In The Bleak Midwinter

I have been a fan of M.R. Sellars for a few years now, so when he decided to create a spin-off series, I was intrigued. It was everything I hoped it would be. Newcomers to Sellars' work will not need a primer in his Rowan Gant series to enjoy this wonderful stand-alone book! I look forward to more Constance Mandalay stories in the future.

On December 22, 1975, Santa sexually assaulted her at school. He threatened to kill her parents if she told them what he did. That night while her mom purchased groceries, her little sister wanted to visit Santa. Merrie Callahan never wanted see Santa ever again, but was forced to escort Elizabeth to visit him. He turned out to be her predator and Merrie vanished for thee days. Decades later, the residents of Hulis, Missouri are living out a nightmare just as they did when Merrie was abducted. FBI Special Agent Constance Mandalay investigates. She learns that though thirty-five years passed since the rapes, Merrie believes it is December, 22, 1975 before Santa brutalized her. Sheriff Skip Carmichael explains to the Fed that every anniversary of Merrie's trauma leads to her falling into a catatonic state for three days. On Christmas Day in the shack where Merrie was sodomized, someone chops up a man using an axe exactly like Merrie did and the body parts are in the same place when she counterattacked her abductor years ago. Constance senses the townsfolk conceals something critical from her; when the FBI Agent learns what it is, her belief system is shaken to the core in spite of her case work with Wiccan practitioner Rowan Gant. M.R. Sellars has written an exhilarating supernatural mystery that will have readers wondering what is going on in Hulis, and when we figure that out, the author twists the entertaining police procedural into a new direction. Constance has been a recurring support character in the RGI whodunits (see Blood Moon), but proves she can run the show as a pragmatic independent investigator who prefers denial of the supernatural though the supporting evidence in this case and her work with Gant forces her to accept an inconvenient truth. Harriet Klausner

I would have given it a 5 but he has written better, I thoroughly enjoyed this, but I was already hooked with the Merry Axemas that was a tickle put out from the book.

Still confused though

Any fan of the wonderful RGI (Rowan Gant Investigation) book series will love the first book featuring Special Agent Constance Mandalay. And even if you have never heard of M. R. Sellars or his original series, you'll love In the Bleak Midwinter. Beautifully descriptive, edge of your seat, page turning, mind twisting, and incredibly engaging are only a few words to describe this brilliantly written book. I'm not one to give spoilers, so you'll have to read it for yourself. It was easy to feel for the people of Hulis where the book takes place, and getting a totally new understanding of holiday spirit. Any fan of mysteries, paranormal thrillers, or just a wonderful read that keeps you up all night desperate to see what happens in the next chapter, will enjoy this!! I HIGHLY reccomend!!

I just read this book. It was great. It takes place in Mo at Christmas time. The characters are full of life and the story is very creepy. I also loved the Christmas setting. This book kept me guessing until the end. I just couldn't put it down. Can't wait for the next one:)