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- Title: Trace of Death (A Keri Locke Mystery–Book 1)
- Author: Blake Pierce
- Narrator: Elaine Wise
- Length: 06:44:28
- Version: Abridged
- Release Date: 10/02/2017
- Publisher: Findaway Voices
- Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Horror, Detective Stories
- ISBN13: 9.78E+12
The desert teaches you about obsession. I learned this years ago watching a coyote track invisible scents across the salt flats of Death Valley, its body taut with singular purpose. That same relentless energy pulses through Elaine Wise’s narration of “Trace of Death”, Blake Pierce’s psychological thriller that had me gripping my steering wheel during a late-night drive through New Mexico, too captivated to stop for rest stops.
Keri Locke, Pierce’s damaged but brilliant missing persons detective, feels as real as the scarred bartender who once told me his daughter’s disappearance story over mescal in Oaxaca. Wise’s voice captures Keri’s layered pain perfectly – the professional crispness covering raw grief like a thin police report over a gaping wound. When she describes Keri’s missing daughter, I heard echoes of that Oaxacan father’s voice cracking on the word ‘vanished.’
Pierce’s plot unfolds with the precision of a detective’s case board. What begins as a routine missing teen investigation becomes a 48-hour race against bureaucratic indifference and a senator’s secrets. Wise masterfully shifts between Keri’s internal monologue (all clipped efficiency and suppressed panic) and the external voices of suspects and superiors. Her LAPD captain voice particularly impressed me – all gravel and restrained authority that reminded me of a Belizean police chief who once schooled me in the art of asking questions without seeming to.
The audiobook’s greatest strength lies in how Pierce and Wise collaborate to build Keri’s psychology. You hear her obsession in the way Wise lingers just half a second too long on certain words, feel the character’s sleep deprivation in the occasional vocal fry that creeps in during late-chapter narration. It’s a performance that would make my Oaxacan storyteller grandmother nod approvingly at the emotional truth beneath the technique.
Some thriller purists might find the personal backstory heavy-handed, but as someone who’s collected disappearance stories from five continents, I appreciated Pierce’s understanding that every missing persons case echoes with the investigator’s private losses. The scene where Keri inventories the senator’s daughter’s bedroom hit me especially hard – Wise’s narration slowing as Keri notices the carefully made bed, the schoolbooks aligned just so, details that reminded me of my own sister’s room after she left for college.
Technically, the production shines. Wise’s pacing (7 hours 12 minutes total) allows tension to build like desert heat, with pauses that feel purposeful rather than hesitant. The audio quality remains consistent even during emotional peaks – no small feat given how often Keri’s voice threatens to crack under pressure.
Compared to other detective series, “Trace of Death” stands out for its psychological depth. Where Connelly’s Bosch channels anger, Keri Locke transmutes grief into something more dangerous – a focused desperation that Wise conveys through subtle vocal tremors. It’s closer to Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad in emotional complexity, though Pierce maintains a distinctly American rhythm to both the plot and dialogue.
For travelers like myself who consume audiobooks on long drives, this one demands full attention. I had to rewind after nearly missing my Taos exit during a particularly tense interrogation scene. The 48-hour timeline creates relentless forward momentum that mirrors Keri’s racing mind – not ideal if you’re listening while navigating unfamiliar mountain roads, but perfect for airport layovers or insomnia-fueled nights.
The resolution satisfies without neatness, leaving just enough unresolved to hook you into Book 2. Pierce plants clues with the precision of my anthropologist friends documenting burial sites, while Wise’s delivery ensures you feel each revelation viscerally. When the final pieces click into place, you’ll understand why I sat in a Denver parking lot for twenty minutes after finishing, waiting for my heartbeat to normalize.
May your journeys – both literary and literal – lead you to truths worth chasing,
Marcus
Marcus Rivera
