Tag Archives: Detective Amanda Steele

Black Orchid Girls by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

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Black Orchid Girls by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

 

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Description:
The first rays of sun filter through the tall trees, casting a faint light on the girl lying at the water’s edge. Her tears have frozen on her pale face, a black orchid rests against her cold white skin.

When hikers find the body of a beautiful young girl on the banks of the Potomac River, Detective Amanda Steele is shaken and confused. What is the significance of the delicate flower resting on the girl’s torso? A sign of affection, or a twisted killer’s calling card?

The girl is Chloe Somner, a local nineteen-year-old ecology student well-known to the park rangers and loved by all her classmates. Searching Chloe’s home, Amanda can’t work out who could have tempted her to the water in the early hours of the morning, but a long night hunting through cold cases gives her a possible lead: twenty years ago another local girl was murdered, a red rose left on her body. But why would this killer strike again now?

Focused on the past, the last thing Amanda expects is the news that Chloe’s roommate has been found dead, another black orchid left. Terrified that more innocent victims will follow, can Amanda uncover the significance of the flowers and stop this cold-hearted killer before he returns for the next orchid girl…?

 

 

Review:

Black Orchid Girls by Carolyn Arnold is the 4th book in her fantastic Detective Amanda Steele series.  I have noted this many times, that I am a big fan of Arnold, having read most of her series, and I love this series, which I feel is the best one yet.

Amanda Steele, our heroine, is a homicide detective in Dumfries, Virginia Police Department.  She is called with her partner, Trent to a scene where a girl (local college student) is found murdered in the forest of Leesylvania State Park.  The dead girl was stabbed 7 times, with the murderer cleansing her body and leaving a black orchid flower on her.  What does the Black Orchid mean: sign of affection, or a dark death wish?

Both Amanda and Trent learn more about the girl (Chloe), especially after they meet her two roommates and find out more information about her ex-boyfriend, as well as students who hated her.  Josh the boyfriend was a suspect, since he supposedly sent her a message to meet him at the park; and another boy was also suspected, since he dropped off someone at the park.  Both Amanda and Trent have their hands full, investigating all the suspects, including another boy and girl who hated Chloe. While deep in their investigation, another girl is murdered, found the same way as the previous girl.  Is this a serial killer?

While deep in the case, Amanda also worries about Zoe, the young girl she is adopting; seems the biological father wants to meet her, to perhaps fight for custody.  Amanda does her best to spend time with Zoe, as she has come to love her; luckily Amanda has friends who can watch her while she is spending long hours at work.  Amanda’s feels the pressure of the case, as well as concern about Zoe.

What follows is an exciting, intriguing, tense mystery that kept me unable to put the book down. There were so many suspects, and even surprises at the end. To say too much more would be spoilers, and this was a very good story that needs to be read from start to finish.

Black Orchid Girls was a very good excellent crime thriller that was suspenseful, intense, and kept us guessing who was the murderer to the end. I loved the team of Amanda, Trent & her Sergeant, as well as many of the secondary characters.  Amanda is a great heroine, and a fantastic detective.  Black Orchid Girls was so very well written by Carolyn Arnold, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us next. If you like mystery thrillers, police procedural, then you need to be reading this book.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for Review

 

Carolyn Arnold was born in a small Canadian town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower. As an international bestselling and award-winning author, she has several continuing fiction series, including her popular Detective Madison Knight series. She offers readers nearly three dozen published books in genres ranging from crime thrillers and hard-boiled mysteries to cozy mysteries and action adventures. She currently lives north of London, Ontario, with her husband and two beagles.

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The Silent Witness by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

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The Silent Witness by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

 

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Description:
It’s 4 a.m. when her mom shakes her awake. “Get up baby, we’re going to play hide and seek.” The little girl presses back into the dark space, holding her breath as she hears the shots ring out. She knows she’s next…

When the bodies of a local family are discovered on a quiet street in the small town of Dumfries, Virginia, Detective Amanda Steele takes charge of the case. Brett and Angela Parker were shot three times each, leaving no hope of survival, and their tidy suburban home has been ransacked. But there is no sign of their beloved six-year-old, Zoe.

Zoe is the same age as Amanda’s daughter was when she died, and Amanda can’t bear the thought of another little girl in danger. She’s organizing a search for the child, when she notices something strange about the ottoman at the foot of the Parkers’ bed. She opens it to find Zoe, mute and traumatized, but alive.

