The Taking of Libbie, SD

Rushmore McKenzie is a retired cop, an unexpected millionaire and, occasionally, an unlicensed private investigator. So, it isn’t the biggest surprise in the world when he’s attacked and kidnapped from his home-McKenzie has more than a few enemies out there with a grudge against him. But it is a surprise when it turns out his kidnapping is a case of mistaken identity. Bounty hunters grab McKenzie and take him to the small plains town of Libbie, South Dakota which just lost pretty much everything it had to a con man masquerading under McKenzie’s name. Using a scam involving a planned new shopping mall, the grifter apparently emptied out the town’s bank account before disappearing, leaving behind a devastated town full of people with many reasons to hate him. To that list of enemies, he’s just added McKenzie who is now determined to catch the weasel besmirching his reputation. But the stolen money is just the tip of a deadly iceberg. McKenzie’s manhunt soon reveals a web corruption that holds the entire town in its grip and threatens everything he holds dear. Critical Acclaim for THE TAKING OF LIBBIE, SD: 'Edgar-winner Housewright nicely confounds readers’ expectations in his absorbing seventh hard-boiled mystery featuring ex-cop and millionaire Rushmore McKenzie... Crisp prose and clever plot developments help the chapters fly by and should win this deserving author a wider audience.' -Publishers Weekly 'McKenzie, who describes himself as a ’knight-errant doing favors for friends’ (he’s a retired cop with a lot of money so he doesn’t need a day job), makes a fine series lead, charmingly unlikable in a likable sort of way, and the stories are solid mysteries with a hint of humor. A very enjoyable series that deserves a wider audience.' -Booklist Online