Here’s a traditional mystery with a lot of elements that make for an entertaining read. A half dozen people are trapped by a storm at an artists’ colony in Vermont. The group includes actors, a sculptor, a photographer, a ballerina and a few others. The hero, Ronan Mezini, is a cop turned P.I. turned novelist. He has a condition called synesthesia, which transforms sights and sounds into colors. When bodies start to pile up, the hope is that Ronan’s unique window on the world will lead to a gripping whodunit.
The story clips along at a bracing pace, and the killer or killers aren’t easy to predict. This is a modern work that feels like Agatha Christie-era cozies. If you like orthodox mysteries with traditional sleuths, you’ll find worse stories.