The Last Tether of Jerry Blanchard by Robert Zeid

This psychological thriller focuses on a food critic, Jerry Blanchard, who sometimes gets visions about victims of crimes from food. One vison, which is about a woman being murdered, leads to an obsession to find her grave and those responsible for her death. With the help of his friend, Deebs, who has more weapons and spy toys than the CIA, Jerry soon discovers her death holds evidence of human trafficking. which places him in a dangerous position.

The novel has a bit of a slow start, but it quickly becomes a thriller for readers. I am especially please with its coverage of the topic of human trafficking.

Stolen Butterfly by Paty Jager

This Gabriel Hawke novel highlights the issues of police compliancy when dealing with Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, and human trafficking. It’s a great police procedural novel focusing on the interaction of police officers and those involved with the case. A great story about how the good guys win and the bad guys lose.

The Deepest Kill by Lisa Black

The daughter of one of the richest men in the world dies under mysterious circumstances. He hires Ellie Carr and Rachael Davies of the Locard Institute to look into the case. Ellie’s and Rachael’s investigation reveal the daughter was murdered, and the husband is the prime suspect. As Ellie and Rachael continue their investigation, the question is will they find the truth, or will the truth place them in danger.

I enjoy Lisa Black’s detailed and accurate description of how crime scenes are processed and the clues they provide to investigators. And yet, this novel provides suspense and surprises. A great book for crime buffs.

Running in the Dark by Sam Reaves

A new teacher at a local college goes jogging and comes upon a gruesome homicide. While witnessing the terror of a man being burned alive in his car, she also sees a man smiling as he is standing next to the car. The young woman soon learns the town holds many secrets, and these secrets place her in danger.

A great story about how an ideal small town can hide dark and dangerous secrets, many of which should remain unknown.

The Coworker by Freida McFadden

Dawn is a strange coworker, but she is never late or misses a day of work. One day, she simply doesn’t show up and she can’t be located. Her coworker, Natalie, tries to find out what happened to Dawn. As the novel progresses, there is question as to whether Natalie is Dawn’s friend or foe.

This story leads the reader into a relationship that has two sides. The answer lies in the past and will surprise the reader. Readers will not want to put this book down until the very end.

Shot Caller by Jen J. Danna.

The novel centers around a NYPD hostage negotiator, Gemma Capello, trying to get the prisoners of the Enhanced Supervision Housing of Rikers Island to release the guards they have taken prisoner. Gemma faces many problems. The first is she’s forced to negotiate with a gang member whose control of the situation is tenuous. Furthermore, she’s dealing with individuals who have no faith or trust in the NYPD. Her second issue is Detective Sean Logan and the other officers of the NYPD. Then there are city hall and the press. Everything leads to a tense situation, lasting for days. Gemma’s only goal, to bring this to a peaceful end without any loss of life. An excellent book full of action and tension. This is the second novel of the NYPD Negotiator Series and a thrill for the readers.

The Book Spy by Alan Hlad

The is a historical fiction novel. However, the accuracy of the details will leave the reader believing it’s a story of true events. Based on several historical facts, including an unknown section of the spy network used by Allied Forces during WWII, the novel brings realism and suspense to the story of a young woman working to gather intelligence for Allied Forces and book seller who helps her so that he can provide money for Jewish refugees with the papers they need to escape the Nazis. Wonderful insight into the efforts of so many unknown heroes of the war.

Mouse in the Box by Lewis Allen

This is a debut novel by two authors, one a criminal defense attorney and the other a free-lance writer. The novel focuses on a lawyer defending a black man accused of killing his wife, who was white. It’s a narrative about the issues that many basically good people face when they encounter our criminal justice system and its shortcoming for those looking for justice. It’s a must read for everyone looking to understand our criminal justice system.

Bladestay by Jackie Johnson

An exciting western about a young teenage girl who takes on the disguise of being a boy to escape the brutality of a ruthless gunslinger and his gang. Instead, she ends up becoming part of the gang. While doing whatever she can to lead the gang astray or delay their progress, the leader of the gang shows kindness and acceptance of her as a boy and a possible addition to the gang. All he demands is unconditional loyalty. It’s a dangerous journey for our heroine and a delight to read.

Lie by the Pool by Susan Walter

Musician and screenwriter Susan Walter knows how to write a suspense novel that can turn into a hit movie. The story focuses on Bree, who is homeless, penniless, and alone. That is until she meets Sophie, who kindly allows her to attend a party and spend the night in an empty house Sophie’s family owns. This kindness turns into a nightmare when a dead body is found in the pool.

The story is told in detail from the viewpoint of the four people most affected by the events. The novel opens with developing the readers’ relationship with the characters and quickly turns into a suspenseful journey for Bree and the others. The book is well worth reading, and readers will not be disappointed.

The Rising by Heather Graham and Jon Land

Book review by Mark Zeid, author of Media Murder Mysteries

The Rising is one part romance, one part mystery, and one part thriller; totaling into one great story, which is no surprise considering the authors, Heather Graham and Jon Land.

The novel centers around two high school students, Alex Chin, a jock with a promising football career, and Samantha Dixon, a geek with an opportunity to work at NASA after graduating. When Alex is injured in a football accident, his and Samantha’s dreams are shattered. Alex’s CT scans show abnormal results. This leads to his doctor being murdered, then his parents. Alex flees and Samantha goes with him, even after he begs her not to. The two teenagers desperately seek safety and answers to secrets buried in Alex’s past, which will explain why he is being pursued and by whom.

This novel is an adventure guaranteed to thrill readers and excite their imagination.

