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February 2024 MBR The Mystery/Suspense Shelf part 3 of 4
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Midwest Book Review
Feb 21, 2024, 6:08:26 AMFeb 21
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The Mystery/Suspense Shelf part 3 of 4
Death Under the Deluge
C.M. Wendelboe
https://cmwendelboe.com
Encircle Publications
https://encirclepub.com
9781645994800, $16.99 Paper/$4.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Under-Deluge-Spirit-Mystery/dp/1645994805
The sixth book of the Spirit Road mystery series (revolving around Lakota FBI agent Manny Tanno) again involves tribal interests in a murder scenario in which a body turns up too close to the Sioux Indian reservation. The age of the body makes it a historical mystery -- until Manny's probe reveals that the history might not quite reside only in the past. As a cold case turns hot, Manny finds that being in law enforcement offers no immunity to death when a fellow officer is shot and his own life is repeatedly threatened.
The murder may have taken place some seventy year ago, but its impact is still alive and kicking. C.M. Wendelboe creates another powerful mystery that sizzles with not only intrigue, but a surprisingly wry sense of humor that runs like a thread through the story from its opening lines: "Mel Peel brought the binoculars down from his eyes and handed them to Deputy Sam Christian. "I'm only a lonely diver hired by you guys now and again and who flunked anatomy class in school, but I suspect those five fingers are attached to a wrist down there somewhere." The body was supposed to stay buried in the murky waters of a submerged cabin under the Missouri River, but nothing stays hidden forever.
Manny's probe forces him into many uncomfortable positions, from facing bullets to encountering old flames that may hold not only clues, but equally well-hidden passions. He's armed with added-value abilities which also feel dubious, at times: "...my visions do not feel like gifts. Be different if my visions were . . . pleasant, but they're not. They're frightening." Neither his strong connections nor his savvy may be enough to prevent the re-emergence of a murderer from the past, as evidence points out to the perp.
Though Manny's expertise and processes received embellishment in many books before this, newcomers to Wendelboe's character should not be dissuaded from taking up the story as a stand-alone, despite its prolific historical precedents. It's easy to become immersed in Manny's persona and surroundings -- and just as easy to find his dilemmas and choices realistic and thought-provoking. Vivid action compliments insights into murderers, victims, and even love.
Libraries and readers seeking mysteries which incorporate Native American interests and procedural intrigue will find Death Under the Deluge a compelling, highly attractive story whose twists and turns make it hard for even seasoned mystery readers to predict.
One Icy Night
W.A. Pepper
Hustle Valley Press, LLC
B0CN5C9RHB, $4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/One-Icy-Night-Anniversary-Delta-ebook/dp/B0CN5C9RHB
Imagine waking up to a madman who is trying to kill you. Such is the opening scenario in the Rook thriller One Icy Night, where a drunk driver is transporting an equally drunk detainee, who is in handcuffs; careening through icy streets until an ax-wielding stranger stands before their car.
And that's just the opening scenario! As the story unfolds, Rook presents as a traveling female bassist in a band who confronts betrayal, a soon-to-be-ex boyfriend, and murder with equal competency and a "physical and mental thick skin" that serves her well, whether in a band or participating in bar brawls.
Another strength lies in the wry sense of humor that peppers vivid descriptions and action: "At first, I think I'm the one screaming like a gerbil in a blender. But no, the high-pitched yell comes from Riley. Everything in the vehicle bounces around and pelts us as gravity and momentum team up to beat our asses."
As a storm of physical and mental events emerges, the story moves between the "then" and "now' of last year and today, juxtaposing a series of confrontations and events which test Rook's ability to accept what she has done and how to move on.
References to the Quran and Bible pepper her journey. Characters who cherish a higher power and law intersect with Rook's self-examination to provide further moments of enlightenment, irony, and insights into her efforts to stop the bad guy and regain her power.
