The Sweetheart Deal by Allison Morse

October 14, 2015 By 13 Comments

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The Sweetheart Deal by Allison Morse
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Historical (1950s American)
Length: Full (320 pgs)
Heat: Sensual
Rated: 4.5 stars
Review by Snapdragon

Some people in her small community think Ellen Hamilton, business savvy daughter of the town’s largest employer, is too big for her britches. After all it’s the 1950s when women have no place in running corporations. When the company is threatened with takeover by John, who broke her heart and betrayed her family business years ago, she’s determined to stop at nothing to win.

Ruggedly handsome John Adair has returned to the town that tried to destroy him with false accusations of corporate espionage. What truly hurt him was Ellen, the woman he loved, believed the allegations. However, that was the past. His return is for one reason only, business. But will he remember it when gazing into Ellen’s enticing eyes or when intoxicated by the aroma of jasmine whenever she is near?

Sparks fly when these two headstrong individuals meet again and find themselves tempted by The Sweetheart Deal.

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Ellen Hamilton is perhaps a trifle more self-possessed than the average young woman of the fifties…and perhaps her goals are somewhat different. She’s been raised to ‘take over the company’ but didn’t. She’s tough enough to withstand a bossy, manipulative father and to stand up for the brother. And, she’s heart-broken, whether she admits it or not.

Readers will be intrigued by Ellen from the first few pages; nothing about her life or story is predictable. We meet her ‘ex’ John and can understand her attraction; but also grasp why she dismisses him. Being underhanded is unforgivable for Ellen, and here he is, ‘up to something’ again.

However, its a story where strong minded characters rule: Ms. Morse does a wonderful job creating characters. Some of her secondary characters are wonderful for their growing animosity (and we have the fun of puzzling out their schemes), or then again, like amazing George, the engineer, for his understanding. All are believable and interesting. Even the dippy, slightly-too-southern Mom manages to be entertaining. The motivation of self-interest is shared from several different perspectives. The business wheeling and dealing is most definitely personal for all players, but the business deals are in fact, inextricable from the romance.

Funny, lighthearted moments are interspersed nicely. The fifties are there, in ladies white gloves or a gent’s slicked back hair but the setting never intrudes. The characters and their loyalty matters; not only to the story, but to the reader.

If I must complain, I’d have liked shorter flashbacks. They become too detailed and felt distant. Its a small complaint in what is overall, a riveting read.

A wonderful cast of characters, who are completely entwined in the events, deals and back-stabbing make The Sweetheart Deal a novel to remember. Do read! And just wanted to note: I simply love the cover.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

Winter Bride by Caroline Clemmons

October 6, 2015 By Leave a Comment

WINTER
Winter Bride by Caroline Clemmons
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Historical
Length: Full Length (178 pgs)
Heat: Sweet
Rated: 4.5 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

When Kendra Murdoch’s brother in law murders her sister, she takes charge of her nephew and two nieces. Fearing the man plans the same fate for her, she seeks shelter in Radford Crossing where she opens a café to support her small family.

Determined to be self-sufficient, Kendra shuns all advances from the handsome sheriff as danger hangs heavily over her head.

Butch Parrish battled a snowstorm and a killer to rescue Kendra and the children. He’ll do whatever is necessary to protect the independent young woman who rekindles sensations he hoped were dead long ago. Protecting her, dealing with the town gossips and investigating a stagecoach robbery, Butch has a battle on his hands.

Winter Bride is an action-packed western that combines beautifully with a heartfelt, and not entirely predictable, romance.
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Late nineteenth century Texas: its a tough country, and peopled by some seriously tough characters.

Sheriff Butch Parrish is the tough town sheriff, surrounded by some of the types of characters one might expect. He’s not entirely what we reader’s might expect though. He’s obviously dedicated to his job and also quick to step up and be the person to help. We readers find him admirable from the start.

However, the lovely Kendra isn’t one to be swept away. She has her own responsibilities, and more than a little heartbreak and fear to deal with. She isn’t going to be an easy one to save. Kendra is determined to take care of herself and the children she’s inherited from her sister. Her deadly brother-in-law isn’t about to leave her in piece – but this is more than a family battle – because this is the west.

Texas in the late nineteenth century is an adventurous sort of place in its own right; the sort of place that tests its inhabitants. Storms, terrain and isolation all bring the own challenges. A difficult woman might be more than one man wants to take on.