With Zoe completely uncommunicative, Amanda must find another way to untangle what destroyed this seemingly perfect family. It’s clear that the killer is searching for something the Parkers had, and until she has this monster behind bars, Amanda fears that he may return for Zoe. When she learns that Brett Parker cut short the family’s recent lakeside vacation, she wonders why. What happened at that lake house, and did it ultimately get them killed?

Amanda heads out to Lake Chesdin on the feeling it might be key to the case, and when she finds a cell phone in the murky waters next to the Parker cabin, she knows she’s made a breakthrough. But then terrible news reaches her from Dumfries; Zoe has been taken from her school playground.

Someone wants to silence the Parker family for good, can Amanda catch them before the little girl she’s desperate to protect pays the price?

 

Review:

The Silent Witness by Carolyn Arnold is the 3rd book in her fantastic Detective Amanda Steele series.  Having noted this numerous times, I am a big fan of Arnold, having read most of her series, and I feel this series is the best one yet. 

Amanda Steele, our heroine, is a homicide detective in Dumfries, Virginia Police Department.  She is called with her partner, Trent to the scene of a multiple homicide; which was a couple that were each shot three times.  Upon questioning neighbors, they realize the 6-year-old daughter is missing.  While Amanda and team, search the house, she notices the ottoman cover is crooked, and finds the daughter inside traumatized. Amanda fears that the murderer may come after Zoe (child), especially not knowing why her parents were killed.  She and Trent begin to slowly unravel the mystery, which is centered on photos taken at random during a vacation, that someone does not want anyone to see.  Amanda decides to take care of Zoe to keep her safe, but being buried on the case, who can she trust to watch over the child?

What follows is an exciting, intriguing, pulse pounding mystery that kept me unable to put the book down, especially knowing that Zoe’s life was in danger, as well as shocking revealing clues, who may behind the murder.   In the previous book, Amanda found something that hinted at a possible pedophile ring, and she begins to suspect this could possibly be related.  To say too much more would be spoilers, and this was a very good story that needs to be read from start to finish. 

The Silent Witness was an excellent crime thriller that was suspenseful, intense, and kept us glued to the end. I loved the team of Amanda, Trent & her Sergeant, as well as many of the secondary characters; though I did not like the chief. Amanda is a great heroine, and a fantastic detective.  The Silent Witness was so very well written by Carolyn Arnold, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us next. If you like mystery thrillers, police procedural, then you need to be reading this book.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

 


Carolyn Arnold was born in a small Canadian town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower. As an international bestselling and award-winning author, she has several continuing fiction series, including her popular Detective Madison Knight series. She offers readers nearly three dozen published books in genres ranging from crime thrillers and hard-boiled mysteries to cozy mysteries and action adventures. She currently lives north of London, Ontario, with her husband and two beagles.

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Stolen Daughters by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

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Stolen Daughters by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

 

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Description:
The girl looked so peaceful, she could have been asleep. Except her eyes were open, blankly reflecting the flickering flames spreading towards her…

When firefighters discover the body of a teenage girl at an abandoned house, Detective Amanda Steele hurries to the scene. Dumfries, Virginia is a small town, yet no one seems to have any idea who the dead girl is until Amanda finds a dragonfly pin with the name Crystal engraved on it.

Working tirelessly, Amanda traces the pin to Crystal Foster, a thirteen-year-old who disappeared three years ago from her wealthy parents’ home. Breaking the news to the distraught parents won’t be easy, but the loss of her own daughter still haunts Amanda, and she knows this will bring them closure. But when Amanda goes to see the Fosters, they do not recognize the girl. She isn’t Crystal.

Before Amanda can react to this new development, she gets an urgent call. A fire has consumed another vacant house, and the remains of two more girls have been found. Who are these girls, and why are they being picked off? Amanda must stop this killer before the pattern continues, and the death toll climbs.

When Amanda receives a taunting note from the killer, she realizes that she holds the missing piece of this puzzle. The victims are connected to Amanda’s past, to a case she can never forget, and which almost claimed her life. As she follows the clues to their deadly conclusion, can she save more innocent lives… even if it risks her own?

 

 

Review:

Stolen Daughters by Carolyn Arnold is the 2nd book in her Detective Amanda Steele series. As I have noted before, I have been a big fan of Arnold, having read most of her series.  I feel this series is her best one yet, and love its wonderful heroine, Amanda Steele.

Amanda Steele, our heroine, is a homicide detective in Dumfries, Virginia Police Department.  She is called to the scene where a young girl’s dead body was found in an abandoned building fire.  As she and her partner, Trent begin their investigation, they discover that the girl was part of a sex trafficking ring. Shortly thereafter, a woman who had called in the fire to the police,  is also found murdered; they suspect this may be the work of a serial killer. As they interview the family of some of the missing children over the years, Amanda is consumed with finding these missing girls.

