Rachel Goddard Mystery Reading Order
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| The Heat of the Moon | 2006 | Buy |
| Disturbing the Dead | 2007 | Buy |
| Broken Places | 2010 | Buy |
| Under the Dog Star | 2011 | Buy |
| Bleeding Through | 2012 | Buy |
| Poisoned Ground | 2014 | Buy |
Sandra Parshall grew up in South Carolina, where her first writing job was as a weekly columnist for her hometown newspaper. She went on to build a career in journalism before turning to fiction. Her debut novel, The Heat of the Moon, won the Agatha Award for Best First Novel in 2006 and launched the six-book Rachel Goddard Mystery series.
The series follows Rachel Goddard, a veterinarian, and Tom Bridger, a deputy sheriff in Mason County, Virginia. Although animals appear frequently in the stories, the books are not cozies. They fall closer to suspense and dark mystery, dealing with family secrets, rural violence, and psychological tension. Parshall published six Rachel Goddard novels between 2006 and 2014, with each book set in the fictional Appalachian community she created for the series.