The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza is the first in a series featuring DCI Erica Foster. There are now six books in the series.

After the death of her husband, DCI Erica Foster is back in a new position. In fact, she hasn't even found a place to live when her first case begins to take over her life.

The prologue introduces the victim, her abduction and murder. A few days later, a young man stumbles on the body of the young socialite in a frozen pond. Erica has just arrived and hasn't even had time to take her suitcase to a hotel before she must visit the crime scene.

Erica is a strong woman and a capable detective, but she is still dealing with the trauma of her husband's death and her own sense of guilt and responsibility. Nevertheless, she begins making friends and allies as she initiates her investigation. Unfortunately, there is also an officer who wants to see her fail and her superior officer doesn't provide consistent support.

The victim Andrea Douglas-Brown is the daughter of a millionaire with political clout. There are similar murders that Erica believes associated with the case, but they are of young immigrant prostitutes, and the powers-that-be don't want a connection that might sully the Douglas-Brown family.

It is easy to cheer Erica through her challenges and to appreciate the cast of characters that support her in her battle to find the killer despite the opposition from the family and her own department.

I liked this first installment and hope to see the minor characters develop in future books.

Read in March. Blog review scheduled for April 20.

NetGalley/Grand Central Publishing

Police Procedural. Originally published in 2016; April 24, 2018. Print length: 396 pages.

Detective Erika Parker is back leading her first case after her last disastrous case ended in the deaths of five police officers, one of them her husband. This time out, a young boy has found the body of a woman frozen under the ice in a London park. The victim turns out to be a well to do, beautiful young woman with the perfect life. But Erika finds connections between her death and the deaths of several prostitutes found dumped in water all over London. The more she investigates, the more she’s convinced these deaths are connected, but it would appear this case has become politically sensitive. With Erika’s career and her own mental health hanging by a thread, can she learn to trust her instincts again before another woman is killed? This is an outstanding book, Erika is a tremendously complex and intriguing character