Tom Boy by Shelley Blanton-Stroud

Book review by Mark Zeid, author of Media Murder Mysteries

This is the second novel with Jane Benjamin, a teenager hoping to become a reporter for a San Francisco newspaper. I love the way Blanton-Stroud describes the settings and life of 1939 and the escapades of Jane as she takes advantage of situations and manages to get into the women’s championship at Wimbledon, hoping to write a gossip column about Tommie O’Rourke, San Francisco’s own tennis star and local celebrity. However, Jane’s plans change when Tommie’s coach and friend dies suddenly at the tournament. As the friendship between Jane and Tommie develops, Jane discovers secrets about Tommie’s personal life, the coach’s death, and its connection to corporate participation in the coming war. Jane is placed in the position of how to gain justice without hurting those she has befriended.

Her Sister’s Death by K.L. Murphy

A book review by Mark Zeid, author of Media Murder Mysteries.

Reporter Val Ritter is shocked by the news of her sister being found dead in a Baltimore hotel. The police believe it’s suicide, but Val has too many questions. A chance meeting with Terry Martin, a retired detective, suspects Val is right—her sister’s death was not a suicide. Together they begin to search for answers to questions Val has about her sister’s life and her sister’s death. However, the answers to the mystery lie in events that took place a century before at the same hotel when a young bride’s honeymoon turned into a nightmare.

K.L. Murphy does a wonderful job of weaving the story between three viewpoints; Val’s, Terry’s and Bridget’s, the young bride whose dream wedding and honeymoon turns into terror. As Val and Terry work to find the truth, readers become absorbed in Bridget’s story. Readers are soon obsessed with the story and compelled to read on till the final pages. A great read and intriguing story.

Copy Boy by Shelley Blanton-Stroud

A book review by Mark Zeid, author of Media Murder Mysteries.

The book centers on Jane Hopper, a transitory field worker during the Depression of the 1930s, forced to run away from the camp life she knew to San Francisco where she knows only one person, another field worker who left a few years ago. As an eighteen-year-old woman, Jane tries to find a job, but fails due to her lack of life experiences. Finally, she acquires a job as a copy boy on a newspaper by pretending she’s a young man. Then a chance meeting with another young woman and the discovery of an old photograph of her father with a different family lead Jane on a mission to find out who are the people in the photograph and their connection to Jane’s father. However, what Jane discovers is a conspiracy of fraud and murder. Danger follows her as she continues her investigation.

I really enjoyed Blanton-Stroud’s use of descriptive terms that provide readers with everything Jane sees, hears, smells, and feels. This brings readers into Jane’s world as she progresses on her quest to find answers to the mysteries of the photograph and certain questions she has about her life. An excellent look at life during the depression and the hardships women dealt with in the workplace and life in the fields.

Murder in a Cape Cottage by Maddie Day

A book review by Mark Zeid, author of Media Murder Mysteries.

It is a week before Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida’s wedding when she and her fiancé, Tim Brunelle, find the skeleton of a bride, murdered more than 80 years ago. Naturally, Mac and her Cozy Capers Book Club cannot resist the mystery of who was this bride, and why she was murdered. Their investigation leads to a Romero and Juliet story of lovers and feuding families. But this crime is not completely in the past.

I enjoyed this mystery, and the way Day provides a clue to the mystery in each chapter, enabling readers to experience the yeaning Mac and her friend have to solve the mystery and bring an answer to the events of so long ago. This is the fourth book in the Cozy Capers Book Club series and a story designed to delight all fans of cozy mysteries.

Book Review – Tower Down by David Hagberg
       

The first page thrusts the reader into a suspenseful thriller as a
merciless killer works to bring down a New York City landmark, killing
hundreds of people, including many of the world’s wealthiest individuals.
But the plot doesn’t stop with a single attack. Authorities soon learn
another attack is imminent. This brings CIA’s Kirk McGarvey and his partner,
Pete Boylan, into the investigation as they track a killer who hides by
killing and stealing the identities of others. McGarvey and Boylan discover
the killer targets the super-rich as a way to intensify the effects of his
terrorist’s attacks. Their investigation takes them to the playgrounds or
the wealthy at the Cannes Film Festival, the Monaco Grand Prix, and the
Mega-Yacht Run at Mallorca. McGarvey and Boylan create a scam designed to
entice the greed of the very wealthy and at the same time, flush out the
killer. But this brings them into the killer’s sights, turning the
investigation into a deadly cat and mouse game; each trying to expose the
other before the next terrorist’s attack. The globe-trotting chase brings
all of the players back to New York for a final showdown.
Reviewed by Mark Zeid, author of Homicide in the Headlines.

Book Review – Pulse by Michael Harvey
       

Inspired by an actual event, this novel chronicles Daniel
Fitzsimmons journey as he deals with the death of his older brother, Harry,
and his search for Harry’s killer. The novel opens with the tragic death
from a traffic accident of Daniel’s and Harry’s mother. Fast forward eight
years to where Daniel is in high school, and Harry is a star of Harvard’s
football team. Daniel looks for a place of his own and rents a room from
Simon, a Harvard professor no one seems to know. Simon offers explanations
for Daniel’s strange psychological dreams where he seems to inhabit the
minds of others and animals. A night of adventure for college students leads
to Harry’s death. When Detectives Barkley “Bark” Jones and Tommy Dillon
arrive on the scene, they find Daniel there with Harry’s body, but Daniel
has no explanation on how he got there. The detectives are able to identify
a suspect. Furthermore, they reopen the investigation into Daniel’s mother’s
death, suspecting it might have been murder instead of an accident, The
police investigation, along with Daniel’s visions, lead them through a maze
of deception in a deadly quest for the real killer.