It has been two years since former Fountain Hills Mayor Linda Kavanagh released her debut detective novel, and she has now returned with a second installment in the series, “Blood of the Eight.” The novel continues the story of private investigator Lana Taylor and explores a long-held curse rooted in an Arizona town’s violent past.
With Taylor once again on the case, the story centers on the disappearance of 17-year-old Sally Beaumont, who vanished after partying with friends at an abandoned farmhouse. The setting quickly reveals a darker history: the same farmhouse was the site of a brutal massacre 200 years earlier, where eight prospectors were murdered under mysterious circumstances.
Taylor’s investigation stretches far beyond Arizona, leading her to New Orleans, where she encounters voodoo traditions, spiritual forces and a series of clues steeped in the occult. Several characters from Kavanagh’s first novel return, while new figures are introduced as the mystery deepens.