Butch, the sheriff is more than a decent guy, though. You can’t but fall for the big guy, who’s so much more than a heart-throb; big, determined, yet kind. He’s wonderful, apart from his great desire to help, of course. Kendra’s effort to take care of all, on her own, might have been achievable, apart from her brother-in-law’s evil intentions.

Conversations, setting, interaction of the children, as well as the occasional very light touch of humor is all just right!

Winter Bride  offers a real western pioneering flavor. Sorting the large number of characters occasionally slows what otherwise would be a fast-paced western. However, its a small point of complaint. I do think anyone who enjoys a good western romance OR adventure should put Winter Bride right at the top of their reading list.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Cottage on the Border by Hannah Warren

September 24, 2015 By 14 Comments

COTTAGE
The Cottage on the Border by Hannah Warren
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense, Paranormal
Length: Full Length (357 pgs)
Rated: 4 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

Jenna’s earliest memory is of her mother’s feet dangling in dust motes, as a three year old left orphaned while her mother’s corpse hung from a beam. Her mother committed suicide, that’s how she escaped and freed herself. When her own life falls apart Jenna’s earliest memory becomes her anchor, she too wants to be free.

Vincent Van Son is Jenna’s adopted brother, her psychiatrist, perhaps her only friend. He takes her to the Cottage for recovery, determined to rescue his sister from herself after her failed suicide attempt. The cottage on the border is at Oud Land, and is the location of many dark secrets.

Jenna’s close call with death leaves her open to the psychic world, and in this cottage in the onset of a misty winter, Jenna hears them, the voices of the past, memories of what happened on the border. It becomes a journey to herself. She has to listen, to witness, she has no choice. Their stories are her story, and it is a long heritage of murder, deceit, ethnic discourse and betrayal.

Perspective returns to the introspective prima ballerina, she has learned the truth of her family, of this cottage of psychic confessions. She alone emerges from the rubble of six decades of troubled family history, a lone phoenix.

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In Hannah Warren’s strangely eerie The Cottage on the Border we discover a tangled web of horrors, literally handed down through generations. The odd psychic connection that allows our main character to view the past allows us, as readers, to see it as well. The story resonates with emotion. It will make you recoil as much as rejoice, yet nothing, not even recovery, comes free from this intrigue.

Jenna is a dancer, a marvelous, successful dancer. Her career means everything, but her challenge is always to eat enough, to remain strong…and she fails. Or did she? Was it sabotage? From this unclear beginning, Jenna takes us into the past.

She has, she knows, a ‘gift.’ Indeed, she discovers the gift in a place that has seen too much and because of her own closeness to death. She discovers her psychic connection to the past; more to memories than hauntings, but haunting memories just the same.

With her brother Vincent’s help, in a bid to recover herself, she winds up discovering decades of horror. He’s a psychiatrist, and not, she thinks “intuitive” but he is a help, nonetheless. A help to her, in interpreting; for this is the story of others: of her old grandfather, of her mother, also years dead, as much as her own. There were the politics of the times and events no one would have guessed.

Jenna’s understanding and reaction to people, choices, and events gives her a different, or changing, perspective to her own life.

This story reveals family connections from WWII era to contemporary times. The people, changing times, noted events all were presented in a perfectly believable way. The writing style is straightforward and readable.

Some measure of wordiness, as well as the odd editing oversights (leaving a typo like ‘here’ in place of ‘her’) prevent a top score. Do not let this keep you from reading, however. The Cottage on the Border is an odd but heartfelt and original tale.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Liberty by Kim Iverson Headlee

August 31, 2015 By 4 Comments

LIBERTY
Liberty by Kim Iverson Headlee
Publisher: Pendragon Cove Press
Genre: Historical
Length: Full Length (494 pgs)
Heat: Sensual
Rated: 4 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

They hailed her “Liberty,” but she was free only to obey—or die.

Betrayed by her father and sold as payment of a Roman tax debt to fight in Londinium’s arena, gladiatrix-slave Rhyddes feels like a wild beast in a gilded cage. Celtic warrior blood flows in her veins, but Roman masters own her body. She clings to her vow that no man shall claim her soul, though Marcus Calpurnius Aquila, son of the Roman governor, makes her yearn for a love she believes impossible.

