Tempe Crabtree is a deputy sheriff in Bear Creek, a small town at the base of the Sierra Mountains, and she's married to Hutch Hutchinson, the local preacher. After a forest fire ravaged through their small community, Vanessa Ainsworth, a local artist, and her dog are discovered dead. The coroner informs Tempe that they were shot before the fire. Since no one in Bear Creek knows much about Vanessa, the investigation goes nowhere. Tempe is visited by Vanessa's spirit, who warns her of danger. Being the only woman in the Sheriff's Department and Native American, too, Tempe is sent to Crescent City to investigate Vanessa's past. She contacts Vanessa's cousin and close friend and they tell her all about Vanessa and teach her some Indian lore, too. While she's in Crescent City, Tempe is followed, leading her to believe she's on the right track. The trail leads Tempe and Hutch to Santa Barbara and an exciting climax to the mystery.

Kindred Spirits is the eighth book in Marilyn Meredith's Tempe Crabtree mystery series. It is not necessary to read any of the other books in the series to enjoy this one. It is a solid, entertaining, and somewhat predictable mystery with some Native American facts woven into the story. I'm sorry to admit that I don't know much about Native American history; this book made me want to rectify that. ( )

Kindred Spirits is part of the Tempe Crabtree Series, and Tempe is a deputy in Bear Creek, who is part Native American and married to a Christian minister Hutch Hutchinson. Her police counterparts in Dennison don't seem to take her seriously, even though she takes care of business in Bear Creek and beyond.

The main case in this mystery is the death of Vanessa Ainsworth, formerly the wife of Acton Ainsworth, a major furniture shop owner and philanthropist. While a wildfire rages in Bear Creek, displacing many residents, Deputy Crabtree and firemen discover a body--Vanessa Ainsworth--after having contained much of the fire. Crabtree is on the case even when her legal counterparts push her to the sidelines. She's quickly sent to speak with Vanessa's family and friends in Crescent City, which is when the real twists and turns begin. You'll meet some intriguing characters along the way, including my personal favorite, the trenchcoat, VW bus driving Lanny Hargrove.

The twists and turns in this novel will keep you guessing most of the way, but even if you figure out who the killer is before Tempe and the other detectives do, the way Meredith meshes in Tempe's troubled marriage and her questions about her heritage will keep you interested. What worked best for me about this novel is the evolution of Hutch from the beginning to the end; he grows even more compassionate and grows to understand the importance of Tempe's drive to find the truth. He also learns to open his heart to issues and situations he normally would disapprove of, fear, and dismiss. Tempe easy to love and her drive to discover the truth is addicting. ( )