American Crime – Page 4 – nigeladamsbookworm

The Drowning Girls. Lisa Regan

The latest in a cracking series and it had me reading well into the early hours.

The publishers material for this book gives a brief insight into the story

A knock on the door late in the evening can only mean trouble for Detective Josie Quinn, but fear chokes her at the news that one of her own team is missing. No one has seen Denton PD’s Press Liaison Amber for days and, as she follows the message scrawled on the frosted windscreen of Amber’s car to a nearby dam, Josie hears a piercing scream that tells her she’s too late. But the body they pull from the freezing water is not Amber…

Josie won’t sleep until she finds a name for the beautiful girl left to drown, and the meaning of the numbers scribbled in a tattered pink diary found on Amber’s desk. She must stay strong and focused for her close-knit team. But as rumors of an argument the night Amber disappeared surface, can she even trust her own colleagues?

But what it doesn’t give you is the glimpse into the emotions involved in the investigation. The who-can-you-trust paranoia that settles over Quinn, and starts to tear her team apart.

Race against the clock stories are common in fiction these days, but I haven’t read one so well written as this for a long time.

I read this book in a day. But that day actually spread well past my usual lights-out, book-down, time, and into the small hours of the following morning. It had me hooked, and I think if it had been another hundred pages long I’d have still carried on reading until I’d finished.

Pages: 391 (Print length). Publisher: Bookouture. Available now

The Memory Bones. B.R Spangler

I have a confession to make. The killings in this book got into my dreams. I won’t say nightmares, because that’s a bit dramatic, but they certainly got into my head.

A choice, a quick death with a bullet in the head.

Or, play the game, take the challenge, escape the knots and run away.

3 years ago a woman is given the choice, she doesn’t know why she’s been taken into a clearing in a wooded area, or who the two men who took her are, all she knows is the bullet will kill her, and escaping being tied up and left alone at least gives her a chance.

Today a man’s body is found hog-tied in a clearing. Two discoveries get Detective Casey White’s attention.

One, the discovery nearby of skeletal remains intertwined with rope and a similar set of knots.

The other, the latest victim is her ex-husband Ronald Haskin, the father of their missing daughter. A man she still has emotional attachment to, but has not been in contact with for a while.

All that in the first thirty pages.

I don’t think I’ve ever done a review where I stopped talking about the plot after just thirty pages, but I don’t want to spoil, what is a stunning story, by discussing the plot line any further.

As with all of the series the characters and settings are great.

The continuing story of Casey White’s daughter runs through the story like a fine grain through an oak table top.

White trying to balance her work life, her ongoing hunt for the truth about her daughter, and her blooming relationship always add to the books, but take on a greater poignancy through this one.

As always the story is full of suspense, Cliff hanger chapter endings, and twist that kept me reading late into the night.

Maybe that’s why I had the bad dreams.

I loved it.

Pages: 337 Publisher: Bookouture. Available now

Fallen Angel. D.K Hood

A group of crime authors. A snowed in mountain resort. What could possibly go wrong.

The book starts with a woman running through the snow, she knows she’s being pursued, but she doesn’t get away.

The staff of the resort notice she’s missing and reports it to the Police.

Sheriff Jenna Alton and her trusty second in command Detective Dave Alton head to the resort.

What follows is a cross between a cosy, locked room crime mystery set in, and around, the snowed in resort, and a chilling thriller.

Alton and Kane are stuck in the resort as the blizzard rages, another woman is murdered.

In true locked room mystery style they know they are trapped with the killer hiding in plain sight amongst the staff and guests.

I like this book, in fact I like this series. The back story of both Alton and Kane, both in hiding with pasts that have seen them work in law-enforcement, is addictive reading.

Both moved to hide in plain sight in the sleepy mountain town of Black Rock Falls, a small team around them that help them solve the ever increasing number of murders that have hit the town.

The town is growing as is its notoriety, that’s what attracted the crime authors, it’s also what’s attracting the psychopaths.