Groomed to follow in his father’s footsteps and trapped in a politically advantageous betrothal, Aquila prefers the purity of combat on the amphitheater sands to the sinister intrigues of imperial politics, and the raw power and athletic grace of the flame-haired Libertas to the adoring deference of Rome’s noblewomen.

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Liberty opens with the sorry plight of Celtic teen Rhyddes; a Celt in a land conquered by the Romans. Though her name meant freedom, she was little more than a slave: almost a slave to her own family.

Liberty immediately seizes the reader’s attention and sympathy. Rhyddes’ Father is tough and demanding- he is with all his children. Still Rhyddes demonstrates caring and courage right off the bat. She protects brother Owen to her own cost and, farmhand though she is, we also see she’s a good fighter when need arises. She establishes her value, and we readers assume that events will transpire that allow her family to see her value, as well. We can only hope…

She proves worth more to others. Suddenly, those hard days with a pitchfork in her hands will serve her well….

Meanwhile, another character is introduced, long before their actual meeting. Marcus, who one might well imagine fared better as one of the conquerors, also suffers from parental disapproval. He’s headstrong, proud and tough, but he too has to answer for every action.

Rhyddes’ survival has given her both strength and defiance. Unalike as the two might seem, they are both strong, in their own way, but when they meet, events seem to turn against them. Indeed, circumstances must keep them apart, although we cannot but keep hoping for different circumstances!

I was troubled throughout as to why our main character started off in such disfavor with her father. Although the author leaves no string untied by the end, it seemed like a long wait to get the answer. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this story. The setting, characters and action were all interesting and well-presented.

Ms. Headlee’s straightforward writing style is not intrusive but is descriptive. The overall plot seems distant and in truth, we see this history from just one little corner of it. This is very character-driven story with sweet moments and occasional humor. Rhyddes’ connection to and sympathy for her family members is a constant. I really liked the characters. I wouldn’t say every romance fan will love this, but if you are looking for a bit of unpredictable action with your romance, you might find Liberty just perfect.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Charlemagne Connection by R. M. Cartmel

August 28, 2015 By Leave a Comment

TCONNECTIOn
The Charlemagne Connection by R. M. Cartmel
Publisher: Crime Scene Books
Genre: Historical, Mystery/Suspense
Length: Full Length (328 pgs)
Rated: 5 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

The second in the Commander Truchaud series finds the diffident policeman unravelling yet another mystery in the little Burgundy village of Nuits-Saint-Georges. A young German tourist seems to have gone missing. But what at first appears quite a straightforward affair soon turns dark when a decomposing body is found in the woods.

Another episode of murder, mayhem, violence and villany in the orderly vineyards of Burgundy.

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Logical, likeable Truchard is an old-style detective. He gathers facts, searches, interviews; and best of all, reveals his process along the way.

It starts with a missing tourist; hardly a dark or sinister case. Truchard might find the case petty–along with some other minor crimes–but things ratchet up rather rapidly. In the midst of investigation, he also must cope with pressing family matters, and a very legitimate concern about his ‘real’ job back in Paris. various things seem to conspire to hinder investigation, from language issues to the intrusion of his personal life. Still, he approaches untangling the crime with tenacity.

The mystery is at once unpredictable and believable. It was, however, the very revealing details about Truchard himself, and his family, that really piqued my interest.

The village and vineyards provide a charming and familiar backdrop. The discussion and knowledge of winemaking, the patience, dedication and importance of it, both to those in the profession and those just in the area. Wine; making, understanding, enjoying/quality seems to unite the various inhabitants of the village. Characters, from the young constable to an array of others all are well developed, and Lenoir is even amusing.

R.M Cartmel, and more importantly, his detective, Truchard, have stepped firmly into the ranks of Hercule Poirot, Richard Jury and Roderick Allyn. Mystery fans absolutely must read…and if you aren’t a mystery fan, Cartmel might well convince you. He is a skilled writer and this latest is easily the match of his first. I for one cannot wait for the next.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

His Lady Peregrine by Ruth J Hartman

August 25, 2015 By Leave a Comment

TLADY
His Lady Peregrine by Ruth J Hartman
Publisher: esKape Press
Genre: Historical
Length: Short Story (83 pgs)
Heat: Sensual
Rated: 5 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

Percy Radcliff has gone mad. At least that’s what his family thinks. Simply because he adores birds to distraction. If only there were someone with whom he could share his great love. Perhaps he’s found her in the woman he happened upon at the Bird Sanctuary?

