All We Buried by Elena Taylor is the first book in the New “Sheriff Bet Rivers” traditional mystery series. Publisher: Crooked Lane Books, coming April 7, 2020.

For fans of Julia Keller and Sheena Kamal, All We Buried disturbs the long-sleeping secrets of a small Washington State mountain town.

Interim sheriff Elizabeth “Bet” Rivers has always had one repeat nightmare: a shadowy figure throwing a suspicious object into her hometown lake in Collier, Washington. For the longest time, she chalked it up to an overactive imagination as a kid. Then the report arrives. In the woods of the Cascade mountain range, right in her jurisdiction, a body floats to the surface of Lake Collier. When the body is extricated and revealed, no one can identify Jane Doe. But someone must know the woman, so why aren’t they coming forward?

Bet has been sitting as the interim sheriff of this tiny town in the ill-fitting shoes of her late father and predecessor. With the nightmare on her heels, Bet decided to build a life for herself in Los Angeles, but now it’s time to confront the tragic history of Collier. The more she learns, the more Bet realizes she doesn’t know the townspeople of Collier as well as she thought, and nothing can prepare her for what she is about to discover.

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Dru’s Musing:
This well-written drama had me completely immersed in all that was happening, quickly becoming a page-turner. A young sheriff has a recurring troubled recollection and when a body is found on the lake, this recollection peers into her thoughts. Trying to uncover the identity of the victim brings everything into the forefront of her present day and opens up a long-ago secret that someone wants to keep buried. The pacing of this edgy tale was on par with how well this story was being told.

With visually descriptive narrative, the author sets the tone for this intriguing and suspenseful tale that floated plenty of twists and turns and kept me guessing until the pieces started falling into place. With one strategically placed twist, the lake opened up its answers for a mind-blowing finale. All I can say is there’s a new sheriff in town and people should not underestimate her. A great beginning to a series that I can’t wait to explore further.

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FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.