Smoke Alarm

A female coroner teams up with a British police detective to find the culprit behind a deadly fire . . .

When firemen are called to an intense blaze at the Grange in Melverley, England, they find the bodies of Christie Barton, her daughter, and her father-in-law, who suffered from Alzheimer’s. But evidence suggests that this was not a tragic accident related to the dead man’s dementia symptoms. These deaths appear to be deliberate.

Detective Inspector Alex Randall enlists the help of coroner Martha Gunn, but the puzzle deepens with a second house fire—the occupant, a retired nurse, is missing. Where is she, and what links the two fires? The answers lie in a secret buried in the past . . .

“Details of police procedure and the duties of a coroner frame a compelling story. In addition to the crime story, Masters also focuses on Martha’s personal life, as she slowly begins to learn more about her very private colleague Alex and begins to date again, fearing future loneliness as her children get ever closer to leaving home. A nice mix of mystery and human drama.” —Booklist