A Killing in the Hills

On an ordinary Saturday morning in Acker’s Gap, a man walks into the Salty Dawg restaurant and fires three shots. He kills three old men having coffee together.

Murder for money or lust- alcohol- or drug-fueled confrontations, those weren’t rare in Raythune County, West Virginia. A triple murder in broad daylight? That is terrifying and concerns Bell Elkins, the county prosecuting attorney.

Even more terrifying — had she known it — was the fact that her daughter Carla, sitting at a nearby table, recognized the shooter. He’d been at a party that Carla shouldn’t have been at, passing out handfuls of pills. Carla doesn’t dare mention this to her mother for fear of the trouble she’ll be in for going to the party.

Author Julia Keller juxtaposes the postcard beauty of an Appalachian autumn against the region’s poverty, drug economy and violence.

Bell herself is an Acker’s Gap hometown girl with a dark past and a sister in prison. She thought she wanted to escape Acker’s Gap. But after earning a law degree at George Washington University, she realized what she really wanted to do was come back home and try to make life better for the people of Raythune County.  It cost her a marriage and a great income.

Now she’s up against the challenge of her career, facing dangerous foes that many of her colleagues claim can’t be beat.

Keller has created a challenging mystery that hinges on her diverse characters’ needs, drives and circumstances. This mystery has dark elements, but it isn’t noir or hopeless. The fascinating setting, interesting characters and suspenseful story will keep you turning pages.

I found the identity of the ultimate culprit hard to believe. I also dissatisfied with the fact that Carla Elkins, raised by an attorney, didn’t come forward with information about the shooter in the cafe when she recognized him. Yes, she’s a teenager, and yes, she’d risk getting trouble with her mother. But, really? Watching three old men get killed in front of you isn’t enough to knock you out of your self-absorption and do the right thing?

One final thing didn’t work for me. It opens with a horrific scene in which the trailer where Bell and her older sister live goes up in flames with their drunken father inside. It’s a haunting scene that explains a lot about Bell’s past and commitment to her hometown and the law.

Her sister is imprisoned and refuses all contact with her. But then it seems to just drop. Maybe it gets referred to in future books, but I found it more grabbing than most of this book and was disappointed not to learn more.