Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
One Split Second by Robert Dugoni Narrator: Emily Sutton-Smith
Series: Tracy Crosswhite #12
Published by Brilliance Audio on September 15, 2026
Genres: Mystery
Length: 11 hours, 3 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: NetGalley
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible
Detective Tracy Crosswhite is assigned to defend an old friend. Sheriff Jenny Almond has been charged with first-degree murder for shooting an unarmed veteran on a stormy night of confusion, paranoia, and split-second choices. Tracy is certain there’s more to the story of Anthony Alvarez’s killing—and her investigation draws her back to a cold case that still haunts the community.
More than forty years ago, Alvarez was the prime suspect in the unsolved disappearance of a teenage babysitter. The lead investigator, Jenny’s late father Buzz Almond, always believed Alvarez had been framed. Decades later, his suspicions of a conspiracy are driving Tracy to find answers. Digging deeper into both the past and the present, she discovers a complex web of sinister motives and long-buried secrets, unearthed one by one.
The Tracy Crosswhite series is an absolute favorite. Tracy is in the cold case unit and has a more cordial relationship with Nolasco after they worked a case together. Here she is called by Jenny Almond who was also in their police academy classes. She went to see a Vietnam war vet who her father helped and ended up shooting him. He had something her father would have wanted to hear.
Dan becomes Jenny’s lawyer and Tracy investigates the cold case where the vet was a suspect. Jenny’s father cleared the evidence against him and someone definitely tried to frame him. All this happened 40 years ago. The “new” sheriff and prosecutor are determined to charge Jenny with first degree murder.
One Split Second has Tracy investigating the abduction of a teen girl who was babysitting and who was never found. Jenny, Tracy and Dan feel it had to do with why Jenny was called out to see the vet and why he was killed. Lydia, her autistic friend who remembers everything, helps Tracy by telling her what strikes her as odd in the case. Through hard work and a bit of luck, Tracy turns up more information and solves the case. It also absolves her friend, Jenny.
The personal aspects of Tracy’s life are another plot line. She has more flexibility with working cold cases on her own instead of with a team. She sees how Jenny has her multiple children and with her sisters, also multiple cousins for them. She contemplates siblings for Daniela since she has no cousins or grandparents. Lydia also provides a friend to Daniela although she is much older.
Tracy does go through some danger pursuing the evidence from the suspected and eventually proven killer. Her instincts and deductions are brilliant. She reads people well and that helps her recognize what they might do and their motives. I’ll always want more. These characters are well loved now.
Narration:
Emily Sutton-Smith continues to be Tracy in my head. She has narrated the entire series. With the distinct voices she uses for characters, I know them when I hear them. I’m comfortable with both her male and female voices and her performance definitely enhanced my enjoyment. I was able to listen comfortably at 1.75x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Emily Sutton-Smith
Emily sits in a carpet covered box and tells stories, and loves it. She also helped to found an Equity theatre, which she works to keep alive and thriving.
About Robert Dugoni
Robert Dugoni is the New York Times, #1 Amazon, and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author of the Tracy Crosswhite series: My Sister’s Grave, Her Last Breath, In the Clearing, The Trapped Girl and Close to Home, as well as the short prequels The Academy and Third Watch. The police procedural featuring Seattle Homicide Detective Tracy Crosswhite has kept Dugoni in the Amazon top 10 for more than three years and sold more than 4 million copies. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell, released April 2018. Dugoni’s first series featured attorney David Sloane and CIA agent Charles Jenkins.
He is the winner of the Nancy Pearl Award for fiction, a two-time nominee for the Harper Lee Award for Legal Fiction, A two-time nominee for the Mystery Writer’s of America Edgar Award and a two-time nominee for the International Thriller of the year. His non-fiction expose, The Cyanide Canary, was a 2004 Best Book of the Year. He is published in more than 30 countries and two dozen languages.
| Rating Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Plot |
 |
| Writing |
|
| Characters |
|
| Narration (Audio) |
|
| Overall: | |
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
Friend or follow me at Goodreads.
- 🎧 One Split Second by Robert Dugoni @robertdugoni @esuttonsmith #BrillianceAudio #LoveAudiobooks #KindleUnlimited🎧 - September 17, 2026
- 🎧 I’ll Be Watching You by Allison Brennan @Allison_Brennan @hillaryoutloud @HarlequinAudio @HarperAudio @htpbooks.bsky.social #LoveAudiobooks - September 15, 2026
- Sunday Post – 13 September 2026 @caffeinatedreviewer.com @readingreality.bsky.social @kimbacaffeinate @readingreality - September 13, 2026
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 25-Audio
- 25-COYER
Leave a Reply