Crime scene investigator Pamela Kinney hears the bad guys outside her house and smells smoke, but only realizes the next morning the crime they committed—burning the flag that had covered her daughter’s casket. Her police colleagues call it a small crime, but she disagrees. She must solve it, and she must solve it now . Chosen as one of the best mystery stories of 2009, “Patriotic Gestures” explores the fine lines that run through American culture, and sometimes through Americans themselves. “Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s crime stories are exceptional, both in plot and in style.” —Ed Gorman, Mystery Scene Magazine