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Reviewed by Gina Metz

Superintendent Morrison of the Complaints Investigation Bureau begins an investigation of Vanner after the beating. A psychologist who has profiled the Watchman for the police believes the Watchman has a military background or is a police officer. Soon Morrison begins to believe that Vanner may be the Watchman since he seems to fit the profile and there are no other leads. Now it is up to Vanner to catch the Watchman in order to clear his own name. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Allen Hott

Don’t spill the beans! All of us have been told that for years. Well, in Force of Nature C. J. Box does exactly that! After several books telling about Joe Pickett, the Wyoming game warden/ranger and his friendship with Nate Romanowski, Mr. Box tells exactly what the story behind Nate is. Early on Nate moved into the area and became close friends with Joe but others always felt that Nate had a questionable background. He lived all alone out in the woods although he did show up with a girlfriend in one story. But she didn’t last very long as someone who appeared to be hunting for Nate shot and killed the lady by mistake. Other than that Nate kept everything to himself and Joe was always careful in what he told Nate and who he discussed Nate with during his travels around Wyoming.

Force of Nature begins with a fly-fisherman getting bumped by a drift boat as he fished a stream. The boat appeared empty until he pushed it to the side and saw three lifeless bodies and quite a bit of blood. He contacted authorities and reported the find.

Somewhere shortly before that occurred Nate, an accomplished falconer, had been working in the fields with one of his falcons. But he had been interrupted by a boat with three local men who began a conversation with him that turned into a very different situation. And after that happened Nate knowing what would come next began his departure not only to get away from the trouble here but to try and figure what he would do about what else was about to happen. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Allen Hott

There is no doubt that Harlan Coben is one of the top suspense writers of our times and Stay Close is another of his really great books. He is able to take ordinary people in ordinary situations and then build a story that is full of intrigue and suspense. His characters are believable, his descriptions are right on, and the dialogue keeps the story moving at a great pace.

In this one a typical housewife with two kids and a husband has never really disclosed to anyone some of the happenings in her past. And as the story progresses the reader understands why and even agrees with Megan as she goes about her normal suburban life. But the problems begin when she begins to fixate on some happening long ago.

At the same time in Atlantic City there is a photographer who is barely eking out a living by shooting fake paparazzi type photos for rich kids to act out their dreams as celebrities. In truth Ray is a truly fine photographer who should be doing what he did in an earlier day. At one time he was a well-known and renowned photographer who traveled the world doing photos for international news organizations. His drinking and lifestyle have not really altered his expertise but he also seems to spend a lot of time reminiscing at least in his mind. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Patricia Reid

It would be difficult to find a happier married couple than Harry and Carol Bronson. Harry is retired from the Dallas police department and enjoys traveling with Carol. Harry has been involved in a number of mysteries in spite of the fact that he is retired.

Carol Bronson would be the first to tell you that there are no secrets between her and Harry. However, Carol is going to find out that this statement is not entirely accurate. Harry has a huge secret that he has never discussed with his wife. This secret is a sister that he has pushed to the back of his mind and never mentioned her existence to his wife.

Lorraine, Harry’s sister, had a terrible fight with Harry’s parents. She immediately left home and Harry had no further contact with her until recently when she began calling him. Lorraine begs Harry to come to Pennsylvania and meet with her. Harry finally agrees and they meet in a state park that had been a location for good childhood memories for both brother and sister. However, before the two had a chance to reconnect Lorraine was shot and killed right in front of Harry and there was not one thing Harry could do to save her life. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Patricia Reid

Rachel and Deputy Chief Tom Bridger are living together and life has settled down into a satisfying routine, Rachel’s sister, Michelle, fears she is being stalked. Michelle hopes that her stay with Rachel and Tom will discourage the stalker. This is the first time that Michelle has visited and Rachel is on edge about the visit and Michelle meeting Tom. Rachel and Michelle also have past issues that they have never satisfactorily worked out. Michellel’s visit gives the two sisters the perfect opportunity to solve past issues and to grow closer.

Rachel and Tom are supervising a group of teenagers cleaning up litter on a Mason County, Virginia highway when they discover the body of a young woman wrapped in plastic. Sadly, the sister of the woman is one of the teenagers on the clean-up crew and the teenager sees the body before Rachel or Tom can pull her away. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Allen Hott

Bonnie is quite a story. Not being a great believer in ghosts or the idea of seeing someone sit and talk with me after their death made it a bit hard to accept. However the book is so well written with a storyline that is moving throughout and actually right up to the final page.

Eve Duncan was completely wrapped up in her illegitimate baby .Eve worshiped Bonnie and spent as much time as possible with her daughter. So the tremendous shock to Eve’s system was easy to understand when Bonnie suddenly went missing while the two were in the park on a summer day.

Over the years Eve’s life went on but she never gave up on finding Bonnie’s body and her killer. She developed her skills through training and is accepted as one of the country’s best reconstruction artists. Because of her ability she has many friends in police work all over the country. Her long term relationship with Joe Quinn, a police detective has also kept her in touch with law enforcement.

