This was the first book in the series but I actually read it second. I read the second book (Pray for Silence) first, not knowing it was part of a series. I thought both books were fantastic. I absolutely love Kate, she's smart and courageous and she really values her job as police chief. I love that she has an Amish background therefore a lot of Amish customs and beliefs are explained throughout. I recently bought the third book in the series and the fourth one was just released. I'm looking foreward to reading them both. I really like how these books follow the crimes all the way through from the initial crime scene to the forensics to the police investigation and finally to figuring out who did it. I highly reccommend this series and I'll let you know how I liked the third and fourth installments.