Lost angel by Mike Doogan (Hale Crime, 2007) is another book I took away on holidays because one of the subject headings listed was Christian fiction and again I’m wondering why. The story was set in a somewhat Christian community in Alaska. The main character was not a Christian even though he occasionally went to church and said a couple of prayers. Each chapter starts with a Scripture verse however; I don’t think any of these things makes it Christian fiction. The story could just have easily been set in any tight knit community. There was no strong Christian message, and the descriptions of the prostitution activity in the nearby town were way too detailed for a Christian novel.

On the upside it was a clever murder mystery and I did enjoy the unravelling of the clues, with its many twists along the way. Mike Doogan also did a great job of creating the atmosphere of Alaska, one felt cold just reading the book! Doogan created believable characters and an interesting story with the option of more mysteries for his detective to solve in future books.