This, off all the books so far, has the feel of an Agatha Christie story, with the inclusion of the modern day chiller.

The story that the book carries is good, but for me it’s the characters and the setting that sets this series apart from others.

For that reason, I wouldn’t read this as a standalone book. It’s an essential cog in a very strong engine, and in the right place in that engine it works perfectly. On its own, I don’t think it would have as big an affect.

Pages: 346. Publisher: Bookouture. Available now.

Dark Water Girls. Maegan Beaumont

Georgia Falls has been off the Island for years, running away after she found out the man she thought loved her had got another girl pregnant.

Now she’s back, having served for years in Military Police, and she’s confused by what she’s found.

She’s inherited a mansion and lots of money, confusing because she was a baby abandoned into care.

She’s found that the man she thought she loved has recently come out of prison having served time for attempting to kill his father.

But the most confusing thing is that when she is sent a text asking for help, and she finds a dead woman who has been sexually assaulted.

What follows is a great story.

George is a great character who is left frustrated by the lies people on the island are telling her.

The island suffers from the American caste system. There are those who have, and they really do have, money, mansions, boats, connections.

And there are those that don’t, and they really don’t.

The strangely large amount of adopted girls, especially by one rich family should have rung bells years ago, but who in the family, if anybody, is the problem.

A vicious biker gang run Island Pub where the black and white, of the haves and have nots, blurs into the grey of drugs abuse and prostitution.

George is convinced that one of her fellow adopted girls has been killed at the bikers pub whilst another sits alongside the Gang leader snaring insults at her.

The Sherif, Alex, the man she wakes up with most mornings, is telling her the death was the result of a drug overdose, and warning her off her own investigation.

When she realises she’s under surveillance, by other police officers she becomes really concerned.

Who is to be trusted on the island.

Those she always thought she could trust seem to be misleading her at best, trying to kill her at worst.

The one person she doesn’t want to trust seems to be the only person looking out for her.

This is a fast paced story that had me building hypotheses after hypotheses in my own mind.

It’s written in the first person from two peoples view point.

Georgia. The main character, the island returnee, the confused person trying to piece together what is actually happening on the island.

Lincoln, the rich kid who George ran away from all those years ago, the man who had been in prison, the man she really shouldn’t trust, the only one who seems to be looking out for her.

A great read and hopefully the start of a new series.

Publisher: Bookouture. Pages: 402 (Guide only) Available now.

The Crying House B.R Spangler

The book starts 30 years ago with a young boy being abused by his mother, but is this the making of a monster?

The abuse is carried out in a specific way, a way I haven’t heard of before, and that’s not the only first in this book.

The setting for the place the first bodies are found when the story moves to the current day, is the second. Some houses which have been abandoned are being used by local youths to party. The houses are suffering from rising sea levels and costal erosion and could collapse at any time.

The first body appears to be a consequence of careless partying, or is it?

The second body, found in the upper floors has had its blood drained and is mummified in salt, and that is the link back to the abused boy thirty years previously.

Casey White is still convalescing but is keen to lead the investigation into both deaths.

As she looks at old crimes she realises that a similar murder had happened years ago, but that the man who committed it is still in prison. He’s old, he’s frail, he’s incarcerated, he can’t be responsible can he?

Another body, a note held in its hand.

Casey’s daughter s still missing, she still sees her, she still worries about her, the note sends her into paranoia, will her daughter be next.

Spangler writes as if he’s writing for me. He ticks all my boxes, original crimes, a great setting, a main character I can engage with, peripheral characters that hold my interest, and ongoing stories that run through the series, each book its own cracking story.

This is Book 4 in the Detective Casey White series, yes it can be read as a standalone, but it’s much better read in order.

Pages: 281. Publisher: Bookouture. Available now

The Family Tree. Steph Mullin & Nicole Mabry

A clever concept for a storyline in more than one way.

