Category: F-J Page 5 of 25

PUB DAY REPOST: Dead Mercy by Noelle Holten: An Apt Title for A Grim Thriller

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On November 19, 2021

In DC Maggie Jamieson, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Noelle Holten

Dead Mercy

Dead Mercy

by Noelle Holten
Series: DC Maggie Jamieson, #5

eARC, 416 pg.
One More Chapter, 2021

Read: October 4-5, 2021

What’s Dead Mercy About?

The closing chapter of Dead Secret set this up (as Holten is so good about doing): a business has gone up in fire and a body has been found inside—possibly the body of someone Maggie’s worked with in Probation. From the start, this case has its hooks in Maggie.

It’s soon decided that the body was the source of the fire—and before the victim had been set ablaze, he’d been restrained and had teeth pulled. The killer had wanted to punish him, not just kill him.

Soon another victim is discovered—and the team has to race to find a connection so they can prevent anyone else from suffering this fate.

When the link is finally discovered, it suggests potential new victims as well as several suspects. It also shines a bright light on a striking failure of the criminal justice system.

Bethany and Kat

Back when I talked about Book 3, Dead Perfect, I wrote that they were overworking PC Bethany Lambert, “Miscellaneous errands, thankless tasks, things requiring technological expertise, and more fall to her. I lost track of how many things Maggie threw her way to do—on top of her own assignments. I have multiple notes about how they’re working this woman to death.” They’ve yet to let up on her—however, it’s talked about both as the way she likes to work and as something other people are concerned about. This is efficiently done—the characters around her get to be observant and sympathetic, and they can continue to throw too much work at her so Holten doesn’t have to create 2-3 more characters to keep the stories moving at that pace.

Dead Perfect was also where DC Kat Everett was added to the team—she’s better integrated into the action over the last couple of books now and I really enjoy her. I’m ready to read a spin-off series focusing on her now, either in her same assignment or transferred somewhere. Her brashness would make for a fun protagonist (not that Maggie isn’t brash, but hers is a side-effect of her impetuousness).

A Refreshing Approach

With most police procedurals you get the maverick, lone-wolf detective—maybe with a couple of people they trust. Or (particularly with UK-based procedurals), you get a focus on a detective squad. With the Maggie Jamieson books, we get a good look at her squad, probation services, and other social services.

Not just as a drop-in for a convenient bit of information, either. But characters that matter, there’s interconnectedness between the groups and it’s good to see the flow of information (formally, informally, unauthorized) informing the investigations. I like seeing that approach, and I like to think it reflects reality far more than any lone-wolf thumbing their nose at regulations.

Although, the pathologist still seeming to hold a grudge over one of her staff being (justifiably) questioned a while back seems to be petty. Which, so it’s not all super-professional and mutually helpful.

Let’s Hope This Is Fiction

Not every author spends too much time on the motivation behind the killings, but an author that gives a believable motivation separates their work from the pack. This is another of those areas that Holten excels in.

Yes, this is a work of fiction. Yes, things are heightened. But when you read this, there’s going to be a voice in the back of your head saying, “I could see that happening.”

Not only that, there’s a pretty good chance that you’re going to be a little conflicted about the crimes. Odds are, you’re not going to be hoping that Maggie and her team fail, or that the killer (killers?) gets away with it. Buuuut…once you understand the motive pushing the killer(s), you may not feel that bad about what happens to the victims.

So, what did I think about Dead Mercy?

Holten’s got this down now—the characters and world are well established, as are the relationships in them. Despite the relatively brief chronology between books 1-5, there’s been some decent character growth on several points, too. So a new Maggie Jamieson thriller is a chance to spend some time catching up with new acquaintances while getting to go for a pretty intense ride as those acquaintances try to stop a brutal killer.

Okay, maybe that’s not the ideal way to catch up and check in on anyone, but it’s a pretty exciting read.

Crime Reads had that piece a couple of weeks ago discussing “all crime is cyber crime,” which was ringing in my ears as I read this. This very visceral series of murders is evidence to support that thesis—cyber-policing wasn’t enough to stop the series, either, but it played its part. Holten’s always been good at balancing the computer-work and the boots-on-the-ground policing but might have outdone herself here.

The accent does fall on the physical world, of course, given the nature of the crimes. If your stomach doesn’t church a little at the description of the murders (likely both as they’re happening and as the pathologist breaks them down), you’re made of pretty stern stuff. Thankfully, Holten’s narration doesn’t ever seem to relish in the disturbing details as too many do.

Basically, this is a top-notch thriller with a lot for the reader to chew on as they’re burning through the pages.

It does appear that this is going to be the last Maggie Jamieson book–at least for a while. I’m hoping it’s just a break, and we get back to Maggie and the rest of the Major and Organised Crime Department soon. If not? These five books are a great set and I (again) strongly recommend them to you.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from HarperCollins UK via NetGalley in exchange for this post — thanks to both for this.

