Tracy Crosswhite · #7
A Cold Trail
An Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestseller.
“Tracy Crosswhite is one of the best protagonists in the realm of crime fiction today, and there is nothing cold about A Cold Trail.” ―Associated Press
In New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s riveting series, Seattle homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite returns home to a brutal murder and her haunted past.
The last time homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite was in Cedar Grove, it was to see her sister’s killer put behind bars. Now she’s returned for a respite and the chance to put her life back in order for herself, her attorney husband, Dan, and their new daughter. But tragic memories soon prove impossible to escape.
Dan is drawn into representing a local merchant whose business is jeopardized by the town’s revitalization. And Tracy is urged by the local PD to put her own skills to work on a new case: the brutal murder of a police officer’s wife and local reporter who was investigating a cold-case slaying of a young woman. As Tracy’s and Dan’s cases crisscross, Tracy’s trail becomes dangerous. It’s stirring up her own haunted past and a decades-old conspiracy in Cedar Grove that has erupted in murder. Getting to the truth is all that matters. But what’s Tracy willing to risk as a killer gets closer to her and threatens everyone she loves?
The series
The rain-slicked streets of Seattle don’t give up their secrets easily—but detective Tracy Crosswhite never stops digging. Beneath the gray skies and murky alleys lies a world of long-buried truths, and in this gripping crime fiction series, one woman’s search for justice becomes a relentless journey through grief, corruption, and the shadows of the past.
Read full series description
Once a high school science teacher, Tracy’s life was upended by the disappearance of her younger sister. That personal loss became a driving force behind her transformation into one of Seattle’s most formidable homicide detectives. Each novel in this darkly atmospheric series peels back layers of the human psyche, exploring not just the mechanics of murder, but the quiet, aching spaces grief leaves behind.
The series opens with a cold case that hits too close to home, but it soon unfolds into something larger: a portrait of a city teeming with political games, twisted loyalties, and moral gray zones. Over the course of the books, readers witness Tracy evolve—not just as a detective, but as a woman struggling with trauma, love, and the high cost of truth.
Written with a precision that mirrors its protagonist’s analytical mind, the series balances the gritty realism of police procedurals with the emotional resonance of psychological thrillers. It doesn’t just ask who did it—it asks why, and what justice really means when the system itself is flawed.
With each installment, the tension builds—not through cheap shocks, but through carefully layered storytelling that lingers long after the final page. From serial killers and courtroom battles to betrayals within the force, every case Tracy takes on is a step deeper into the city’s darkest corners—and her own.
Perfect for fans of suspenseful detective fiction with strong female leads and morally complex mysteries, this series continues to captivate readers and critics alike, earning spots on bestseller lists and year-end accolades. But at its core, it’s one woman’s quiet defiance in the face of loss—and her refusal to let the dead be forgotten.
Step into Seattle’s shadows, and follow a detective who never lets them close in.
#0.2 · 2014The Academy 
#0.5 · 2015Third Watch 
#1 · 2014My Sister's Grave 
#2 · 2015Her Final Breath 
#3 · 2016In the Clearing 
#4 · 2017The Trapped Girl 
#5 · 2017Close to Home 
#6 · 2018A Steep Price 
#7 · 2020A Cold Trail 
#8 · 2021In Her Tracks 
#8.5 · 2021The Last Line 
#9 · 2022What She Found 
#10 · 2023One Last Kill 
#11 · 2025A Dead Draw 
#12 · 2026One Split Second 
#13 · 2027Graves Tell Lies Be the first reviewer
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