would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this awesome book

its always great to be back in Warshawski's world and with this book we find Warshawski struggling with ptsd from a previous case that went badly wrong through no fault of her own

but this particular weekend she is off watching college basketball with one of her proteges angela.... but its whilst there angelas roommate disappears

Warshawski doesnt want to look into it as she is very much off her game but with angelas pleading she does start to look around but with no help coming from anywhere she doesnt expect to find much out

what she wasnt expecting was the amount of trouble heading her way....

what a read the hits just kept coming with this one and with honour and respectability behind it all Warshawski has to keep her wits about her at all times... wow just wow couldnt put this one down

really looking forward to the next book in this brilliant series

This is the latest thrilling and nail biting outing for Sara Paretsky's iconic Chicago PI, VI Warshawski, only this time the courageous and resilient Vic had dropped into an abyss of despair, suffering from depression and severe trauma, after her partner, academic professor, Peter, has her looking for a trans student, only for it all to end tragically, with her being there for the horrifying outcome as his father shoots him dead. It's barely surprising she can't sleep, is plagued by nightmares, waking up sweating, losing weight, struggling to cope and work, no longer in a position to be the rock that people expect her to be. She reluctantly gives into pressure from Bernie to get away, joining a group of student athletes in Lawrence, Kansas.

Vic is far from happy when she is badgered by the athletes to look for one of their own, Sabrina Granov has disappeared. Although in no fit state and without the contacts she has established in Chicago. she cannot say no as she goes looking for Sabrina, eventually locating her, close to death, addicted to opoids, in a desperate state in a drug house. This is to plunge her into a bear pit of intrigue and grave dangers with billionaires and power players who target her, insinuating she had abducted Sabrina. Vic goes on to discover a body in the drug house basement, the victim, Clarina Coffin, a historian widely viewed as a pest with her wild claims, but the FBI, police, and other enemies twist the facts as they try to pin the murder on her, leaving her unable to leave Kansas, a place where she has few friends, but finding an ally in ambitious local journalist, Zoe Cruickshank.

Vic has to dig deep into her reserves to simply survive as she forced to clear her name in a case that has it roots in the 1860s and the horrors of the Civil war, which have implications on present day land ownership and a suspicious development plan to develop a 'resort'. Issues raised in the novel resonate as Paretsky captures the pitiful state of America today, the divisions, opposition to the teaching of critical race theory, book banning, the unchecked power of the rich and powerful, who do not feel the ordinary rules and regulations do not apply to them, and more. It is always a joy to spend time with Vic, and I look forward with great anticipation to the next in this much loved series. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

I'm sad to admit that I've not read a V.I. book ins quite some time. I've loved the series for decades (and even enjoyed the movie with Kathleen Turner!) but I got sucked into life and there are only so many reading hours in a day. However, I am so glad to be back with Vic!

The story just grabbed me from the start - missing college sports start, drugs, V.I. dealing with trauma, PTSD and the real possibility her relationship is over. Vic is in Kansas - she's out of her comfort zone, her resources are limited and her head really isn't in the right zone but she can't say no to "family" and her heart wins out over her head.

I loved the way V.I was actually seen to struggle with her most recent traumas. She's not superwoman, she has flaws like the rest of us and she feels like the bottom has fallen out of her world. Her PTSD was visceral and I had a tear or two escaping when she's having nightmares - she has always been so self assured and capable in the past.

Small minds are taking up a lot of space in this. The very real fear that Trans persons must deal with every day is heartbreaking. As the aunt of a trans-male this part of the storyline really hit me in the feels. As a very liberal Scot, I felt this was a great way to show the very real threats facing Americans and their politics today - that country is so divided and extremists are trying to drag it back into the stone age and shut down any voice which dares to be different.

Fast paced, engaging and well-rounded characters and a multi-layered plot with twists and turns aplenty.

I’ve been a big fan of V. I Warshawski since the very beginning- I don’t believe I’ve missed one book in the series. It was wonderful to have a female private eye who could do all the things that men did, who chased after the bad guys and was not merely a victim or a pretty face. VI was an excellent lead character.
I’ve enjoyed all her books including the last one, Overboard, relishing our heroine’s sense of humour and turn of phrase. However, “Pay Dirt” did not really have the same impact on me and I’m not sure why. Perhaps there were too many characters I did not really care about. Perhaps it was the complicated plot- Vi was searching for a missing student, not in her native Chicago but in Lawrence, a small town in Kansas . The lack of the normal milieu and characters certainly did not help.
The fact that the author was making the book more political rather than the normal fast paced mystery I would expect was also a problem.
I was also confused about VI’s depressed state after an unfortunate happening - did I miss something in the previous book?
When the perpetrator was revealed I could barely remember who the person was.
This was definitely a mediocre outing for me and although I finished it , Pay Dirt was not on my list of favourites by Sara Paretsky.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced copy.

Another thoughtful and well crafted crime fiction novel from Sara Paretsky. I enjoyed the setting, where V I returns to Kansas and encounters a case in a small, tense town. The characterisation as always is spot on - Paretsky doesn't shy away from the dark or the vulnerability. A good read as always!

The latest in the long running VI Warshawski series sees the detective in bad shape following a death she blames herself for and the collapse of a relationship. A trip to a small Kansas town to watch a basketball game seems like a pleasant idea. But a young woman goes missing, VI finds an older woman's body in a drug den and the local authorities take against her. Wrong place, wrong time for Vic.

The case becomes even more complex, linked, it seems, to a mystery development linked to a disused power station outside of town. But what is the secret from Civil War days that might bring the whole case together?

This is a somewhat different VI novel. It's not set in Chicago for a start, taking Vic out of her comfort zone and away from her usual sources of support. The pace feels much slower until the final section. And there is a lot of historical context that takes time and understanding to get straight. Pay Dirt is a good novel, although lacking something of the tough Chicago edge we are used to.

It was nice to meet V.I. Warshawski again. I loved this series from the start. In this book, Private detective Vic (now in her 50's) is traumatised after a case ended badly, and is invited to Lawrence, Kansas to watch her god-daughter in a sports competition in an attempt to boost her spirits. Sabrina, one of her team mates goes missing, and she persuades Vic to help find her.
As Vic searches for Sabrina, she is targeted as a suspect, and uncovers historical secrets and contemporary corruption in the town as she tries to clear her name, and get her mojo back. A gripping detective story with a good mix of of local characters.
Enjoyable. Recommended.

Indeed, is there no end to the hate and violence we bestow on one another? I appreciated the social theme of critical race theory, wondering how to write or rewrite or shape history...

And yet, I couldn't help myself getting annoyed with the endurance of V.I. Warshawski, being so able-bodied. But who knows, perhaps one day Sara Paretsky might write a whodunnit against the background of the social injustice of being ill with ME? About the common experience such as the painful lack of support from friends and family members, colleagues, healthcare providers, not to mention the stigma on top of all the insecurities of being ill with an underfunded illness.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.