Konstantin Slovo flipped a coin and ended up in Brimsport, Maine. Slovo, a Chicago cop, is nursing his wounds, both physical and mental, after the shooting death of his partner. But Brimsport doesn't offer the quiet Slovo is seeking. Twenty years ago, Brimsport made headlines when its then chief of police, Mike McGavin, investigated a ring of sexual predators. Now children are being stalked, murdered and violated in ways that seem inhuman.

At first, Slovo, the stranger in town, is a suspect. Then he becomes an unofficial aide to Chief Cobbett, the new chief of police, and he starts seeing Cobbett's daughter, Ruth.

Bruised inside and out by his past, Slovo can't stop being a cop. Investigating crimes against children is nothing new to Slovo, but this killer is about as cold-blooded as Slovo has ever seen. And Slovo is in a race to save the next child from an unspeakable fate.

On Edge is a complex tale, full of complex characters. Slovo is certainly a multifaceted character; he has an unpleasant and murky past that is revealed slowly to readers. This is nicely timed so that readers are always a little off center about the character and his reactions to situations.

The secondary characters are also well drawn and the pacing is excellent. Ms. Fister does a fine job of building and sustaining the suspense till the story reaches its climax. On Edge kept me on the edge of my seat.

--Judith Flavell