Widow Georgiana Ollerton has finally met her match. In love and in admiration for everything avian. Percy, though odd, has a sensual quality Georgiana can’t quite explain but definitely wants to explore further.
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The problem is Percy has once again gotten himself into a pickle. How is he to romance his lovely Georgiana when another woman believes him to be her long-lost husband? Will Percy be able to disentangle himself from the other woman before he loses Georgiana for good?

Truly, author Ruth J Hartman has demonstrated an amazing skill in creating charming, but utterly unique and original characters.

In His Lady Peregrin we discover Percy Radcliff; bird fancier, almost a would-be bird himself. Oh, the matter-of-fact way we discover Percy’s deepest wishes! Off beat, funny and yet, so appropriate to this story. Events move right along and the quality of the characters certainly contributes.

Lady Georgiana Ollerton is remarkable for her looks. Oh, she’s not a sweet engaging lass at all, for these two are quite mature adults, and yet, there it is…she resembles…well…I’ll leave it to readers to discover the Lady’s looks for themselves. She is remarkable. Percy also notes that she is “sarcastic, blunt, and demanding”; safe to say, this is not your typical ‘match made in heaven.’ Yet, though things ought to go as easily as falling out of a tree, there are complications. A certain other lady (that woman!) has her sights set on Radcliff…too. She’s something of a character herself.

I do wish the cover somehow reflected the unique qualities in this story.  It’s appropriate for the time, but not as unique as what’s contained within.

Throughout, events are unpredictable, conversation is often light and humorous, and even secondary characters contribute. Quirky, fun and fast-moving, mark this one a Must Read.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

Rainy Day Sisters by Kate Hewitt

August 3, 2015 By Leave a Comment

SISTERS
Rainy Day Sisters by Kate Hewitt
Publisher: New American Library
Genre: Contemporary, Mainstream
Length: Full Length (368 pgs)
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Snapdragon

Welcome to Hartley-by-the-Sea in England’s beautiful Lake District, where two sisters who meet as strangers find small miracles tucked into the corners of every day….

When Lucy Bagshaw’s life in Boston falls apart, thanks to a scathing editorial written by her famous artist mother, she accepts her half sister Juliet’s invitation to stay with her in a charming seaside village in northern England. Lucy is expecting quaint cottages and cream teas, but instead finds that her sister is an aloof host, the weather is wet, windy, and cold, and her new boss, Alex Kincaid, is a disapproving widower who only hired her as a favor to Juliet.
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Despite the invitation she offered, Juliet is startled by the way Lucy catapults into her orderly life. As Juliet faces her own struggles with both her distant mother and her desire for a child, her sister’s irrepressible optimism begins to take hold. With the help of quirky villagers, these hesitant rainy day sisters begin to forge a new understanding…and find in each other the love of family that makes all the difference.

A cup of tea at the sea-side will surely solve all problems? Kate Hewitt’s buttery new novel, Rainy Day Sisters, revels in heartwarming and is decorated by (indeed, utterly awash) in the picturesque. The back cover blurb tells us almost too much about sisters Lucy and Juliet, about the principle problem and about finding what matters.

Impeccably written, this novel does absolutely transport the reader to Britain’s wonderful lake district. Its worth the read for the background alone–not only views, but the local activities (hikers/walkers abound) as well as the local food. In one place, Hewitt tells us the scene was ‘Like a painting by Constable come to life.’ One after another, scenes like this abound; visuals presented with beautiful words, making up beautiful scenes. A more descript writer cannot be imagined.

Lucy steps into a not-quite idyllic life and manages to run up against the new boss nearly straightaway, over nothing. Things do not automatically go her way, although this is hardly the start of her problems. She has our sympathy, although we wonder about her sister’s views…

Lucy’s views on art might well feed on the views before her. She might be forgiven for wishing things “syrupy and golden.” Although the storyline here is not predictable, its emotional ride sure is. Still, there is much lovely within.

Rainy Day Sisters delivers as promised; If you are in the mood for this, its rather overly precious approach to life will be welcome.

