There are a wide variety of characters in this story: a cranky old hermity-kind of old guy who at first is a bother and then becomes Jeneva’s protector, a sheriff who doesn’t hide his friendly side, a forest ranger just trying to do his job, two brothers trying to make something of themselves, a lady rancher, a second-generation mortician, and a gold mining professor. Any one of them could be the one who hides in the rocks and watches Jeneva’s daily excursions. Even with her back-to-Eve routine, Jeneva seems the most rational of the group most of the time.

As she begins to feel better, she becomes more interested in trying to contact people who knew her uncle. Nobody really believed that he walked out on his mining partner all those years ago. Everybody suspected foul play, but there were no witnesses and no clues except a rifle left on a neighbor’s front porch.

The mystery portions of this book are good, as are the plot and character elements. I was disappointed at the starting point of the story. I wish it had begun earlier so that we could have gone through some of the hurt and healing with Jeneva; not from the moment of her surgery, but from the point that she understands her loss and how to recover. These potential features are what drew me to the title in the first place and the emotions and process are not there. I believe that it would have been a big step out for a mystery novel.

In any case, this one made me think, and get inside myself, in a funny sort of way. I still wonder if I met a shirtless woman with no breasts whether I’d be shocked because of convention (a shirtless woman!) or be embarrassed by my discomfort for her loss. Maybe there was healing after all.