Razor
The Marble Mask
Tucker Peak
The Sniper’s Wife
Gatekeeper
The Surrogate Thief
St.Alban's Fire
The Second Mouse
Chat
The Catch