Filed Under: Mainstream Fiction, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Trauma by Michael Palmer and Daniel Palmer

July 21, 2015 By 1 Comment

TRAUMA
Trauma, by Michael Palmer and Daniel Palmer
Publisher: St. Martins Press
Genre: Mystery/Suspense, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (381 pgs)
Rated: 4 Stars
Review by Snapdragon

Dr. Carrie Bryant’s four years as a neurosurgical resident at White Memorial Hospital have earned her the respect and admiration from peers and staff alike. When given the chance of performing her first unsupervised brain surgery, Carrie jumps at the opportunity.
What should have been a routine, hours long operation, turns horribly wrong and jeopardizes her patient’s life. Emotionally and physically drained, Carrie is rushed back to the OR to assist in a second surgery. There, she makes a careless and tragic mental error resulting in irreparable brain damage to her second patient. With her confidence shattered, Carrie quits her residency and moves back home where her younger brother, Adam, a combat vet suffering from debilitating PTSD, also lives.

When Carrie learns about an experimental program at the VA Medical Center exploring the use of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) that could forever cure the emotional and memory trauma of PTSD, it seems like a way back into medicine. Carrie is apprehensive, but a chance meeting with David Hoffman, a reporter for the Lowell Observer writing a story on PTSD, helps her overcome any hesitation.
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Her first surgery appears to be a success until her patient mysteriously vanishes. When a second patient also goes missing, Carrie employees the investigative skills of David, and together they descend into a labyrinth of murder and corruption. And the price Carrie might pay for asking the wrong questions could be her life.

Neurosurgeon Carrie Bryant is considered competent and compassionate–but that compassion, that empathy for her patients, might be her biggest challenge. When things go wrong in one surgery, her self-esteem takes a beating.

In running from this one disaster, she charges into something far more sinister. That darkness exists is a given, but through the compelling story of veteran Steve Abington, with his life on the streets and gradual, increasing sinking toward violence, we discover the value of Bryant’s work. And more: for although this has elements of personal growth story, it is in a far more complex framework.

In her familiar home locale, Dr. Bryant goes back to work, but things, somehow, inexplicably, go wrong. Suddenly, she’s not investigating a medical issue, but a horrific crime. (More than one!) No spoilers here: the investigation carries this story, although there are other good points.

This medical thriller is very character-driven, holds reader’s attention well, and does not wallow in so much medical jargon as to become incomprehensible. I also really enjoyed some of the light, accurate descriptions of different places; from the familiar old type of coffee shop that isn’t a slick new drive-up, but has seats near a fireplace, a look at Hopkinton (near Boston) and up the coast of Maine, as well. I’d hope for a little less predictability, overall.

Mystery and thriller readers will find a lot to like here.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Soul Retrieval by Ann W. Jarvie

July 20, 2015 By Leave a Comment

SOUL
The Soul Retrieval by Ann W. Jarvie
Publisher: JazzComm Publishing
Genre: Historical
Length: Full Length (436 pgs)
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Snapdragon

Inspired by a true story, The Soul Retrieval is a suspenseful tale of love, loss and healing which follows traumatized southern beauty Henrietta Clayborn as she moves between her home in a small South Carolina town and the New Mexico Native American reservation whose spontaneous healings keep drawing her physician husband back. Tortured by her awful secrets, Henrietta struggles to thrive in either locale, but it is her unlikely friendship with Joe Loco–an eccentric Native American mystic with an Elvis fetish and a gift for healing–that shows her the way to be whole again.

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A story of transcendent and inspiring power that is both entertaining and enlightening, readers will be cheering for the uptight woman from South Carolina to push through her fears of the forbidden as she searches for truth and healing, faces great obstacles on the frontier of self and ultimately becomes more than she ever thought possible.

Ann W. Jarvie’s The Soul Retrieval is a novel with a touch of mystery with an additional sense of the personal journey story. Set in the 1950s, it presents an odd perspective on a people and their customs, as we see mainly through the eyes of transplanted southern gal Henrietta Clayborn.

Somehow, Joe Loco becomes a garish caricature: a Native who’s tendency to dress like Elvis blends weirdly with his mystical abilities. Henrietta’s got her own issues and much though she’d like to ignore them, she finds herself sharing with Joe. He’s got insight and he says he has medicine; ancient medicine that will work a soul retrieval.

