Strawberry Sunday — Stephen Greenleaf

While recovering from a gunshot wound, John Marshall Tanner meets a woman worth fighting for

John Marshall Tanner left most of his blood in a vacant lot on Twentieth Street, along with the body of his closest friend. Tanner and Charley Sleet shot each other at the same time -- a tragic finale to a long friendship that left Sleet dead and Tanner bleeding out on the sidewalk. The EMTs saved Tanner, but he isn't sure he wants to be alive. The uncertainty doesn't last long though, and soon he will find a reason to live -- and to die.
 
While he recuperates in the hospital, Tanner befriends Rita Lombardi, a strawberry picker from Haciendas who is recovering from corrective surgery on her clubfeet. Rita leaves the hospital walking tall, but soon after, she's murdered in her hometown, unforgivably guilty of promoting unionization. To avenge her, Tanner will hunt for the killer as long as the blood keeps pumping in his veins. 
 
Strawberry Sunday is the 13th book in the John Marshall Tanner Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.