4 Stars

Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg: Starts Off with a Bang and Doesn’t Let Up

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On October 28, 2021

In Fiction, Lee Goldberg, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Gated Prey

Gated Prey

by Lee Goldberg
Series: Eve Ronin, #3

Kindle Edition, 255 pg.
Thomas & Mercer, 2021

Read: October 26-27, 2021
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

“The people who live in these places think the gates protect them from all the crime and misery that’s out there, but it doesn’t. It just locks them in with it.”

“You think whatever happened came from within the gates?”

“I don’t know where it came from, that’s your job. But I’m sure there’s as much evil inside these gates as there is outside of them. Maybe more.”

What’s Gated Prey About?

LASD Detectives Eve Ronain and Duncan Pavone are in the midst of a sting operation when the novel opens—to trap a home invasion team, the pair are pretending to be a well-moneyed couple who’d make pretty easy marks to lure the team in. They go out daily to shop a little—making sure to flash a lot of cash—and then go back to their McMansion in a gated community to wait. Duncan’s loving the excuse to sit around all day and watch movies, while it’s driving Eve crazy to not be active.

The LASD has tried traditional investigational methods, but they just haven’t worked—no one can figure out how the team is getting past the security gates, much less who they are, and how they select their targets.

The trap works and the LASD chalks it up as a win. But Eve’s uncomfortable with the number of questions (and possible accomplices) that remain about it. Also, there are indications that Eve still has enemies within the department—and they might have prevented backup that Eve and Duncan needed from acting to keep them safe.

That’s not the only crime Eve and Duncan encounter behind the protective gates—while trying to close the home invasion case, the pair pick up another assignment. It’s not covered in the publisher’s description, and I’m not sure how to talk about it without giving away too much. So let’s just say that it will underscore that “Maybe more” from my opening quotation.

Eve Off-the-Clock

“You’re doing it again,” Duncan said.

“Doing what?”

“Obsessing over your case to the point of exhaustion. You need a life and some sleep. You can’t physically, mentally, or emotionally sustain being relentless.” “

I’m only doing it now because we’ve got a ticking clock on this one.”

“You’ve done it on every case we’ve had.”

“You make it seem like years. We’ve only been working together for a few months. It hasn’t been that long.”

But like Duncan, readers know if the two had been working together longer, she’d be doing the same thing. This is not a good way to live—it’s not healthy, and if Eve doesn’t learn how to take her foot off the gas, she’s going to burn out or make some big mistakes—likely both. But this is the kind of character I love reading about. Yes, I do hope that she learns how to balance things a bit—for the sake of character development, I think it’d be interesting. But until she does? I’m going to love watching her burn herself out.

Eve spends so much time working over the course of the novel that there’s almost no time for anything but her work. We do get to see most of Eve’s family, but very briefly—and the most we see is of her sister, thanks to Lisa’s work in the ER. I’d have liked a bit more time with her, she humanizes Eve, but that’s not always possible in every book.

Conversely, I thought it was good to have a scaled-down presence of Eve’s mom (especially with Eve’s agent being able to carry the water of “supporting character annoyingly-fixated on the superficial”). I find Jen an amusing and important part of the series, but man, a little of her goes a long way.

Duncan “Dunkin’ Donuts” Pavone

I’m not sure if I should use the nickname in that section header, I’m not sure if Goldberg used it this time. But, eh, I like it. I made so many notes while reading that were variations of “love this character.”

While he remains the wise and largely-comic-relief figure he’s been, there’s a darkness to Duncan we haven’t really seen before, expressed in a couple of different ways. There’s a certain invulnerability that his fast-approaching retirement date gives him that allows him to give this side a free rein—Duncan notes repeatedly that his career is over, he has nothing to lose. I really wouldn’t want him as an enemy (not that I want any, I have to say, but really not him).

We also get some insight into his reason for retirement—one of those things I hadn’t questioned. He was introduced to us in Lost Hills as being on the verge of retirement, and that’s just how I’ve thought about him. But now I want to know more about what got him to this point.

She’s Still Learning

Eve’s only been a homicide detective for a few months, and she still has a lot to learn. Not just the lessons that Duncan’s trying to teach her about overworking and getting along with colleagues.

But she’s still learning how to be a detective—she doesn’t know basic routines and procedures. She embarrasses herself in front of a morgue attendant and in an autopsy—nothing horrible, just the kind of stumbling people make when they’re new at something. Some of what she does within the Sheriff’s department is a little more than embarrassing—and will likely come back to haunt her, but again, that’s realistic growing pains.

It’s not often that we get to see this kind of thing in police procedurals—especially with the central/titular character. And this approach is a treat.

So, what did I think about Gated Prey?

“…I just got lucky.”

Duncan leaned against the wall and looked at her. “It isn’t luck, Eve. It’s instinct. You’re a natural at this. What you haven’t learned yet is how to do it without making enemies.”

I’ve gone on too long at this point—and there’s so much that I still wanted to talk about: the ongoing role of the media (both news and entertainment) in Eve’s life and career—not to mention at least one fellow detective; the politics within and outside the LASD and how that impacts their investigation; personnel changes within the Department; and racial and economic prejudices that the security gates seem to magnify.

