Black Tide — Brendan DuBois

Brendan DuBois's riveting debut novel, Dead Sand, introduced Lewis Cole--late of government intelligence, convert to the New Hampshire seacoast life, and writer for the local magazine. When murder foiled his plans, he turned again to his investigative skills and passion for justice. Now Cole is back, ready for a relaxing summer at the beach. But a suspicious oil spill that befouls the waters of his beloved seacoast is only the beginning of...
BLACK TIDE
The cleanup of the Petro Star spill has barely started when, scanning the Atlantic with his binoculars, Cole spies a pollutant of a different nature: a body, relieved of its head and hands. He sets out to find who's responsible for the spill as well as the identity of the mutilated corpse. With his, pal, mob rep Felix Tinios, Cole gets deeper into local action, including the theft of a trio of Winslow Homer paintings and a tangle with the underworld. Hidden currents swirl to the surface, and for Cole everything begins to connect. Another ugly murder convinces him he's on the right track ... if he can prove his dangerous theory and live to enjoy, the seacoast calm.