Valley of the Lost

Vicki Delany
Poisoned Pen Press (2009)
ISBN 9781590585955
Reviewed by Deb Shunamon for Reader Views (11/08)


When the personalities and daily lives of the characters in a book are so interesting that they can cause a reader to forget that a murder has just taken place, you are with a good writer. The thoroughly enjoyable “Valley of the Lost,” is the second in a series by Canadian author Vicki Delany, featuring Trafalgar City Police investigators Detective John Winters, and Constable Molly “Moonbeam” Smith. Although the suspicious death of a young mother is the main focus of this mystery, the brilliant portrayal of the people living in this Kootenay mountain-like setting is simply wonderful, and locating the woman’s killer was not a major concern for me most of the time…until the unexpected happened. Molly’s community-minded mother cares for the dead woman’s orphaned baby, a controversial development project becomes an unwelcome part of Winter’s life, and the boundaries between personal life and police work are played out while solving a crime that stretches the length of the Pacific Northwest.

There is a leisurely pace to this story, and along the way it exposes some idiosyncrasies of smaller communities such as the boredom of the young and free-spirited “hippy” vs. traditional lifestyles. Although bits and pieces of clues are steadily given, there was a sudden jolt back into the nastiness of the crime which I was unprepared for and loved. Vicki Delany is a good writer, and I did not want to leave these crime solvers and their community, so I am glad she is writing a series. A very intimate feeling was created, and for a very personal kind of mystery book that is hard to put down; where a strong connection between the reader, the protagonists, and the characters in their lives is effectively created, give “Valley of the Lost” by Vicki Delaney a try. It is truly a terrific, light mystery novel.

Make comment on weblog