The Real Enemy by Kathy Herman

This is the first in a trilogy about Brill, a police chief in a small town in Tennessee near the Smoky Mountains. She and her husband have 3 children, two in college and a 9-year-old. They moved to the town of Sophie Trace from Memphis a month ago, and their quiet life is interrupted when people start to get kidnapped. They're all ages and races with no connection to speak of and no evidence is left at the scene, so Brill calls in David, someone's she worked with in the past from the FBI. Brill has her hands full with the kidnappings, gangs, a dead body, rumors of Cherokee ghosts behind it all, and pressure from the mayor to solve everything now.

On the home front, she's still reeling 18 months after finding out her husband, Kurt, cheated on her. They are staying together for Emily, their youngest, but she doesn't want to forgive and can't believe that she could ever trust him again.  While Brill and Kurt are Christians, Kurt has repented and is actively trying to win his wife back, while Brill is stuck in her bitterness and anger.

My mom likes Kathy Herman's books and has read them all.  She recommended Herman's next series especially that features one of the daughters, but I couldn't read that without reading this first.  I like to read things in order even if it's just characters mentioned because I like to have the back story. I was somewhat disappointed in this book. I was expecting something quite suspenseful, but it felt slow more than anything. The case plodded along and the focus seemed to be on their marriage about as equally as the case. It was nice to get different perspectives, such as Brill, Kurt, and some of the townspeople. The writing was well-done and I'm going to continue with the series because I did like it overall.