THE HIDDEN ONE

4.5 stars out of 5

I was introduced to this wonderful series just last year, although it's been around for a while (this is the 14th book). In part because I live not too far from Ohio's largest population of Amish and the second largest concentration in the world - Holmes County - and even closer to the fourth largest population in the world, Geauga County - I love learning all I can about the people and their traditions. Throw in a good murder or two, and I'm hooked.

The central character in this series is Kate Burkholder, police chief in Painters Mill, Ohio (Holmes County); she was born Amish and left the order when she turned 18, but she still maintains strong ties. She lives with her significant other John Tomasetti, an Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation agent. She gets a visit from three Amish elders from Lancaster, Pennsylvania - another Amish stronghold - who ask for her help. Some 18 years earlier, the local bishop suddenly went missing; quite recently, his skull turned up in a farmer's field. But that's not the reason they need help; as it turns out, the person arrested for what has now been deemed a murder is Jonas Bowman. Kate and Jonas once were an "item"; their romance, deemed illicit by Holmes County religious leaders mostly because of their age difference, was the reason Jonas and his family moved from Ohio to Pennsylvania, leaving Kate devastated.

Although she hasn't seen him since, Kate feels she must do what she can to help; in her heart of hearts, she's certain Jonas could not possibly be a killer. Their first meeting, at the jail, is emotional - but he confirms what she already believes: that he's an innocent man. The local police, however, have a different perspective; they're convinced they've got their man. And they're not all that happy that a cop from another department - especially one with strong ties to the suspect - is sticking her nose in where they think it doesn't belong.

It doesn't take long, however, for Kate to learn that the dead bishop was respected in title only; by many accounts, he was a tyrant whose behavior more than once overstepped the boundaries of the Amish tenet of nonviolence. But it was long ago, and finding anyone still alive, much less willing to talk about days long gone by, isn't easy. On top of that, it soon becomes clear that someone isn't happy that she's trying to dredge up old secrets. Maybe, just maybe, the real killer is still out there and is setting his or her sights on Kate.

The whole thing was highly entertaining and kept me turning pages all the way to the exciting and satisfying end. There's a little too much repetition (mostly reminders of various Amish traditions) here and there, but that's balanced on the plus side by the liberal sprinkling of words and phrases from the Amish dialect. This has quickly become a favorite series for me; I highly recommend it (and this book) and thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy. 

The Hidden One by Linda Castillo (Minotaur Books, July 2022); 313 pp.