From the Grave by David Housewright is the latest in the long-running Mac McKenzie series. This novel is a suspenseful mystery, with detailed descriptions of the Twin Cities setting and Minnesota winter, and a mystery that will keep readers at the edge of their seats.
Rushmore McKenzie, once police detective now millionaire and sometime private investigator, comes back for a new adventure, and this time an old case has come to haunt him, both metaphorically and literally. Two unconnected psychic mediums claim to have been visited by a vengeful ghost from his past wanting him dead, and McKenzie can’t help but be curious and casually investigate. When the situation turns deadly, however, he is forced to take the investigation more seriously, and as the unexplained continues to happen around him he must find the answers quickly, before it is too late.
The novel has wonderful descriptions of the Twin Cities area as McKenzie runs around investigating, and though I am not familiar with St. Paul or Minneapolis, it seems like great care was taken to get the details right, especially in regards to the Minnesota winter weather and how Minnesotans think about it and even dress for it. It feels like a Minnesota book.
One thing that might trip up readers is this book is listed as either a standard or hardboiled mystery, however there are paranormal elements, such as psychic mediums and hauntings and poltergeist activity that is all taken at face value rather than shown to be false or a trick by the end. This part of the novel feels more akin to an urban fantasy mystery, where things like ghosts are real, rather than sitting squarely in the real world where ghosts can’t move baseball trophies.
Overall, From the Grave is an entertaining and suspenseful mystery that stands on its own and can be read without having read the previous sixteen books, with plenty of exciting twists leading to a stunning conclusion.
—Elle Tholke