One of her best friends is an FBI agent named Catherine Ling. Catherine is a top flight missing person’s investigator who comes into play helping Eve search for Bonnie. Not only Catherine and Joe are involved in the latest search but John Gallo, Bonnie’s father also comes into the picture. Gallo had been missing for some time. Gallo had gotten involved shortly after the Korean War with some Army Intelligence officers who used him to get some documents they were stealing. He had been arrested but then later escaped from a Korean prison loaded with many mental problems. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Patricia Reid

Say You’re Sorry is a gripping story of two young girls who became known to the public as the “Bingham Girls”. Bingham is a small English village and the girls had attended a local funfair the night of their disappearance. There are rumors that Piper Hadley and Tash McBain ran away. Although hundreds of people were searching for Piper and Tash it seemed as though the girls just vanished into thin air. Eventually the public eye moved on to other news.

Piper Hadley tells the girls’ side of the story. Piper reveals to the reader the horrors faced by the two girls, as they are held captive in an unknown location. The horrors suffered by the girls are so bad it is a wonder that they were able to hold onto their sanity. They are convinced that working together at least one of the girls can escape and bring help back for the one left behind.

Three years later, after a blizzard hits the town, a husband and wife are found murdered in a farmhouse. The farmhouse is where Tash McBain had lived at the time of her disappearance. Her family had moved away and the murder victims had no connection to Tash other than the fact that they lived in Tash’s former home. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Teri Davis

Some people seem to attract trouble like Hetta Coffey. It also might be that Hetta is the type of person who jumps into the water and then asks about its depth. Added to that, she can’t swim.

Living on a yacht definitely requires a different lifestyle. Since she no longer has a land-based house, all of her life encompasses her boat. Being the she is an engineer who is contracted to work in various places, her boat or house, goes wherever she is needed. With her love, Jenks, currently in the Middle East, Hetta takes off for Mexico with her best friend, Jan, and a mysterious, but conveniently cheap captain to pilot the boat.

The more Hetta discovers about her new temporary job, the more she questions whether this job is legal or ethical. A particular Japanese company wants to buy land in Baja to develop into a desalinization plant which also seems to be involved with some poaching of whales. Hetta’s job is to plan their supplies and needs to complete their project. Jan accompanies Hetta as a marine biologist who is really a companion and friend with no qualifications.

Just Add Salt is the second book in the Hetta Coffey series which now includes four novels. Just Add Water is the first book in this series which is wonderful with the character develop of Hetta and her friends. This second book in this series could be difficult to understand if someone does not have this background of the characters. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Caryn St. Clair

In each of Kramer’s five mysteries featuring television news reporter Riley Spartz, the author gives readers the primary story involving a crime and a secondary story-one with more of a human interest twist. In Shunning Sarah, Riley takes readers into an Amish community to investigate a young woman’s death while bringing us along as she follows a conflict between bear hunters and scientists studying bears’ movements and hibernation.

Riley Spartz is always looking for her next big story, but since the arrival of Bryce Griffin as news director, Riley’s efforts to find a suitable story grows harder by the day. As the leading station in the Twin Cities area, her job at Channel 3 had been to go for the scoop-the story that would bring in big overnight ratings and keep the audience coming back to for the follow-ups. But with Bryce’s arrival, the emphasis on the “big” story is being replaced by the cheap story. So when Riley’s parents called her with a tip of a child stuck in a sink hole, all of her news instincts said “this is it, this is the big story,” while her boss’s view was lukewarm at best. Bryce finally relented and Riley and her cameraman Malik headed for the scene only to find the boy was already safely rescued. Not wanting to return to the station empty handed, they attempted to get an interview with the mother and a picture of the boy, but the mother reacted in horror. And then they found out why. When the boy slid into the sink hole, he landed next to a dead woman. Riley decides to investigate who the woman was and how did she end up in the sink hole. Riley’s investigation leads her straight into the heart of an Amish community. What she finds there is disturbing. Read the rest of this entry »

Reviewed by Patricia Reid

Mystery, science, gypsies, and the assassination of President McKinley all play major roles in this novel. Benjamin Bradshaw is a Professor of Electrical Engineering and is currently involved in an electrical competition. The contest winner’s telephonic system will deliver music from the Seattle Grand theatre to homes throughout the city. The reader can only imagine what this would mean to people sitting at home and able to hear music from the theater.

Bradshaw is sidetracked a bit when he finds a gypsy peddler cart abandoned behind his home. The cart advertises “Ralph’s Redeeming Restorative, the Romany Remedy that Really Works”. The inside of the cart revealed a little girl’s doll. Bradshaw brings the doll in the house where he lives with his housekeeper, Mrs. Prouty, and his son Jason who is in the third grade. Mrs. Prouty is indignant because the horse attached to the wagon has been busy in her garden. Bradshaw is upset because he feels that the missing little girl may have witnessed a murder. Read the rest of this entry »