Salt Wound: A Cook Investigations Novel

By Krysta M

A missing child. A corrupt system. A detective still learning how to live with her own wounds.

Former police captain turned private investigator Ellie Cook is barely holding her recovery together-counting pills from a time-lock safe, balancing therapy with Dr. Vivian Rose, and rebuilding her relationship with Dr. Alexa Mendoza one fragile layer at a time.

But when a case involving a vulnerable teen hits too close to home, Ellie is pulled into a web of institutional failure, buried evidence, and predators protected by powerful families. As the investigation deepens, Ellie's physical limits and old addiction patterns collide with a conspiracy designed to silence the people who dare to look too closely.

With the help of Chief Jesse Tran, paramedic Joe Park, and a mysterious figure known only as The Watcher, Ellie must navigate lies, trauma, and a system built to let children slip through the cracks. But saving someone else means risking the progress she's fought tooth and nail to make.

Salt Wound is a gritty, emotional crime thriller threaded with queer romance, chronic-pain realism, slow-burn suspense, and the relentless heart of a woman who refuses to walk away-even when it hurts.

Fans of Tana French, Karin Slaughter, and Ann Cleeves will love Ellie Cook.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0G6F73PTL
• ISBN13: 9798278292562
• Release Date: December 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 520 Pages
• Weight: 1.97 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.0" x 10.0"