W.A. Pepper's ability to lead readers through Rook's actual hell and back lends to a thriller replete with unexpected moments of enlightenment and revelation. Libraries and readers seeking a story steeped in conflicts of interest and one event's lasting impact on a young woman's life will find One Icy Night a powerful study in psychological and spiritual contrasts. It takes a conflict with the law and moves it into arenas of psychological and philosophical inspection that are gritty, unexpected, and hard to put down.
Searching for Dali
Robert Lane
Mason Alley Publishing
9781732294578, $14.95 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Searching-Dali-Jake-Travis-Book-ebook/dp/B0CQMXBHRT
Fans of Robert Lane's Jake Travis series well know the supercharged nature of Jake's pursuits; but in Searching for Dali, Jake's efforts introduce the added value of characters such as Veronica Stafford, whose phone calendar includes mention of her projected death date. At the heart of her decisions are not only physical health issues, but the disappearance of an original Salvador Dali painting, The Lost Body, that she was mandated to protect for her husband.
From repressed memories that hold insights on many mysteries to degenerative conditions that spark questionable decisions, Veronica's choices instigate a series of events. These draw investigator Jake Travis into the art world and onto a journey that proves one of the more challenging in his career when he becomes involved in Veronica's life.
Robert Lane maintains the philosophical observations and tone that make the characters and their personalities come to life against a philosophical backdrop designed to keep readers engaged and thinking: "She'd miss her natural ability to orchestrate her surroundings. To bend the world to her purpose. Like Dali's clocks. She always felt she was gifted in that area, although now the value of the gift escaped her." Jack's background working with the special forces and as a CIA agent is exactly what seventy-two-year-old Veronica wants on her special case. Her insistence on his involvement with her husband and the missing painting draws him reluctantly into an alternative reality even he believes ("...the sweet spot of life was a few degrees off reality.").
From hot art, a painting's rightful owner, and the search to find it to the psychological motivations and reasoning of characters who are involved in the mystery on different levels, Lane returns to the first person when following Jake's footsteps into not just the art world, but the undercurrents buffeting his own life and choices.
Jake's duty embraces far more than uncovering a painting's whereabouts. He finds himself charged and challenged by those vulnerable to his decisions and their own involvement in the case: "I felt an obligation to protect Carrie. For, like the gecko in my pocket, she knew nothing of the world she had entered. She was alive only because Demos didn't know where the painting was, and his first brutal attempt to learn its location had, for some unknown reason, backfired."
Has his preoccupation with Dali led to his not listening to obvious cues about other events? Can Jake turn his back on the ten million dollars that's at stake in his choices? His family life with Kathleen and the children also become entwined with his mandate to locate the missing Dali and too many other pieces of the bigger picture and puzzle.
Lane captures this relationship and impacts upon it using compelling, descriptive language that leads to astute insights: "Kathleen was the conductor of our lives. The baton bearer who kept the disparate parts graceful, fluid, and in harmony. And I? I was a rover, the third-chair Wrecking Crew trumpet player who, in one note, could blare out the entire ensemble. Everyone knows when the trumpet player screws up."
The result is another Jake Travis mystery that adds additional layers of understanding for prior readers, but requires no prior familiarity with Jake's relationships and approaches in order to prove equally engrossing for newcomers.
Libraries and readers seeking stories of suspense that profile the art world's impact on private and public lives will find Searching for Dali as riveting in its exploration of self and moral values as it is in Jake's discovery of the real story behind a missing Dali piece that is literally worth dying for.
Stung
Cullen Scott
https://cullenscottbooks.com
Papillon du Pere Publishing
https://papillon-du-pere.com
9781915221131, $14.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
It's rare to see techno-thriller writing that can appeal broadly from young adult into adult audiences, but Stung is such an offering, promising a special brand of compelling appeal that hits hard from the start.
Set in 2047, it tells of a world where everyone has a chip implanted in their brain at age 16. Two fifteen-year-olds are about to enter favored adult status with their newly awakened chips. But, they are not happy about the mandate.