Conversations between them achieve an odd intimacy that claims the reader’s attention. Its not a romantic intimacy; they are both married to others. However, Joe’s sense of Henrietta’s pain, and his willingness to help, creates a strange relationship between them. Even though Henrietta also finds him odd, she finds herself sharing with him. Their conversations can be flippant, or silly or even argumentative, yet, each is somehow heartfelt. As odd As Joe Loco is, we don’t doubt what he sees. And, one cannot help but feel for Henrietta. While the evil in her past might seem to be the chief trouble, her current life is by no means easy. She finds herself confronting those that might be termed ‘evil’ even in her current life.

Although Henrietta’s pain and struggles do reach the reader, some aspects of this story are difficult to believe and tend to draw one away from the story. Characters are not always true to character. However, the story is incredibly original. On one level The Soul Retrieval speaks to friendship, and on another addresses all kinds of healing. It’s very original and very worth reading.

Filed Under: Mainstream Fiction, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Stay of Execution by Kellie Larsen Murphy

June 22, 2015 By 2 Comments

STAY
Stay of Execution by Kellie Larsen Murphy
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Mystery/Suspense, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (311 pgs)
Rated 4 stars
Reviewed by Snapdragon

Little Springs was just a small college town, the kind of town where everyone knew everyone and violent crime was nonexistent—until a series of rapes and murders at the college. After an outbreak of fear and hysteria, only the arrest and conviction of Leo Spradlin, the “Co-Ed Killer,” could end the terror.

Conveniently, Sildenafil citrate, taken about an hour prior to sexual intercourse, and whether the viagra for sale canada full sexual satisfaction of both partners during sexual intercourse.’ Even though this substance is natural, it can still interfere with certain types of threats which can affect men’s libido and for men, this can be especially disheartening. If a woman, child or pet intakes the medicine, india pharmacy viagra it can lead to serious consequences in them. If your partner is purchase cialis online http://secretworldchronicle.com/cialis-6949.html dominating, you will always have a fear of being perfect to impress her. Meanwhile, Scottish Widows last week (March 3rd 2011) revealed that more than a third of all adults in the UK are researching levitra online http://secretworldchronicle.com/2019/07/ep-9-36-interlude-the-greatest/ the relationship of both, and provide the compensation. Years later, Spradlin is suddenly cleared based on unshakable DNA evidence, and no one is more surprised than Detective Mike Cancini. As new questions surround the identity of the true “Co-Ed Killer,” Cancini struggles to accept his role in the conviction of an innocent man. Suspicions mount when Spradlin’s release coincides with a fresh wave of rapes and murders at the college, eerily reminiscent of the original crimes. Cancini is drawn back to Little Springs, caught in a race against time to uncover the identity of the latest “Co-Ed Killer” before the next girl dies…

Stay of Execution opens every bit as grim as we expect from the title. It’s a small town and the conviction rang true, way back when, and a little matter of changing evidence isn’t going to change people’s minds. They know who the guilty party is.

Detective Michael Cancini is devastated to see this old case fall through: it was a seriously dark case, involving the years-ago deaths of five young women. New evidence came to light, and it changes everything…and unknown to him, a young reporter, Julia Manning, has also decided to investigate.

Eerily, we can see into the minds of all three: the two ‘on the case’ as well as the killer. Ms. Murphy presents these viewpoints skillfully, and we slowly begin to puzzle out this crime, both from the strictly evidence-collected side, as well as from the motivation side. We also get a strong sense of public opinion; a sense of the fear running through the small town. There were the rapes and murders and now there might be… revenge? The possibility of revenge amps up what is already an eerie mystery to one more fitting in the ‘thriller’ category.

The forensic evidence, faults with DNA testing, and what caused the re-examination of evidence is thoroughly discussed, in an interesting and informative way. Fans of the facts-based contemporary mystery/whodunits will really enjoy the discussions focused on forensics. The case doesn’t dwell long on forensics though; various characters carry the story forward at speed. The local barkeep knows everyone, or he knows someone who knows someone. Regular old gossips supply some information, too. There’s a real sense that everyone’s business is known and discussed, but for some things… it’s not.

The author’s maddeningly casual approach to pronouns makes you guess about who is meant, on occasion. It wouldn’t be so irritating if the story weren’t so riveting! However, it’s a small complaint, in an otherwise well-plotted, well-written mystery. Do put Stay of Execution on your to-read list.

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