An Isolated Incident by Susan R. Sloan (Good, HC, 1998, Warner Books, 455 pages)

In good condition: dust jacket, cover, and pages have very light wear; stain on top edge of some pages. ISBN 0446519480

With its towering evergreens and breathtaking mountain views, Seward Island is a lovely, quiet community in the heart of Puget Sound. But while a rustic sign welcomes travellers with the motto "A good place to visit——a great place to raise a family, Seward has suffered an inexplicable tragedy.

A fifteen-year-old girl from the Island's most prominent family has been found brutally slain. It is a case that turns Seward into a place of suspicion, innuendo, rumor, and fear. And it is a case that will start long-time resident Ginger Earley, a young, earnest detective, on a complex journey that will challenge her professionalism and her conscience.

For Ginger and the police department, led by Chief Ruben Martinez, the murder is baffling and frustrating. After months of exploring the life and death of Tara Breckenridge, Ginger and Ruben finally get what they need: a suspect. He is an outspoken, liberal high school teacher who came to Seward from the East. He is also - and this is rare for Seward - Jewish.

While building the case against Jerry Frankel, Ginger begins a relationship with Ruben that is at once forbidden and exhilarating. And as her personal life collides with her job as a detective, Ginger begins to have serious doubts about the work she is doing on the Breckenridge murder. Is she the heroine of Seward Island or part of a terrible rush to judgement?