Leif’s Legacy

Leif’s Legacy is a great read. The story takes a number of intriguing twists, turns and surprises. The carryover of key characters from Newell Searle’s first novel, Copy Desk Murders, makes for nice continuity. Searle clearly knows and loves the southern Minnesota landscape he writes about. He has a knack for writing believably and skillfully about a wide array of situations—ecology and conservation, courtroom drama, crime investigation, family intrigue, university politics, budding romance. The result is that each scene feels authentic as he moves the story along.

—Geoffrey S. Barnard, verified review on Amazon

Searle does it again with this page-turning mystery that is strongly character-driven and rich in the textures of the north country. The tensions around who will or who won’t carry on Leif’s legacy are made vibrantly real with authentic dialogue and fully drawn characters. Searle is just getting better and better at creating characters that breathe, full of flaws and endearments that bring the whole community to life.

—Susan Thurston Hamerski, review on Amazon

This is a great mystery for a rainy Saturday afternoon in front of the fire. I couldn’t stop reading until I got the end. One of the pleasant differences between this book and other mysteries is that the plot doesn’t hinge around a murder rather the interactions of average people you could meet on the street every day. The writer makes the characters very believable and sucks you into their lives. If you enjoyed the first book in the series you will love the second.

—Gary Heyn, review on Amazon

A fan of Copy Desk Murder, I came for Boston Meade and was enthralled by the story of Leif Nielsen and his vision of conservation. There are plenty of backroom (and backhanded) dealings, and Boston’s got his work cut out for him to shape public opinion about Leif’s ideas, but what really shines are the sections about the land Leif is so intent on saving. Beautifully written.

—Peter J Hajinian, review on Amazon