The Lava Witch (A Dark Paradise Mystery #3)

By: Debra Bokur

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Synopsis: The grim hard facts of a bizarre ritual murder collide with local legends of sorcery and possession for Maui detective Kali Māhoe. In a remote, mountainous area of a Maui forest near Haleakala volcano, the naked body of a young woman is found hanging from a tree. The devil is in the details: the woman&’s nostrils, mouth, and lungs are packed with lava sand. Her hands are bound in twine. Her feet are charred and blackened, suggesting a fire-walking ceremony. Detective Kali Māhoe&’s suspicions are immediately aroused. It has all the signs of a ritual torture and murder. But Kali&’s investigation soon leads her down a winding trail of seemingly unconnected clues and diverging paths—from the hanging tree itself, a rare rainbow eucalyptus, to rumors of a witch haunting the high areas of the forest, to the legend of the ancient Hawaiian sorceress Pahulu, goddess of nightmares. Casting a shadow over it all—the possibility of a Sitting God, a spirit said to invade and possess the soul. Aided by her uncle Police Captain Walter Alaka&’i, Officer David Hara, and the victim&’s brother, Kali embarks down the darkest road of all. One that is leading to the truth of the mountain&’s deadly core and a dark side of the island for which even Kali is unprepared.