City of Saints
A Mystery
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- $18.99
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
To the outside observer, Salt Lake City might seem to be the squeaky-clean "City of Saints"—its nickname since Mormon pioneers first arrived. Its wide roads, huge Mormon temple topped by a horn-blowing angel, and orderly neighborhoods give it the appearance of the ideal American city, but looks can be deceiving.
When a beautiful socialite turns up dead, Art Oveson, a twenty-something husband, father, and devout Mormon just getting his start as a sheriff's deputy, finds himself thrust into the role of detective. With his partner, a foul-mouthed former strikebreaker, he begins to pursue the murderer—or murderers. His search takes him into the underbelly of Salt Lake City, a place rife with blackmail, corruption, and death.
Based on a true yet largely forgotten murder that once captivated the nation but still remains unsolved eighty years later, City of Saints reveals a darker picture of the Mormon capital than you ever expected.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in 1930, Hunt's triumphant mystery debut introduces Salt Lake County deputy Art Oveson, a loving family man and committed Mormon. Haunted by the unsolved murder of his father, who was primed to be Salt Lake City's next police chief, Oveson is finding his way on the job when he gets involved in a complex and politically sensitive homicide. Helen Pfalzgraf, wife of a doctor who's one of the community's leading lights, was repeatedly run over by a car. The crime comes in the midst of a heated campaign for sheriff, with the incumbent, Oveson's boss, eager to stay on the good side of the city's power brokers by steering the investigation away from Dr. Pfalzgraf. Oveson must walk a fine line to hang onto his much needed job and his professional integrity as the murder inquiry threatens to uncover some very dark secrets. Winner of the 2011 Hillerman Prize, this hard-edged whodunit with echoes of James Ellroy warrants a sequel.
