—”The Insane Train” by Sheldon Russell; Minotaur Books; 320 pages; $25.99.

“The Insane Train” may be one of the worst titles of 2010, conjuring visions of a bleak, uncompromising story that will only make the reader feel sad.

While “The Insane Train” is about transporting criminally insane patients and Hook Runyon, the hero, has only one arm, this second novel in Sheldon Russell’s intriguing series goes much further. “The Insane Train” is a hard-boiled, insightful look at the post-World War II era, the treatment of war veterans and the attitude toward the mentally challenged.

Hook’s job as a railroad security agent — “a yard dog” — puts him in myriad situations, all of them dangerous but also exciting for this man who thrives on living on the edge. His boss at the Santa Fe Railroad sends him to Barstow, Calif., where Hook has to arrange for the safe passage of patients who survived a fire at the Baldwin Insane Asylum.

Dozens of people died in the horrible fire and one of the criminally insane patients may have started the fire. Only four staff members have agreed to relocate so Hook needs help with security for the trip to Oklahoma where the asylum’s director has purchased a facility. Hook enlists several former Army veterans who have been living under a bridge and a prostitute who works the railroads to attend the patients. More deaths and the train’s mechanical problems make the trip more harrowing than Hook anticipated.

Russell’s acute sense of the historical elevates “The Insane Train.” Russell, a professor emeritus at the University of Central Oklahoma, paints a rugged view of the post-war period, when not every returning solider was greeted with a hero’s welcome and post-traumatic stress wasn’t discussed. The WWII vets’ situation wasn’t much different from that of more contemporary veterans who feel disenfranchised.

Russell excels at sharp dialogue and believable characters. On the surface, Hook seems to enjoy his solitary life, sharing his quarters only with a faithful dog. But the complicated Hook welcomes being forced into uncomfortable situations. His growing relationship with a dedicated nurse forces him to see another aspect of what he is missing in life.

“The Insane Train” chugs along at a brisk pace as it skillfully depicts a slice of American history.

—”Secrets to the Grave,” by Tami Hoag; Dutton; 464 pages; $26.95.

In a small town, residents often think they know what goes on with their neighbors. After all, you see some people every day, shopping, dropping the kids off at school or working in their yards. But rage, hatred and perversion can seethe beneath the placid routine, as Tami Hoag so expertly shows in her suspenseful “Secrets to the Grave.”

A chilling sequel to last year’s “Deeper Than the Dead,” Hoag’s affinity for finding terror in the commonplace routine of daily life continues in her 31st novel. Adding to the sense of isolation, Hoag sets the spell-binding “Secrets to the Grave” in 1986, making use of the era’s events and what seems now like quaint crime detection tools. The computers, cellular phones, DNA testing and crime technology of the 21st century make 1986 akin to the Dark Ages.

“Secrets to the Grave” continues the story of the residents of Oak Knoll, Calif., and how they cope when violence enters their lives. “Deeper Than the Dead,” set in 1985, revealed a local family man with a high-profile profession to be the See-No-Evil killer. In “Secrets to the Grave,” he is about to go on trial. The fact that a serial killer lived among them has put a pall over the citizens of Oak Knoll, “far enough north and west of Los Angeles to escape the city’s uglier vices. Most of the time.”

Now many residents wonder if the right man is in jail after Marissa Fordham, a 28-year-old artist and single mother, is murdered and her 4-year-old daughter left barely alive. The investigation falls to Det. Tony Mendez and his competent squad, aided by Vince Leone, a former FBI special agent and profiler, and his wife, Anne, a former teacher turned child advocate. To find the killer, the team must first investigate the victim and uncover the identity of the child’s father, which Marissa never revealed to anyone.

Hoag expertly uses myriad family dynamics to explore the characters’ nuances. Controlling parents, parents who are emotionally bankrupt and those who want to be parents bring a dark energy to “Secrets to the Grave.” Newlyweds Anne and Vince’s relationship, filled with love and respect for each other, balances Hoag’s thriller. Anne’s determination to believe even a violent child can be saved parallels her much older husband’s world-weary view. The author delves into the heartbreak when a child’s emotional health is ignored by parents who act like children.

Hoag’s reputation for highly entertaining thrillers is well earned, with each of her novels since 1995 landing on the New York Times Best Sellers List. But the author also shows her knack for complex stories full of plot and character surprises in “Secrets to the Grave.” We look forward to the next visit to Oak Knoll.