Reviewed by Ruffina Oserio for Readers' Favorite

Dadgummit is a stunning entry in the Dreamwalker Mystery Series by Maggie Toussaint, a mystery that explores murder and the unusual investigative skills of amateur sleuth, Baxley Powell. At Stony Creek Lake in the north Georgia Mountains, Baxley and her parents, her best friend, and her teenage daughter are camping — something she’d wanted to do for ages but was held back by work — when a young man’s body is discovered by the lake. No one knows the cause of death.

Now, Baxley has to use her special skills to discover the cause of death, a journey that leads to more sinister discoveries and to Jonas, the vile killer who could be draining the life force from the victims. Things get even more complicated when the Cherokee kidnap Baxley’s best friend and two others, forcing her to retrieve a treasure stolen from them by Jonas before the release of her loved ones. Working with Deputy Sam Mayes and with many lives at stake, can Baxley help to catch a criminal who seems so powerful and cunning?

Maggie Toussaint has a great gift for prose and plot. From the very first page, I was drawn in by the powerful prose, the tight sentences, the images, and the way she blends the consciousness of the characters with plot and setting. The characters are unique and original, and their extraordinary gifts make them even more interesting. I loved Baxley and her dreamwalking gift and how this gift plays a central role in her investigation. The plot is tight, well developed, and well paced to keep the reader turning the pages. Dadgummit is a rare story that will have readers completely engrossed in the plot and in the characters.