Talon is just entering his senior year of high school and is facing 'programming day', which will activate his chip implant and connect him to the government network. Yet, he has cause to worry about the event and his choices as his family history comes to light: "Three years ago, his brother wrestled with the same anxieties. Deciding not to be networked, Wilder headed for the depths of the surrounding mountains, where it ended badly. Talon was supposed to be able to acknowledge this. That Wilder starved to death. Starving was one of the many self-inflicted consequences awaiting those that fled. Through many counseling sessions, Talon came to understand Wilder had made bad choices.
The problem was, with Talon's 'special day' drawing near, he couldn't guarantee to himself he would choose differently."As confrontations, new revelations, and struggles emerge, the story of a kill-chip's influence and resistance moves between a disparate group of characters, from Talon and Sophia to Shadow, Drake, and General Stafford. Each represent a segment of special agendas that flow into one another. Conflicts and the consequences of killing force each individual to confront moral and ethical decisions that challenge both the status quo and their own life trajectory. Cullen Scott excels at contrasting forces of government control with those that opt for freedom at all costs, even if the choice involves death and retribution.
The fast-paced, action-packed story is designed to appeal to teen audiences, but will reach into adult readers with its further review of the philosophical and psychological ramifications. The chip supposedly will quash any intention of murder or killing, but comes with its own requirement to artificially control human instincts. Scott's choice of contrasting changing character perspectives lends a more full-bodied feel to her story than other works of dystopian fiction. It adds a depth of contrasting clashes that review the logic and thinking processes of a disparate group of individuals who come to question the logic of improving life by thwarting murderous impulses. Who could resist such an agenda? The 'why' is even more intriguing as the story unfolds its unexpected, delightful twists and turns.
All these elements make Stung highly recommended not just for teens and adult readers, but especially for libraries and book club discussion groups interested in stories of survival, individuality, and the ultimate cost of social control systems.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.
The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com
Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number, and list price).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
Death Under the Deluge
C.M. Wendelboe
https://cmwendelboe.com
Encircle Publications
https://encirclepub.com
9781645994800, $16.99 Paper/$4.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Under-Deluge-Spirit-Mystery/dp/1645994805
The sixth book of the Spirit Road mystery series (revolving around Lakota FBI agent Manny Tanno) again involves tribal interests in a murder scenario in which a body turns up too close to the Sioux Indian reservation. The age of the body makes it a historical mystery -- until Manny's probe reveals that the history might not quite reside only in the past. As a cold case turns hot, Manny finds that being in law enforcement offers no immunity to death when a fellow officer is shot and his own life is repeatedly threatened.
The murder may have taken place some seventy year ago, but its impact is still alive and kicking. C.M. Wendelboe creates another powerful mystery that sizzles with not only intrigue, but a surprisingly wry sense of humor that runs like a thread through the story from its opening lines: "Mel Peel brought the binoculars down from his eyes and handed them to Deputy Sam Christian. "I'm only a lonely diver hired by you guys now and again and who flunked anatomy class in school, but I suspect those five fingers are attached to a wrist down there somewhere." The body was supposed to stay buried in the murky waters of a submerged cabin under the Missouri River, but nothing stays hidden forever.
Manny's probe forces him into many uncomfortable positions, from facing bullets to encountering old flames that may hold not only clues, but equally well-hidden passions. He's armed with added-value abilities which also feel dubious, at times: "...my visions do not feel like gifts. Be different if my visions were . . . pleasant, but they're not. They're frightening." Neither his strong connections nor his savvy may be enough to prevent the re-emergence of a murderer from the past, as evidence points out to the perp.
Though Manny's expertise and processes received embellishment in many books before this, newcomers to Wendelboe's character should not be dissuaded from taking up the story as a stand-alone, despite its prolific historical precedents. It's easy to become immersed in Manny's persona and surroundings -- and just as easy to find his dilemmas and choices realistic and thought-provoking. Vivid action compliments insights into murderers, victims, and even love.
