Beaverhead County Murder

A Murder Mystery by Lynden Sears

It was supposed to be a perfect day on one of Montana's finest trout streams. Then Sterling Howell's line snagged on something pale beneath the willows, and his float down the Beaverhead River ended in a nightmare.

The body is that of a young woman, and she did not drown. Sheriff Bill Thompson of Beaverhead County quickly learns she was murdered, and that someone put her in the river to hide it. Her name is Beth Jensen, a college junior, devoted granddaughter and big sister, and a hardworking waitress who seemed to have no enemies at all.

With no cell phones, no internet and no easy answers, Thompson and his small-town team follow the scattered clues. Among them are a mysteriously shiny green pickup, a stash of cash that no student should have, and a young woman's private journal. What they uncover reaches far beyond the quiet valley and leads to a dangerous operation that stretches across state lines. When federal agents join the hunt, the sheriff has to decide how far he is willing to go to see justice done for Beth.

Set against the vivid backdrop of real Montana towns, rivers and ranchland around the turn of the century, this is a classic whodunit about small-town dedication, patient police work and the price of one fateful decision.