A woman, Liz, receives an Ancestral DNA testing kit from her cousin, as a present. The results are not what is expected. Not only has she no similarities in DNA markers to who she thought was her family, she finds out her mother was a drug addict who spent time in prison

But that’s not the end of the surprises. When she uploads her data to another site she ticks the box that allows law enforcement agencies access to her test results. What she didn’t expect was to be contacted by two agents from the FBI

Meanwhile the story of a serial killer unravels over alternating chapters, but in a way I’ve never read before.

The killer started their spree 40 years ago with a single victim, and has gone on to kidnap and kill at least 22 other people, in pairs. The story of the killer is told in instalments, with each one progressing their methods. How they are taken, then in the next chapter how they are transported, in following chapters how they are treated in captivity. Each chapter using the next pair of victims.

And yes, there are two being held captive as the story is told.

I’m not giving anything away by saying that the DNA data uploaded by Liz, has similarities to some found at a scene connected to the serial killer, hence the visit by the FBI.

What follows is a story that I rattled through in two sittings. I was enthralled.

Both of the strands would have made a good story on their own, but they have been wonderfully woven together by two authors, and it has produced a great story.

I do wonder about author collaborations, and usually avoid them, but this one tweaked my curiosity.

I wonder if the authors wrote a strand each, and then used the alternative chapter system to weave them together

However they did it, they have combined to write one of the most original crime books I’ve read for a long time.

Pages: 412. Publishers: Avon. Publishing Date 10th June 2021

Widow’s Island. L.A. Larkin

Another new author for me, and another addition to my notifications on Amazon.

I have read a lot of good books this year, and this one is right up there with the best.

A middle aged University Professor, who has been recently widowed, relocates herself and her teenage daughter to a small island in Washington State.

For the first few months everything is going ok, but Professor Stephanie Miller is about to present a controversial document to a senate committee, and not everybody is happy about it.

A troll farm ( yes thee is such a thing, I had a pleasant hour reading about them online ) starts to run a campaign to discredit her.

As the misinformation turns to rumours the small island community starts to look at Stephanie and her daughter differently.

Meanwhile the island holds a secret. A murderer has been killing people in a very specific way for years, but his crimes are few and far between, and somebody different always seems to be in the frame for them, even if it’s never quite proved.

When Stephanie and her daughter start to get direct threats it’s not clear whether it’s the result of the trolling, or are they being targeted by a killer.

His is an intriguing story. It has elements that had me reaching for search engines on my computer, Puget Sound, in Washington State, with its collection of islands linked to the mainland by small ferries, is a great place to set psychological thriller.

The toll farms, I’d heard of them but didn’t realise just how much impact they have had over the last few years, a brilliant addition for any thriller where a persons head needs playing with.

Larkin has interwoven two compelling threads that had me second guessing myself all the way to the end of the book.

How much did I enjoy the book. As soon as I finished it I went onto Amazon and looked to see what else the author has written, my wallet was grateful there was only one other book to download, and it is now my current reading.

Pages: 396. Publisher: Bookouture. Publishing date: 3rd June 2021

Be Mine Forever. D.K Hood

Be Mine Forever by D.K Hood is the eleventh book in the Detectives Kane and Alton books.

A confession from the start of this blog. I’ve been on board with this series from very early on and have read all of the books in order. It’s not necessary to read all of them but I would suggest you read the first one or two before you read Be Mine Forever, as there is quite a back story involving the main characters that you might find a bit left out of if you dive straight into this one as your first.

And why would you want to miss out on the excellent earlier stories?

In this story the tightly knit team of law enforcers of Black Rock Falls are enjoying a cookout at Detective Jenna Altons house when a call comes in from a concerned father. His Cheerleader daughter has gone missing, along with her highly conspicuous car.

When the car is found, and there’s no sign of the missing girl the detectives start to worry that this is more than a father overreacting to his daughter staying out overnight

When it become obvious to Alton that not all is well at the girls home, the team begin to look at the familky demographics and the father doesn’t come out of it very well.

