Long Time Gone

A family goes to drastic lengths to protect their version of the truth in this dual-timeline rural debut mystery, perfect for readers of Kelly J. Ford and Hayley Scrivenor.

In the small town of Wonderland, Wyoming, the truth is whatever the Coldwater family says it is. When their prodigal daughter Jessica was murdered forty years ago, their truth was that Holly Prine killed her–regardless of Holly’s innocence.

But the Coldwaters aren’t the only reason private investigator Quinn Cuthridge hasn’t set foot in the town in nearly a decade. After her aunt sent her away when she was a teen, Quinn swore she’d never return. When she gets an unexpected call from her aunt’s ranch hand, Hunter, Quinn learns that her aunt has gone missing. Reluctantly, she returns to Wyoming to investigate and soon realizes that her aunt was getting dangerously close to long-buried Wonderland secrets, including who really murdered Jessica Coldwater.

As Hunter and Quinn dig into what lies in the Wyoming backcountry, attraction flares between the two women, complicating their investigation–and Quinn’s steadfast refusal to have any ties to Wonderland. With someone threatening Quinn and her own dark past echoing in the present, Quinn must struggle against her hometown and herself to find the truth in this rich queer mystery.

“Suspense and romance build in a story about the shattering pressures of hiding the truth.”–Kirkus Reviews

Long Time Gone is a novel full of grit and tension. Quinn is a sharp, cagey protagonist who, like a piece flint, sparks against every surface she touches, bringing her righteous anger and sensual heat to the page. The cold-case plot delves into the bigotry and corruption rife in America’s small towns. Long Time Gone deserves to be on every queer crime buff’s TBR.”
—Rachel Cochran, author of The Gulf