Figure Eight by Jeff Nania

When the characters, settings, and locations are familiar and authentic as part of a novel it feels all the more relevant and relatable! Behold this Northern Lakes mystery! John Cabrelli has been shot and is in the hospital hanging on to his life but wants to tell his story to the local newspaper. Through this telling we learn his harrowing tale. After his career as a Madison police officer is derailed due to a tragic mistake John finds work as a private investigator for a law firm until an inheritance brings him to "Musky Falls" in northern Wisconsin. The property he has inherited on Spider Lake from a beloved uncle and aunt (along with key people he meets) feel like home to John. He revels in the connections and small-town traditions that he remembers as a boy. But John soon discovers the land is crucial to a huge mining operation which will cause long term irreversible damage to Lake Superior all while making crooked people disgustingly rich. Shady characters abound in an effort to acquire this property and John learns that his uncle was killed in a hit and run that is clearly a murder. John finds out his life in is danger too and uses his investigative skills and bravado to take down the criminals in this tense and heart-felt local thriller!