When a second Cheerleader goes missing the detectives start to realise that somebody wants to keep them quiet, but what about?

Then disaster for the team as one of them encounters the killer and the race is on for the rest of the team to find them before it’s too late.

The characters and the settings in this book are great, and the introduction of a new detective brings a new outlook to the team, or is he just too good to be true?

This is a great addition to a great series, and like the rest, it’s got me aching to see what happens next.

Publisher: Bookouture. Pages: 336. Available now

Shadow Falls. Wendy Dranfield

A religious man Nate had left the process of becoming a Priest to get engaged to the woman he loved, but she was murdered and Nate was wrongly convicted of her Murder

After 17 years on Death row his conviction was overturned and he was released, with a very healthy compensation.

Now he’s making up for lost time. With a penchant for Colombian marching powder, and a love for the ladies he is now an unlicensed Private Detective.

So who else would ex Detective Madison Harper turn to for help.

Madison had been a successful cop, working her way up to being a Detective in Vice and working undercover.

Until she was framed for the voluntary manslaughter of a colleague.

Having served six years of her ten year sentence she was released penniless and without any hope. Working as a waitress amongst an area awash with the prostitutes she shares her accommodation with she has saved every penny she can to hire Nate to help her prove her innocence.

Nate doesn’t want to take the job, especially as Madison still can’t afford him, and her suggestion of working for him for free doesn’t fit in with his style of work, or life. Then there’s the fact that she’s and ex cop and he hates the Police

When a girl goes missing her grandmother contacts Nate to find her, because the local Police are not getting anywhere. So he takes Madison on for a trial period to help him

The first book in a new series rightly concentrates on the main character(s) and their relationship.

The case of the missing girl leads to an investigation that tests that, and their own convictions

Without giving spoilers there are subplots involving Nate and Madison that are going to run through the series, and will make people want to buy into it.

Can it be read as a standalone, yes, but I suspect that once you have read the first, you will want to find out more about this unorthodox and at times unlikely crime fighting team.

Pages: 391. . Publisher: Bookouture Available now

Dying To Be Her. Greg Olsen

When an entitled brat, Brianna Connor, has a Halloween Party whilst her parents are away things, surprisingly don’t seem to go to badly.

Unless, that is, you are the naive English exchange student that is inconveniently murdered in the hosts bedroom.

From the beginning of the investigation local Police Chief, Annie Garnett has problems with “This girl is a self centred, condescending brat” Brianna, and her thick-as-a-brick, and equally entitled boyfriend Drew.

In scenes similar to the immediate aftermath of the Meredith Kercher murder, Brianna and Drew, kiss and canoodle, and basically act in a flippant juvenile manner.

Spending more time on social media complaining about her ruined party, and visiting fancy lingerie stores, than helping with the investigation Brianna soon gets under everybody’s skin.

Meanwhile twin sisters Taylor and Hayley believe they have psychic abilities, and think they knew about the murder before the news broke.

When they receive a mysterious text with a case file number and “I know who killed her” written in it, they decide to go all Nancy Drew and try to solve the case.

As this is the first murder for over a decade in the sleepy town of Port Gamble they have just as much experience as Chief Garnett, and it shows.

What follows is two investigations twisting around each other, and often frustrating each other, before reaching a tense ending.

I love the characters and storyline in this book. A few years ago it would have seemed outrageous that teenagers could act in the way Brianna and Drew do, but today we see enough of them on TV to know that they exist.

Olsen has used this to his advantage. The teenagers in this book are despicable yet enthralling.

The Police Chief couldn’t be further removed from most fictional cops. A giant of a woman that finds it hard to buy fashionable clothes that fit her, investigating her first murder, with the main suspects spending more on knickers than she spends on her entire wardrobe.

The book drew me in by setting up my loathing of Brianna, and sympathy for Grant, but took me on a real rollercoaster of a trip right up to the very last page.

Pages: 300. Publisher: Bookouture. Published: 2nd February 2021