Amanda is determined to stop the killer before they kill again, but then there is another fire, with two more dead girls who were probably part of the sex trafficking; the danger escalates as the killer is now setting their site on Amanda.  How does the killer know about her past, and the deaths of her husband and daughter?

What follows is an exciting, intriguing, pulse pounding mystery that kept me unable to put the book down, especially knowing how Amanda continually put herself in danger.  We did get a POV of the killer throughout, giving us a look at his madness. To say too much more would be spoilers, and this was a very good story that needs to be read from start to finish.  I like all of the secondary characters that Arnold has created, but I was not crazy about the chief, who was trying to get rid of Amanda; even though she was their best detective.

Stolen Daughters was an excellent crime thriller that was suspenseful, dark, intense, and kept us glued to the end. Amanda, Trent & Sergeant made an excellent team.   I really liked Amanda, as she was a great heroine, and a fantastic detective.  Stolen Daughters was so very well written by Carolyn Arnold, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us in future books, especially with the surprise ending. If you like mystery thrillers, police procedural, then you need to be reading this book.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for Review

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The Little Grave by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

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The Little Grave by Carolyn Arnold – a Review

 

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Description:
Detective Amanda Steele stops just inside the doorway, recognizing the victim’s face instantly. He seems so vulnerable in death; soft, human, even harmless. But she can never forget the evil he has inflicted. Her heart is hammering as she remembers her precious daughter, with her red curls and infectious laugh, and how she was lowered into that little grave…

It’s been five years since Detective Amanda Steele’s life was derailed in the path of an oncoming drunk driver. The small community of Dumfries, Virginia, may have moved on from the tragic deaths of her husband and daughter, but Amanda cannot. When the driver who killed her family is found murdered in a motel room, she can’t keep away from the case.

Fighting her sergeant to be allowed to work an investigation with such a personal connection to her, Amanda is in a race to prove that she can uncover the truth. But the more she digs into the past of the man who destroyed her future, the more shocking discoveries she makes. And when Amanda finds the link between a silver bracelet in his possession and the brutal unsolved murder of a young exotic dancer, she realizes she’s caught up in something darker than she ever imagined and suspects that more girls could be in danger.

But as Amanda edges toward the truth, she gets closer to a secret as personal as it is deadly. Amanda has stumbled upon a dangerous killer, and she must face some terrible truths in order to catch this killer – and save his next victim as she couldn’t save her own daughter…

 

 

Review:

The Little Grave by Carolyn Arnold is the 1st book in her new Detective Amanda Steele series. I have been a big fan of Arnold, having read most of her series.  After completing The Little Grave, I am thrilled to say this series could be the best one yet.  I loved this book and its wonderful heroine, Amanda Steele.

Amanda Steele, our heroine, is a homicide detective in Dumfries, Virginia Police Department. Amanda tragically lost her daughter and husband to a horrific car accident over 5 years ago, and to this day, she cannot get past the nightmares and deep grief that still haunts her. Amanda is very good at her job, and hides the fact that she needs to get illegal Xanax pills to help get her through each day; she also is distanced from her family, unable to see them.

Amanda is called to the scene of a possible suicide, only to discover the dead man is the drunk driver who killed her family. Though she is told not to be on this case, which is personal, Amanda discovers some clues that make it look more like murder.  Amanda pleads with her boss to be part of this investigation, even accepting a rookie detective, who becomes her partner. Her boss does require her to have an alibi for the time period of the victim’s death, which means Amanda needs to find the one night stand she had the night before, something she has being doing for a while to block out her grief.

What follows is an exciting, intriguing, pulse pounding mystery that had so many twists and turns, keeping me glued to my kindle.  Amanda begins to discover different clues, especially of a cold case that the victim may have been part of.  She finds a hidden clue as part of a bracelet worn by the victim, bringing in different departments to investigate a pedophile ring, which has been going on for years.  To say too much more would be spoilers, and this was a great story that needs to be read from start to finish.

The Little Grave was an excellent crime thriller that was suspenseful, intense, and kept us guessing to the end. The cold case brings out the people involved in the ring, but who killed the victim.   I really liked Amanda, as she made a great heroine, and also liked her new partner.  The Little Grave was so very well written by Carolyn Arnold, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us in future books of the The Detective Amanda Steele series.  If you like mystery thrillers, police procedural, then you need to be reading this book.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

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