I have to wonder which came first, this series of books featuring a intelligent, beautiful female medical examiner or all the tv series featuring them. I believe it was the series. This is the fifth in the series. Kay falls off the wagona bit and has an affair with a co worker. Her partner, Marino, is not happy with her choice so he makes a bad choice of his own. Her niece tries to enter Kay's world and becomes the target of a homicidal maniac. All of this while Kay is trying to discover how and who killed a young 9 year old girl. The information is just enough to keep you interested and focused, but not enough to predict who did the murders or to predict the ending. I enjoy being kept in suspense.