by Lorie Lewis Ham

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of The Color of Fear. There is also a link to purchase the book from Amazon, and an indie bookstore where a portion of the sale goes to help support KRL.

I have been a fan of Marcia Muller’s Sharon McCone books since the very beginning, and still after all of these years I get excited when I hear that a new one is coming out. I couldn’t wait to sit down and read The Color of Fear (Book 32 in this series) and it ended up being very fitting for the time we are now living in–a time when racism seems to be flourishing more than it has for some time, not that it has ever gone away.

PI Sharon McCone is looking forward to the Christmas holiday until a knock on her door in the middle of the night changes everything. Her father has been the victim of a vicious, racially motivated attack and they don’t know if he is going to be okay. Elwood is a nationally recognized Shoshone artist casually browsing for Christmas gifts in San Francisco’s exclusive Marina district when he was attacked by an angry mob of young men spewing racial slurs at him while they beat him.

This time the case is personal for Sharon, as she sets out to track down the attackers, but she isn’t prepared for the hate filled, racist threats that she and other members of her family begin to receive. She is unsure whether this is all about racism, or if it is a personal vendetta against her from one of her past cases.

The Color of Fear is not only timely, it is a great, well-written mystery. I have enjoyed watching the various interesting characters that color Sharon’s life and also getting to know her better over these many years. I’ve watched her and her husband Hy meet, fall in love and continue to enjoy watching this powerful couple fight against crime, whether together or each on their own cases. This is another great chapter in that life and I hope they keep coming!

If you enjoy a well-plotted mystery, with great characters and a much needed social message, don’t miss this book! While the story can definitely stand on its own, I highly recommend you read some of the previous books first and get to know these interesting characters better before you join them on this journey!

To enter to win a copy of The Color of Fear, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “fear,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen October 28, 2017. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address, and if via comment please include your email address.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section.

Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

The Color of Fear

You can also use this link to order the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Lorie Lewis Ham is our Editor-in-Chief and an enthusiastic contributor to various sections, coupling her journalism experience with her connection to the literary and entertainment worlds. Explore Lorie’s mystery writing at Mysteryrat’s Closet.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases using those links. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.