Wild Penance (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781733509947)

Welcome to the WILD Mystery Series and its sleuth, Jamaica Wild, a BLM Agent who is part Jack Reacher and part Lara Croft. WILD PENANCE, the fourth in this award-winning, critically acclaimed series opens with a dark and diabolical scene: a man, tied to a cross, his loincloth catching in the wind as he plummets down into the Rio Grande Gorge to his death. That is, if he wasn't dead already. Rough-and-ready Bureau of Land Management agent Jamaica Wild, who witnesses the sinister event, sets out to determine whether a secret society with rituals as chilling as the desert night air might have been at the heart of this. Ever since she learned about Los Penitentes, a clandestine and ancient religious group that reenacts Jesus' crucifixion and practices excessive penance, Jamaica's been fascinated, putting together a book of sketchings and research. And this death in the Gorge seems to fit with everything she has learned. But a haunted old priest warns Jamaica to put down her pencil...

Her boss wouldn't mind if she kept her nose out of things, either. But too many strange things are happening for Jamaica to pay any mind. For one, her medicine teacher, Momma Anna, has given her a cryptic assignment. And when someone makes an attempt on her life, Jamaica sets out on a fact-finding mission that could very well send her, like the crucified man, over the edge... Ault sets a spine-tingling pace that keeps the reader on the edge as well, as a race to the climax causes Jamaica to evaluate what is satanic and what is sacred.

"A good story well told from start to finish."-Anne Hillerman

"Verdict: Ault's love of the outdoors and her respect for American Indian culture are evident in her vivid descriptions of the culture, people, and northern New Mexico landscape. ... Nevada Barr fans and mystery aficionados still mourning the late Tony Hillerman will snap this one up as well as other titles in the Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning series. Enthusiastically recommended."-Library Journal

"Sandi Ault has a fascinating way of crafting a story comprised of "history, mystery, turmoil and place." ... As always, the breathtaking descriptions of the world around her and the surprise, intense action leave you shocked and thrilled thoroughly enough to keep turning the pages." -Story Circle Book Review

"As Sandi Ault writes, your mind's eye paints an amazing picture of the desert land full of surprises and mystery. ... From the first page you are spell bound and captivated. ... WILD PENANCE will keep you on your toes; looking out for the unseen, and always expecting the unknown. A terrific read that will keep you guessing until the end, and then leave you breathless." -Romance Readers Connection

"....a great suspense novel that combines a secretive old Hispanic sect of Catholicism-Los Penitentes- with murder to weave a haunting story. ... Ms. Ault's love of New Mexico richly flavors the pages and her equal love of the wild outdoors brings Jamaica's soul alive. ...The climax is a suspenseful ride and is burned into my memory. . . .it left imagery of New Mexico alive in my being."-MysterySuspenseBlogspot.com

"Fans are going to love the latest Wild thriller as we are thoroughly drawn into the world of a little known sub-culture...Jamaica is terrific."-Mystery Gazette

Sandi Ault is the critically-acclaimed author of the WILD Mystery Series and winner of the Mary Higgins Clark Award and the Willa Award for Best Literary Fiction.