Also, while Duncan (especially) and Eve have always seemed to have some fun meals—there are three references to food that almost induced a between-meal DoorDash order on my part. Don’t read this on an empty stomach, folks.

Great characters all around, a couple of gripping cases, and a breakneck pace—all par for the course for this series. If you haven’t jumped on the Eve Ronin train—now’s the time. I literally organized my reading schedule the last couple of weeks so that I could start this as soon as it was delivered to my Kindle, and it was worth it. You want to get your hands—and eyes*—on this, readers.

* Or ears, come to think of it, Nicol Zanzarella does a great job with the audiobook narrations for these books.

4 1/2 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Daughter of the Morning Star by Craig Johnson: A Cheyenne boogeyman, A Recalcitrant Teen Sports Star, and a Wyoming Sheriff

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On October 27, 2021

In Craig Johnson, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Walt Longmire

Daughter of the Morning Star

Daughter of the Morning Star

by Craig Johnson
Series: Walt Longmire, #17

Hardcover, 322 pg.
Viking, 2021

Read: September 28-29, 2021
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

“Everybody thinks the dead of the night is the scary time, but it’s not. The time of danger for the living is the time of change, from day into night or night into day, when the world isn’t sure what it is or what it wants to be.”

What’s Daughter of the Morning Star About?

Midway through the last novel, Next to Last Stand, Walt and Henry stop by a High School Girl’s Basketball game to watch Lolo Long’s niece, Jaya “Longshot” Long, do what she does best. But they don’t stop by to enjoy the game, really, they’re there because Lolo wants help. Jaya’s been receiving death threats and there’s only so much an aunt can do (even if that aunt is a Tribal Police Chief).

This is where we pick up now—the threats are real, repeated, and don’t seem to be a prank. Adding to the danger is the fact that Jaya’s older sister disappeared the prior year under suspicious circumstances. There’s no need to think the two are linked, but Walt has to consider the possibility.

If nothing else, Lolo hopes that bringing Walt into the investigation(s) will draw attention to him—he tends to get people watching and talking about his escapades, and hopefully, his involvement will get enough people interested in what’s going on to generate some leads.

There are plenty of suspects—on the reservation and off—for both the threats and the disappearance, so Walt and Henry have their hands full.

A Recurring Question

“I’m sorry, but I don’t believe in the things you believe in, Henry.”

He nodded. “I know that, but I respect your belief in humanity, if for only one reason.”

“What’s that?”

“It makes you very resolute.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“Sometimes.”

There is a strong possible supernatural thread running through this novel. I’m not going to do justice to explaining the particular spirits that are suspected to be at work in this book, but there’s a real sense of hazard around them. And a lot of what Walt encounters during these events cannot be easily explained by something other than a spiritual force.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that this concept has been explored in the Longmire books. I don’t have hard numbers on it (I expect someone on the Internet does), but I’d guess that it’s a little less than one-half of them that feature this in a significant way.

And for all his protesting (see above), I’m not so sure that Walt doesn’t believe most of what Henry does. If your actions are an expression of your beliefs, he sure seems to. Not simply his actions over the course of this novel, there’s just about every other novel in the series—look at everything involving Virgil White Buffalo, for example (but there are several other pieces of evidence). Given both his background, what his wife believed, and his lack of knowledge about the details of Cheyenne beliefs, I can believe that Walt’s hesitant to claim that belief, but he sure does walk the walk.

Of course, there’s this observation Walt makes:

Funny how your attitude about spirituality could change when the chips were down.

A Sobering Beginning And Unfortunate Coincidence

In the midst of all the media coverage surrounding the search for Gabby Petito this summer, one of the things I frequently saw was people listing the statistics surrounding the numbers of missing Native American women every year.

The Acknowledgements in the front of this book listed similar statistics regarding missing and murdered Native American women, which are partially where Johnson drew the idea for this novel from. These numbers are repeated in the text itself, too.

This isn’t the first time that Johnson has used Walt’s case to comment on something in the news (or something that should be), but an accident of timing made this novel particularly germane.

Missing Friends

The downside to a Longmire book that takes place outside of Absaroka County is that most of the Sheriff’s department and the residents of Durant aren’t in the book. We didn’t get Sancho, Ruby, or Lucian (for example). And Vic was largely absent as well—but was well used for little time she was around.

I get the need to have Walt do things outside of Durant/Absaroka County to prevent Durant from becoming Murder Central, U.S.A. (it’s likely the most murder-filled town/county in Wyoming), but I really wish it didn’t involve leaving so many of the characters out of the books.

Here’s hoping that #18 brings them all back.

So, what did I think about Daughter of the Morning Star?

I thought some of the basketball material in the book (particularly the further in the novel we got) was a little eye-roll-inducing. It was just too much for a cynical guy like me. But somehow Johnson made it work.

There’s a lot said about hope in Daughter of the Morning Star–mostly about its absence. But, as hope tends to do, it shows up in the unlikeliest of places and in the midst of the darkest times. When this book is finished, there’s no happily ever afters promised (as usual for this series), but there’ve been moments of triumph, and maybe a dawning of hope for some.

