Once again, Grady Service, the hard-boiled conservation officer of this superb series set in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, has a weird case on his hands. Strange things are happening to the black bear population. Grady Service can't pin this phenomenon to anyone or anything until a Korean-born professor from Michigan Tech is murdered by cyanide-laced figs and two freeze-dried bear gall bladders are found among the figs. Service is certain that bear poachers are at work, killing U.P. bears to fuel the Asian market for traditional medicines. The animal-parts market is second only to drugs in global profitability; it's highly organized and the practitioners are ruthless and dangerous. Grady's nemesis, Michigan's governor, is ending his final term, but has cut budgets so severely that there are not enough conservation officers to cover the state. Service finds himself filling in for colleagues, chasing elusive poachers who
leave little evidence, and wrestling with the usual cast of eccentric and entertaining characters. And there is a new twist in Grady's personal life: He meets a sixteen-year-old son he never knew he had.

Sexy, suspenseful, and full of action, perfect dialogue, and unforgettable characters,
Chasing a Blond Moon will confirm Heywood as one of the finest of his day.

Genre: Mystery