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THE NECESSARY MURDER OF NONIE BLAKE has a leisurely feel that matches its backwoods Texas locale. Sam Craddock, the retired Sheriff of Jarrett Creek, Texas, was called back into service when the town went bankrupt and could no longer afford to pay its law enforcement chief. Sam agreed to do the job for free, and for the most part he doesn't have much to do anyway. His most pressing case is catching a thief who is cutting flowers in local gardens in the dead of night. However, as the book opens, there is a drowning death on a local property...a death that turns out to be the murder of a young woman identified by her family as Nonie Blake.
Twenty years ago, teenager Nonie Blake was sent away to a mental institution after attempting to hang her younger sister. She had just returned to the family home after being released from Rollingwood when the murder occurred. Her family keeps themselves to themselves in a town where everyone knows everyone else's business and this, combined with their wealth, has given them a reputation for being stuck-up and odd. No one in the family works, and the patriarch, John Blake, suffers from dementia associated with Parkinson's Disease. As Sam investigates the murder, he is constantly stonewalled or sent in wrong directions by the lies of Adelaide, John's wife. The clues Sam uncovers only seem to confuse the situation further.
Part way through the investigation, the state sends a new officer to Jarrett Creek as a part of a minority training program. Suddenly, Sam has the help and complication caused by having Maria Trevino on the force. She brings a tough attitude along with her, having previously lived only in urban environments, and this does not help her in understanding the people of Jarrett Creek. However, she also brings some up-to-date policing skills with her, and these do help in the attempt to identify Nonie's murderer.
Maria's entry into the town provides fresh eyes for the reader to see the small town dynamics. The slow pace of the book reflects the slow pace of life in Jarrett Creek. Sam takes the weekend off from his investigation, since nothing is open anyway, and uses the time to purchase some new cattle. Neighbors drop by with baked goods for a chat. Jarrett Creek seems to be a quiet sort of vanilla place to live, except for this pesky murder that must be solved.
In the end, all of the misdirections and lies are sorted out as Sam and Maria uncover the story that the Blake family has been hiding and determine both the identity of the murderer and the motive. While Maria's posting to Jarrett Creek is of indeterminate length, it appears that Shames is setting her up in this fifth of the series to become a new series character. And since Sam had such a positive experience in this book as he dog sat, there may be a dog joining the series, as well. Things to look forward to.
§ Sharon Mensing is the Head of School of Emerald Mountain School, an independent school in the mountains of Colorado, where she lives, reads, and enjoys the outdoors.
Reviewed by Sharon Mensing, January 2016
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