This is really the most entertaining Longmire book in quite a while. When Johnson is on his game, he’s great. And that’s what we got here. Readers new and old will find a lot to be satisfied with here.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Junkyard Bargain (eBook) by Faith Hunter: Sometimes getting what you want is painful

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On October 20, 2021

In Book Tour, Faith Hunter, Fiction, Science Fiction, Uncategorized

Junkyard Bargain Banner

Junkyard Bargain

Junkyard Bargain

by Faith Hunter
Series: Shining Smith, #2

eARC, 166 pages
Lore Seekers Press, 2021

Read: October 16-18, 2021


Back in March, I talked about this as an Audible Original. And I’m going to borrow from that, but the eBook is a different experience, so we’ll talk about that a little bit, too.

The Law was uncertain. Vengeance wasn’t.

What’s Junkyard Bargain About?

Shining Smith needs to gear up and improve her weapons and armor if they’re going to take on the task they have ahead of them. This means traveling to Charleston, and selling some of the junk from her scrapyard, and making the right deals.

Standing in their way are rival bike gangs, corrupt police, sex slavers, and random other criminals. Whatever else happens—Shining isn’t going to allow those slavers to hang on to their captives (and likely won’t let them hang on to their lives, either). She needs to avoid the police, strike careful deals with the gangs, and survive the rest—all the while she’s noticing changes in her cats and expands the control Shining’s won enhancements have on those closest to her.

It’s really hard to explain without pretty much recapping everything in the first book.

Shining’s Thralls and Allies

This time through the book, Cupcake, Jagger, Mateo, and Jolene—Shining’s Thralls—grabbed my attention to various degrees more than they had before. Don’t get me wrong, this is Shining’s story and she’s a character that’s worth dissecting.

But what Hunter has done with these secondary characters is really interesting. Cupcake, for example, changes a lot over the course of these pages—due to what’s required of her as well as what happens to her. There’s a lot to Cupcake that’s been latent, but she’s never had a reason/opportunity to express. Now she’s been given that opportunity…I can’t wait to see what Cupcake gets up to in the next installment.

The rest of the thralls all end up doing things that Shining doesn’t expect (this is hard to get into while staying away from spoilers). The way this works out both in the closing pages of this book and in the next is likely going to make or break this series.

Getting back to Shining—one thing that Hunter’s protagonists tend to share is that they’re coming to greater understandings of their abilities (and developing them) in each book. This applies just as much to her post-apocalyptic SF hero as it does to her Urban Fantasy protagonists. It’s just about her nanobots instead of magic.

A Different Experience

This isn’t evaluative, I just figured it deserved a mention. While I’ve frequently moved from reading a book to re-reading it via audiobook, I’ve never moved from audio to text before, so this was an interesting experience just for that. For one thing, I finally learned how to spell “Berger chip.”

I did think that I related to the text, story, and characters differently when reading as opposed to listening—although part of that is due to the fact that this was my second exposure to Junkyard Bargain. It’s like getting to read the screenplay/script for a movie/play that you’re familiar with. I did find that most of the characters “sounded” a lot like Khristine Hvam as I read the dialogue.

I’m definitely still going to listen to the third Shining Smith book when it’s released on audio, but I’m also going to be making sure I get the ebook later (which I didn’t do for Junkyard Cats…yet).

So, what did I think about Junkyard Bargain?

I absolutely love this world. I don’t think one more novella is going to be enough to satisfy my curiosity. I’m going to need more somehow—it doesn’t necessarily have to be about Shining Smith.

After Junkyard Cats took several unexpected turns in the latter half, I didn’t know what to expect from this beyond more of the same. This novella may have ended up where it seemed to be heading from the beginning, but the route it took bore so little difference to what was expected that it’s hard to recognize that. Hunter is filling this post-apocalyptic world with more dangers and strangeness than we’d been exposed to last time, and you know the next installment will increase the danger.

When talking about the last book, I said that it was too brief and not deep enough. This isn’t the case this time—and not just because it was 40 minutes longer. This time it felt like there was a solid match between depth and time—to the point I wondered how she fit it all in the novella-length book.

There were some great action scenes, some solid surprises, and good character development. And…cats with telepathy. I can’t wait to see what #3 has in store.

3 Stars

EXCERPT from Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter: A Breakfast Conversation

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On October 20, 2021

In Book Tour, Faith Hunter, Fiction, Quotations, Science Fiction

Junkyard Bargain Banner

from Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter

“I love broccoli,” I said, shoveling beets into my mouth. “I had broccoli pesto once. It’s good.”

“Oh my god, yes. Anything with garlic and pine nuts is good. You ever tried Brussels sprouts pesto? So good! The greenhouse is just blooming up a storm,” she nattered on now that I had contributed to the conversation, once again cheery, her blue eyes sparkling. I ate and heard her say, “That new hemp mesh Mateo and I strung up? The stuff that was left over from shading the greenhouse compound? We put it up on aisle Tango three.”

“Mmm,” I said, now scooping in the pancakes. Trying not to puke at the growing rotten-finger stench.

“This place needs a good cleaning,” she said. “It’s getting kinda rank in here.”

