A dark and suspenseful debut. Detective T. J. Peterson has a problem, and it’s not just how much he’s drinking or the daily, silent, tormenting video calls from his estranged daughter. A Catholic priest has been bludgeoned to death in church, apparently by a symbol of his faith; an unidentified woman’s body had been found; and a deranged teenager has slashed herself and bled to death in Peterson’s arms. He’s barely holding it together. Then a young woman, a possible witness, turns to him for help, propelling him into the sleazy, violent world of underage prostitution, sexual abuse, and human trafficking as he tracks a merciless killer. Bob Kroll’s debut novel is a stylish and riveting exploration of both the consequences of depravity and the sometimes-extraordinary resilience of the human spirit.