Libraries and readers seeking mysteries which incorporate Native American interests and procedural intrigue will find Death Under the Deluge a compelling, highly attractive story whose twists and turns make it hard for even seasoned mystery readers to predict.
One Icy Night
W.A. Pepper
Hustle Valley Press, LLC
B0CN5C9RHB, $4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/One-Icy-Night-Anniversary-Delta-ebook/dp/B0CN5C9RHB
Imagine waking up to a madman who is trying to kill you. Such is the opening scenario in the Rook thriller One Icy Night, where a drunk driver is transporting an equally drunk detainee, who is in handcuffs; careening through icy streets until an ax-wielding stranger stands before their car.
And that's just the opening scenario! As the story unfolds, Rook presents as a traveling female bassist in a band who confronts betrayal, a soon-to-be-ex boyfriend, and murder with equal competency and a "physical and mental thick skin" that serves her well, whether in a band or participating in bar brawls.
Another strength lies in the wry sense of humor that peppers vivid descriptions and action: "At first, I think I'm the one screaming like a gerbil in a blender. But no, the high-pitched yell comes from Riley. Everything in the vehicle bounces around and pelts us as gravity and momentum team up to beat our asses."
As a storm of physical and mental events emerges, the story moves between the "then" and "now' of last year and today, juxtaposing a series of confrontations and events which test Rook's ability to accept what she has done and how to move on.
References to the Quran and Bible pepper her journey. Characters who cherish a higher power and law intersect with Rook's self-examination to provide further moments of enlightenment, irony, and insights into her efforts to stop the bad guy and regain her power.
W.A. Pepper's ability to lead readers through Rook's actual hell and back lends to a thriller replete with unexpected moments of enlightenment and revelation. Libraries and readers seeking a story steeped in conflicts of interest and one event's lasting impact on a young woman's life will find One Icy Night a powerful study in psychological and spiritual contrasts. It takes a conflict with the law and moves it into arenas of psychological and philosophical inspection that are gritty, unexpected, and hard to put down.
Searching for Dali
Robert Lane
Mason Alley Publishing
9781732294578, $14.95 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Searching-Dali-Jake-Travis-Book-ebook/dp/B0CQMXBHRT
Fans of Robert Lane's Jake Travis series well know the supercharged nature of Jake's pursuits; but in Searching for Dali, Jake's efforts introduce the added value of characters such as Veronica Stafford, whose phone calendar includes mention of her projected death date. At the heart of her decisions are not only physical health issues, but the disappearance of an original Salvador Dali painting, The Lost Body, that she was mandated to protect for her husband.
From repressed memories that hold insights on many mysteries to degenerative conditions that spark questionable decisions, Veronica's choices instigate a series of events. These draw investigator Jake Travis into the art world and onto a journey that proves one of the more challenging in his career when he becomes involved in Veronica's life.
Robert Lane maintains the philosophical observations and tone that make the characters and their personalities come to life against a philosophical backdrop designed to keep readers engaged and thinking: "She'd miss her natural ability to orchestrate her surroundings. To bend the world to her purpose. Like Dali's clocks. She always felt she was gifted in that area, although now the value of the gift escaped her." Jack's background working with the special forces and as a CIA agent is exactly what seventy-two-year-old Veronica wants on her special case. Her insistence on his involvement with her husband and the missing painting draws him reluctantly into an alternative reality even he believes ("...the sweet spot of life was a few degrees off reality.").
From hot art, a painting's rightful owner, and the search to find it to the psychological motivations and reasoning of characters who are involved in the mystery on different levels, Lane returns to the first person when following Jake's footsteps into not just the art world, but the undercurrents buffeting his own life and choices.