“Right. Soon. New hemp mesh?” I reminded her.

“It’s absorbing and capturing moisture out of the night air like a dream. Come winter, we might bring in enough to actually get a shower once a week.”

That caught my attention. I swigged my coffee so I could talk. She poured me more. “Fresh water?” I asked.

“Nearly a week’s supply for drinking and watering the greenhouse, in a little over ten days,” she said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “We think we can do twice that in winter.”

My hand, holding the fancy fork, halted halfway to my mouth. “That’s … That’s really good.”

“It’s not a full replacement, yet,” she prattled, “but not bad for summer, and if Mateo and I can get that water tower off the office roof and patch it up, we’ll have a good place to store water.”

Something like pleasure, maybe mixed with joy, flowed through me—a rare and unexpected sensation. “I’m … I’m proud of you, Cupcake.”

Cupcake’s blue eyes widened. Her color went high as she blossomed at the praise. “Eat,” she ordered, pointing at my meal, shaking with elation.

I didn’t praise her enough. I had to remember to do that. I ate. The buckwheat and millet pancakes were tasty enough. The roasted beets were surprisingly sweet and tender.

“It’s good.”

She hid her smile in her coffee cup. That was the thing about thralls. They were eager to please, needed to please, quite literally might die if they couldn’t find a way to serve and didn’t get attention from their nanobot-donor queen. She set down her cup, whipped a nail file out of her pocket, and reached for my left hand. “Not this morning,” I said softly. To keep her from freezing in uncertainty, I continued, “Tell me more about the netting and the free water.” Then, because it made her glow, I added, “This is exciting.”

 

Read the rest in Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter to see what happens from here—and all the new ways that Cupcake finds to serve.


My thanks to Let’s Talk! Promotions for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials (including the book via NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group) they provided.

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter

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On October 20, 2021

In Book Tour, Faith Hunter, Fiction, Science Fiction

Junkyard Bargain Banner
Today I’m very pleased to welcome the Book Tour for the e-book release of the second Shining Smith novella, Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter. Along with this spotlight post, I have a fun excerpt to share. I’ll be giving my take on the novella a little later. Those links’ll work when the posts go live in an hour or two.

First, let’s take a look at Junkyard Bargain.
Junkyard Bargain Banner

Book Details:

Book Title: Junkyard Bargain by Faith Hunter
Publisher: Lore Seekers Press
Release date: October 19, 2021
Format: Ebook
Length: 166 pages
ISBN: 9781622681648
Junkyard Bargain Cover

Book Blurb:

Sometimes before you can face your enemies—you need to confront yourself.

Time is running out for Shining Smith and her crew to gather the weapons they need to rescue one of their own. But will they even make it to the ultimate battle? First, they’ll need to hit the road to Charleston—a hell ride full of bandits, sex slavers, corrupt lawmen, and criminal bike gangs looking to move in on Shining’s territory.

Shining’s human allies will do anything to protect her—because they must. But will victory be worth it if she must compel more and more people to do her bidding? And will her feline warriors, the junkyard cats, remain loyal and risk their lives? Or are they just in it for the kibble?

Purchase Links

Barnes & Noble ~ Amazon

About Faith Hunter:

Faith HunterFaith Hunter is the award-winning New York Times and USAToday bestselling author of the Jane Yellowrock, Soulwood, Rogue Mage, and Junkyard Cats series. In addition, she has edited several anthologies and co-authored the Rogue Mage RPG. She is the coauthor and author of 16 thrillers under pen names Gary Hunter and Gwen Hunter. Altogether she has 40+ books and dozens of short stories in print and is juggling multiple projects.

She sold her first book in 1989 and hasn’t stopped writing since.

Faith collects orchids and animal skulls, loves thunderstorms, and writes. She likes to cook soup, bake bread, garden, and kayak Class II & III whitewater rivers. She edits the occasional anthology and drinks a lot of tea. Some days she’s a lady. Some days she ain’t.

Find Faith online at:

Website ~ Facebook (official) ~ Facebook Fan Group ~ Twitter ~

Yellowrock Securities website ~ Gwen Hunter website

My thanks to Let’s Talk! Promotions for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials (including the book via NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group) they provided.

Dead Mercy by Noelle Holten: An Apt Title for A Grim Thriller

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On October 18, 2021

In DC Maggie Jamieson, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Noelle Holten

Dead Mercy

Dead Mercy

by Noelle Holten
Series: DC Maggie Jamieson, #5

eARC, 416 pg.
One More Chapter, 2021

Read: October 4-5, 2021

What’s Dead Mercy About?

The closing chapter of Dead Secret set this up (as Holten is so good about doing): a business has gone up in fire and a body has been found inside—possibly the body of someone Maggie’s worked with in Probation. From the start, this case has its hooks in Maggie.

It’s soon decided that the body was the source of the fire—and before the victim had been set ablaze, he’d been restrained and had teeth pulled. The killer had wanted to punish him, not just kill him.

Soon another victim is discovered—and the team has to race to find a connection so they can prevent anyone else from suffering this fate.

