Summertime brings a new V.I. Warshawksi detective novel from bestselling author Sara Paretsky. V.I., the much beloved Chicago private eye, is one tough cookie --- particularly when her professional and personal lives mix it up. This latest story has it all: family secrets, crooked politicians, and unresolved mysteries from the old neighborhood.

When an old high school boyfriend, Frank Guzzo, approaches V.I. on behalf of his mother, who was just released from prison, V.I. is hesitant to get involved. Stella served 25 years for causing the death of her daughter, Annie, but claims she was set up. V.I. agrees to look into the case, but when old resentments between the Guzzo and Warshawski families resurface and Stella takes a punch at V.I., it appears that Stella still has a violent streak. Maybe her claims of innocence are nothing but a sham. 

"For this reviewer, BRUSH BACK is clearly one of Paretsky’s best books. The mystery unravels throughout the story with surprises at every turn."

However, V.I’s world is turned upside down when Stella announces that she has found Annie’s diary, implicating V.I.’s beloved late cousin and legendary hockey player Boom-Boom. Boom-Boom’s goddaughter, Bernadine, a talented young hockey player herself, is staying with V.I. while visiting Boom-Boom’s old Chicago haunts. The case, which started out as a favor for an old flame, has now become personal. What was Boom-Boom’s relationship with Annie? Was Stella set up? What does the old South Chicago neighborhood know about this 25-year-old case?

The more V.I. digs into the old murder, the more emotions run wild for all involved. As she closes in on the truth, she finds herself up against adversaries on the police force as well as the Illinois politico. And when Bernadine is kidnapped, V.I. vows to take them all on to get her back safe and sound.

For this reviewer, BRUSH BACK is clearly one of Paretsky’s best books. The mystery unravels throughout the story with surprises at every turn. As V.I. herself says, “Every time I got close to a piece of the story, a new drama erupted.” The plot is a puzzler with intense, thrilling moments that mirror everyday life. This real-world parallel is a trademark of Paretsky’s writing that readers count on. V.I. Warshawski is also a protagonist who knows and understands her own values about life, justice and family, which is another reason this reader never passes up a Sara Paretsky novel.