Jake's duty embraces far more than uncovering a painting's whereabouts. He finds himself charged and challenged by those vulnerable to his decisions and their own involvement in the case: "I felt an obligation to protect Carrie. For, like the gecko in my pocket, she knew nothing of the world she had entered. She was alive only because Demos didn't know where the painting was, and his first brutal attempt to learn its location had, for some unknown reason, backfired."
Has his preoccupation with Dali led to his not listening to obvious cues about other events? Can Jake turn his back on the ten million dollars that's at stake in his choices? His family life with Kathleen and the children also become entwined with his mandate to locate the missing Dali and too many other pieces of the bigger picture and puzzle.
Lane captures this relationship and impacts upon it using compelling, descriptive language that leads to astute insights: "Kathleen was the conductor of our lives. The baton bearer who kept the disparate parts graceful, fluid, and in harmony. And I? I was a rover, the third-chair Wrecking Crew trumpet player who, in one note, could blare out the entire ensemble. Everyone knows when the trumpet player screws up."
The result is another Jake Travis mystery that adds additional layers of understanding for prior readers, but requires no prior familiarity with Jake's relationships and approaches in order to prove equally engrossing for newcomers.
Libraries and readers seeking stories of suspense that profile the art world's impact on private and public lives will find Searching for Dali as riveting in its exploration of self and moral values as it is in Jake's discovery of the real story behind a missing Dali piece that is literally worth dying for.
Stung
Cullen Scott
https://cullenscottbooks.com
Papillon du Pere Publishing
https://papillon-du-pere.com
9781915221131, $14.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
It's rare to see techno-thriller writing that can appeal broadly from young adult into adult audiences, but Stung is such an offering, promising a special brand of compelling appeal that hits hard from the start.
Set in 2047, it tells of a world where everyone has a chip implanted in their brain at age 16. Two fifteen-year-olds are about to enter favored adult status with their newly awakened chips. But, they are not happy about the mandate.
Talon is just entering his senior year of high school and is facing 'programming day', which will activate his chip implant and connect him to the government network. Yet, he has cause to worry about the event and his choices as his family history comes to light: "Three years ago, his brother wrestled with the same anxieties. Deciding not to be networked, Wilder headed for the depths of the surrounding mountains, where it ended badly. Talon was supposed to be able to acknowledge this. That Wilder starved to death. Starving was one of the many self-inflicted consequences awaiting those that fled. Through many counseling sessions, Talon came to understand Wilder had made bad choices.
The problem was, with Talon's 'special day' drawing near, he couldn't guarantee to himself he would choose differently."As confrontations, new revelations, and struggles emerge, the story of a kill-chip's influence and resistance moves between a disparate group of characters, from Talon and Sophia to Shadow, Drake, and General Stafford. Each represent a segment of special agendas that flow into one another. Conflicts and the consequences of killing force each individual to confront moral and ethical decisions that challenge both the status quo and their own life trajectory. Cullen Scott excels at contrasting forces of government control with those that opt for freedom at all costs, even if the choice involves death and retribution.
The fast-paced, action-packed story is designed to appeal to teen audiences, but will reach into adult readers with its further review of the philosophical and psychological ramifications. The chip supposedly will quash any intention of murder or killing, but comes with its own requirement to artificially control human instincts. Scott's choice of contrasting changing character perspectives lends a more full-bodied feel to her story than other works of dystopian fiction. It adds a depth of contrasting clashes that review the logic and thinking processes of a disparate group of individuals who come to question the logic of improving life by thwarting murderous impulses. Who could resist such an agenda? The 'why' is even more intriguing as the story unfolds its unexpected, delightful twists and turns.
All these elements make Stung highly recommended not just for teens and adult readers, but especially for libraries and book club discussion groups interested in stories of survival, individuality, and the ultimate cost of social control systems.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no funds from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, internet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested individuals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.
The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "California Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwatch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview (dot) com
Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugalmuse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publisher, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number, and list price).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
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