When the link is finally discovered, it suggests potential new victims as well as several suspects. It also shines a bright light on a striking failure of the criminal justice system.

Bethany and Kat

Back when I talked about Book 3, Dead Perfect, I wrote that they were overworking PC Bethany Lambert, “Miscellaneous errands, thankless tasks, things requiring technological expertise, and more fall to her. I lost track of how many things Maggie threw her way to do—on top of her own assignments. I have multiple notes about how they’re working this woman to death.” They’ve yet to let up on her—however, it’s talked about both as the way she likes to work and as something other people are concerned about. This is efficiently done—the characters around her get to be observant and sympathetic, and they can continue to throw too much work at her so Holten doesn’t have to create 2-3 more characters to keep the stories moving at that pace.

Dead Perfect was also where DC Kat Everett was added to the team—she’s better integrated into the action over the last couple of books now and I really enjoy her. I’m ready to read a spin-off series focusing on her now, either in her same assignment or transferred somewhere. Her brashness would make for a fun protagonist (not that Maggie isn’t brash, but hers is a side-effect of her impetuousness).

A Refreshing Approach

With most police procedurals you get the maverick, lone-wolf detective—maybe with a couple of people they trust. Or (particularly with UK-based procedurals), you get a focus on a detective squad. With the Maggie Jamieson books, we get a good look at her squad, probation services, and other social services.

Not just as a drop-in for a convenient bit of information, either. But characters that matter, there’s interconnectedness between the groups and it’s good to see the flow of information (formally, informally, unauthorized) informing the investigations. I like seeing that approach, and I like to think it reflects reality far more than any lone-wolf thumbing their nose at regulations.

Although, the pathologist still seeming to hold a grudge over one of her staff being (justifiably) questioned a while back seems to be petty. Which, so it’s not all super-professional and mutually helpful.

Let’s Hope This Is Fiction

Not every author spends too much time on the motivation behind the killings, but an author that gives a believable motivation separates their work from the pack. This is another of those areas that Holten excels in.

Yes, this is a work of fiction. Yes, things are heightened. But when you read this, there’s going to be a voice in the back of your head saying, “I could see that happening.”

Not only that, there’s a pretty good chance that you’re going to be a little conflicted about the crimes. Odds are, you’re not going to be hoping that Maggie and her team fail, or that the killer (killers?) gets away with it. Buuuut…once you understand the motive pushing the killer(s), you may not feel that bad about what happens to the victims.

So, what did I think about Dead Mercy?

Holten’s got this down now—the characters and world are well established, as are the relationships in them. Despite the relatively brief chronology between books 1-5, there’s been some decent character growth on several points, too. So a new Maggie Jamieson thriller is a chance to spend some time catching up with new acquaintances while getting to go for a pretty intense ride as those acquaintances try to stop a brutal killer.

Okay, maybe that’s not the ideal way to catch up and check in on anyone, but it’s a pretty exciting read.

Crime Reads had that piece a couple of weeks ago discussing “all crime is cyber crime,” which was ringing in my ears as I read this. This very visceral series of murders is evidence to support that thesis—cyber-policing wasn’t enough to stop the series, either, but it played its part. Holten’s always been good at balancing the computer-work and the boots-on-the-ground policing but might have outdone herself here.

The accent does fall on the physical world, of course, given the nature of the crimes. If your stomach doesn’t church a little at the description of the murders (likely both as they’re happening and as the pathologist breaks them down), you’re made of pretty stern stuff. Thankfully, Holten’s narration doesn’t ever seem to relish in the disturbing details as too many do.

Basically, this is a top-notch thriller with a lot for the reader to chew on as they’re burning through the pages.

It does appear that this is going to be the last Maggie Jamieson book–at least for a while. I’m hoping it’s just a break, and we get back to Maggie and the rest of the Major and Organised Crime Department soon. If not? These five books are a great set and I (again) strongly recommend them to you.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from HarperCollins UK via NetGalley in exchange for this post — thanks to both for this.

4 Stars

PUB DAY REPOST: True Dead by Faith Hunter: Playing the Long Game

By

On September 14, 2021

In Faith Hunter, Fiction, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Urban Fantasy

True Dead Banner

True Dead

True Dead

by Faith Hunter
Series: Jane Yellowrock, #14

eARC, 384 pg.
Ace, 2021

Read: August 30-September 1, 2021

What’s True Dead About?

Jane and the rest of the Yellowrock Clan are headed for New Orleans after a little excitement near her new home. There are two things that bring her to her old hunting grounds and her “freebie house.”

The first is a new, looming threat to her as Dark Queen, Master of New Orleans, and pretty much every Mithran in North America—at least those who are her loyal subjects. It’s a threat that has roots in ancient vampires, magic that Jane hasn’t encountered before, and possibly a tie to the “liver eaters” of the Cherokees. It’s going to take more than a couple of sliver stakes, shotgun blasts, and a wicked grin to take care of things.

