"Desert Cut"

"Desert Cut" is Betty Webb's 5th book in the Lena Jones Mystery series and she's delivered again with a tale that could have been taken from headlines.  When Lena and her boyfriend, Warren, discover a little girl's body in the desert while vacationing, Lena feels compelled to put on her private investigator hat and discover what happened to this child even if it results in putting her relationship with Warren on shaky ground.  As usual, Webb develops her characters well and researches her material to develop a story that parallels real life events.  If her purpose is to gain empathy and support to prevent injustices, she's achieved it.  Although the subject material is "dark," the writing and story line are superb and I'm ready to read the next book in the series.  pazt