The second reason to head for New Orleans is much more pleasant—almost as elaborate, it should be added. Jane’s strengths are best displayed in combat, figuring out what supernatural threat is out there, and that sort of thing. But social events, diplomatic moves, and things like that? Not what anyone thinks of when they think Jane Yellowrock. For good reason. Thankfully, she now has a staff.

While dealing with new supernatural forces set against her and the big social event, something more immediate is plaguing Jane. She’s unable to control her shifts—she’ll wake as the cat, or in half-shifted form. She won’t be able to change back when she wants to—and Beast isn’t doing much better with it than Jane is.

All in all, Jane’s got her hands (or paws) full.

Beast

Beast gets some great moments—possibly better than Jane. She has her own agenda at points and is keeping secrets still.

I feel like I should have more to say about Beast here, but I really don’t. Mostly because I wouldn’t be able to avoid spoilers. Also, I’m not sure when I’d shut up.

Simply put, she’s a delight.

Leo’s Long Game

Over the course of the book, Jane learns some things, pieces together a few more, and makes a couple of good guesses about what she calls Leo’s long game. What she comes up with helps her—and the reader—to see her arrival in New Orleans and most of what she’s done in various situations for Leo in a new light.

It’s not as drastic as some other UF series have been when the chief protagonist learns that changes their understanding of pivotal moments in the series—but it is pretty significant. You won’t be able to think of the series and Jane’s adventures in quite the same way again—you’ll have a richer, more nuanced idea.

I’m so glad she did that.

So, what did I think about True Dead?

This thing started off with a bang—a killer first chapter that had everything a Yellowrock fan would want. When I saw the heading reading “Chapter 2,” I stopped cold. How had she fit all that into a chapter? I seriously thought I was wrapping up Chapter 3 at that point. Sure, Hunter’s chapters tend to be longer than many of the things I read, but anyway you cut it—Chapter 1 gets things rolling in a big way.

It didn’t stop from there—the hits keep coming, Jane’s sharper than she’s been in a couple of books. Not that I’m complaining about the books, but Jane’s been going through a lot lately—and now that’s fairly settled. She’s adjusted (at least more adjusted) to her new role and position. So now when trouble is on the horizon, she can throw herself at it.

And, boy howdy, does she. There are a few scenes that feel like vintage Jane—sure, given her new status she ends up dealing with things in a very non-vintage way. Long-time fans will enjoy seeing Old School Jane.

But New School Jane has more than a few surprises up her sleeve, and as fun, as it is to take a nostalgic look at how Jane dealt with problems, it’s more fun to see the way Jane deals with them now.

True Dead felt like a gift to the reader—not just because we get to see Jane tooling around New Orleans again with a vamp killer in hand, but because of everything else. The new challenges are great—and watching all the members of Clan Yellowrock rise to them is just as great. There’s a lot of joy, some sweetness, a little romance (and a little of the stuff that accompanies romance), we get to see some old friends–including a couple of pleasant surprises. And there are some very unpleasant surprises, too. Like every good writer of a long-running series, Hunter knows how to put her readers through the emotional wringer.

What it sets up for book 15? Ohh boy, I already can’t wait.

In the meantime, get your copy of True Dead as soon as you can. If you’ve read this far in this post and don’t know Jane Yellowrock? Fix that and thank me later.


My thanks to Let’s Talk! Promotions for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials (including the book via NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group) they provided.

True Dead by Faith Hunter: Playing the Long Game

By

On September 6, 2021

In Faith Hunter, Fiction, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Urban Fantasy

True Dead Banner

True Dead

True Dead

by Faith Hunter
Series: Jane Yellowrock, #14

eARC, 384 pg.
Ace, 2021

Read: August 30-September 1, 2021

What’s True Dead About?

Jane and the rest of the Yellowrock Clan are headed for New Orleans after a little excitement near her new home. There are two things that bring her to her old hunting grounds and her “freebie house.”

The first is a new, looming threat to her as Dark Queen, Master of New Orleans, and pretty much every Mithran in North America—at least those who are her loyal subjects. It’s a threat that has roots in ancient vampires, magic that Jane hasn’t encountered before, and possibly a tie to the “liver eaters” of the Cherokees. It’s going to take more than a couple of sliver stakes, shotgun blasts, and a wicked grin to take care of things.

The second reason to head for New Orleans is much more pleasant—almost as elaborate, it should be added. Jane’s strengths are best displayed in combat, figuring out what supernatural threat is out there, and that sort of thing. But social events, diplomatic moves, and things like that? Not what anyone thinks of when they think Jane Yellowrock. For good reason. Thankfully, she now has a staff.

While dealing with new supernatural forces set against her and the big social event, something more immediate is plaguing Jane. She’s unable to control her shifts—she’ll wake as the cat, or in half-shifted form. She won’t be able to change back when she wants to—and Beast isn’t doing much better with it than Jane is.

All in all, Jane’s got her hands (or paws) full.

Beast

Beast gets some great moments—possibly better than Jane. She has her own agenda at points and is keeping secrets still.

I feel like I should have more to say about Beast here, but I really don’t. Mostly because I wouldn’t be able to avoid spoilers. Also, I’m not sure when I’d shut up.

Simply put, she’s a delight.

Leo’s Long Game

Over the course of the book, Jane learns some things, pieces together a few more, and makes a couple of good guesses about what she calls Leo’s long game. What she comes up with helps her—and the reader—to see her arrival in New Orleans and most of what she’s done in various situations for Leo in a new light.

It’s not as drastic as some other UF series have been when the chief protagonist learns that changes their understanding of pivotal moments in the series—but it is pretty significant. You won’t be able to think of the series and Jane’s adventures in quite the same way again—you’ll have a richer, more nuanced idea.

I’m so glad she did that.

So, what did I think about True Dead?

This thing started off with a bang—a killer first chapter that had everything a Yellowrock fan would want. When I saw the heading reading “Chapter 2,” I stopped cold. How had she fit all that into a chapter? I seriously thought I was wrapping up Chapter 3 at that point. Sure, Hunter’s chapters tend to be longer than many of the things I read, but anyway you cut it—Chapter 1 gets things rolling in a big way.

It didn’t stop from there—the hits keep coming, Jane’s sharper than she’s been in a couple of books. Not that I’m complaining about the books, but Jane’s been going through a lot lately—and now that’s fairly settled. She’s adjusted (at least more adjusted) to her new role and position. So now when trouble is on the horizon, she can throw herself at it.

And, boy howdy, does she. There are a few scenes that feel like vintage Jane—sure, given her new status she ends up dealing with things in a very non-vintage way. Long-time fans will enjoy seeing Old School Jane.

But New School Jane has more than a few surprises up her sleeve, and as fun, as it is to take a nostalgic look at how Jane dealt with problems, it’s more fun to see the way Jane deals with them now.

True Dead felt like a gift to the reader—not just because we get to see Jane tooling around New Orleans again with a vamp killer in hand, but because of everything else. The new challenges are great—and watching all the members of Clan Yellowrock rise to them is just as great. There’s a lot of joy, some sweetness, a little romance (and a little of the stuff that accompanies romance), we get to see some old friends–including a couple of pleasant surprises. And there are some very unpleasant surprises, too. Like every good writer of a long-running series, Hunter knows how to put her readers through the emotional wringer.

What it sets up for book 15? Ohh boy, I already can’t wait.

In the meantime, get your copy of True Dead as soon as you can. If you’ve read this far in this post and don’t know Jane Yellowrock? Fix that and thank me later.


My thanks to Let’s Talk! Promotions for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials (including the book via NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group) they provided.

TRUE DEAD TOUR: A Q&A with Faith Hunter

By

On September 6, 2021

In A Few Quick Questions With..., Faith Hunter, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Urban Fantasy

True Dead Banner
Thanks to an overactive Spam filter, I missed the invitation to submit questions. Thankfully, Audrey at Let’s Talk came through for me and got me this Q&A. I enjoyed it, hope you do, too.

What was your inspiration for Jane’s character/storyline? Was it the Katie’s Ladies idea or something else. You have probably already answered this 1000 times.

It’s always a great question. I started out with Katie’s Ladies. The first time I thought about writing an urban fantasy it was with the description of Katie’s Ladies running through my mind. I had the idea of a vamp bordello and the madam trying to figure out who had killed her girl. But it very quickly morphed into a Cherokee chick solving paranormal crimes and getting sucked into working for the master of the city. I love writing mystery and thrillers, and in fact spent the first 15 years or so my career writing just that under the name Gwen Hunter.

When you started writing Skinwalker, did you envision how many books this would stretch to?

Oh heck no. I planned on three. The end of book three was supposed to be Rick and Jane riding off into the sunset together, a reformed bad boy werecat and a skinwalker. Then while I was writing that book, Charlaine Harris (yes, the Charlaine Harris) posted in her blog that she was reading Skinwalker. I was at Dragon Con when I learned that my book sales took off and Penguin wanted three more books. Soooo. Things changed. I owe it all to a friend who had no idea that Faith Hunter was the Gwen Hunter she met back in my mystery writing days at Mystery Writers of America. The kindness of successful writers helps to make other writers successful. We depend on each other so much!

Did Jane ever have a pet? I know dogs are afraid of her scent, but what about other cats?

No, Jane never had a pet. Well… except Beast. (Wanders away laughing as Beast chuffs with irritation)

How do you decide who will die and does it affect you the same way as it does your readers?

If a character needs to die, I usually know it as I’m writing the outline for that book, but not always. Sometimes it happens as I write the scene and I have been known to have to go back and alter the outline for a whole book when a character dies. And then there are the characters like Adrianna who keep coming back because times change and Leo doesn’t want her dead. Of course, Leo doesn’t want the Sons of Darkness dead either and Jane kinda ignored that all around.

Is Ricky Bo based on an old boyfriend?

Nope. Physically, Rick is based on my first cousin, Frenchy black eyes, Frenchy black hair, lean and rangy, long-lived, and self-contained. Emotionally Rick is based on a template of player, overlaid with cop-think.


My thanks to Let’s Talk! Promotions for the invitation to participate in this tour, this Q&A, and the materials (including the book via NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group) they provided.

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