Tag Archives: Mystery

The Reaper Follows by Heather Graham – a Review

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The Reaper Follows by Heather Graham – a Review

 

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Description:
Death comes for everyone.

Deep in the Florida Everglades, the body of a woman is discovered in pieces, presumably ravaged by an alligator. Upon closer inspection, it’s determined no animal could make such perfectly precise cuts. Only a blade could do that. Wielded by a human. Soon, dozens of oil drums emerge amid the river of grass. Each one packed to the brim with body parts.

FDLE special agent Amy Larson and her partner, FBI special agent Hunter Forrest, share a bad feeling that extends beyond the horrifying nature of the grim discovery. They’ve seen this kind of sadistic killing before, and when a small beige horse is discovered at the bottom of one of the barrels, they know exactly what it means. The fourth horseman of the apocalypse rides a pale horse—and his name is Death.

With so many bodies to identify, connecting one victim to the next is easier said than done. But finding a pattern in the chaos might be the only way Amy and Hunter can zero in on the killer, testing their skills as agents—and their relationship—like never before. And when the disturbing trail of clues signals these slayings are just the beginning, the agents will have to return to where it all started before it’s too late. The apocalypse is coming, and Hunter and Amy have only one chance to stop it, even if it means sacrificing each other.

 

 

Review:

The Reaper Follows by Heather Graham is the 4th book in her Amy Larson & Hunter Forest FBI series. When bodies start turning up in the Florida Everglades, dozens of oil drums emerge filled with body parts.  They have seen this kind of killing before, and when a small beige horse is found in one of the barrels: they know what it means. Both continue their investigation into a series of crimes linked to the four horsemen in the Book of Revelations; the 4th one meaning death. FDLE special agent Amy Larson and her partner, FBI special agent Hunter Forrest, with both of them on this case since the beginning. This final book brings us to the final horseman and mastermind; who rides a pale horse. Amy and Hunter know they are close to finding the mastermind, who is killing so many people, especially in the Everglades.

Though we do not know who is the killer until near the end, we know he considers himself the archangel, and brainwashes his followers; then when they are no longer needed, he kills them.  The mastermind (archangel) is a manipulator who manages to sway people to his cause. Sadly, many of these deluded cult followers take their own lives.  I will say that half way through the I did suspect who the killer was.

I really liked the duo of Amy and Hunter, as in this 4th book, they are both planning to marry, once this case is solved.   Amy is an amazing tough and fearless detective, who pushes herself to exhaustion, even when her superiors force her to get sleep and rest.  Hunter being FBI, and closely working with all the agents that have gathered where the bodies have been found; he is also determined to protect Amy at any cost.  As noted previously, they both made a great team.  The romance between Amy and Hunter was sweet, as it was spread throughout the book. I really liked so many of the agents and secondary characters, who all played major parts in this conclusion; Aiden, Sabrina, Mickey, Jimmy, and so many wonderful team members. They all made a great team, working hard together to solve the case.  

The Reaper Follows was an intense, suspenseful, haunting, dangerous story that kept us unable to put the book down; especially in the last quarter of the book when Amy’s life was in danger and she knew who the killer was.  The story was a great plot, fantastic characters, and the murders were gruesome.  The Reaper Follows was so very well written by Heather Graham, who once again gives us a fabulous murder mystery.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

 

 

 

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THE HOUSE ON BISCAYNE BAY by Chanel Cleeton-review

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THE HOUSE ON BISCAYNE BAY by Chanel Cleeton-review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 9, 2024

With the Great War finally behind them, thousands of civilians and business moguls alike flock to South Florida with their sights set on making a fortune. When wealthy industrialist Robert Barnes and his wife, Anna, build Marbrisa, a glamorous estate on Biscayne Bay, they become the toast of the newly burgeoning society. Anna and Robert appear to have it all, but in a town like Miami, appearances can be deceiving, and one scandal can change everything.

Years later following the tragic death of her parents in Havana, Carmen Acosta journeys to Marbrisa, the grand home of her estranged older sister, Carolina, and her husband, Asher Wyatt. On the surface, the gilded estate looks like paradise, but Carmen quickly learns that nothing at Marbrisa is as it seems. The house has a treacherous legacy, and Carmen’s own life is soon in jeopardy . . . unless she can unravel the secrets buried beneath the mansion’s facade and stop history from repeating itself.

••••••

REVIEW: THE HOUSE ON BISCAYNE BAY by Chanel Cleeton is a stand alone, adult, historical, mystery thriller focusing on the Maribrisa, a grand mansion in Miama built as a birthday gift by a man for his much younger wife.

Told from dual first person perspectives, and dual time lines (Anna -1918, Carmen-1941) THE HOUSE ON BISCAYNE BAY focuses on deaths or perceived murders of the women of Maribrisa. In 1918, Robert Barnes, tired of New York society, moved his beloved wife to Miami, Florida where he gifted her with one of the most magnificent homes to be build in Florida but from the outset all was not as it appeared to be as cracks in the marriage began to reveal a disheartening reality.

Fast forward to 1942, businessman Asher Wyatt and his wife Carolina, the new owners of the refurbished Maribrisa home, find themselves with an unexpected houseguest in the guise of Carolina’s younger sister, following the tragic drowning of both of their parents. Similar to the 1918 timeline, Maribrisa holds too many deadly secrets, and when Carmen begins to investigate the truth, suspicion and rumors begin to spiral out of control when death and destruction, murder and infidelity mirror one another in two different timelines.

THE HOUSE ON BISCAYNE BAY is a story set in a gothic mansion, a mansion that keeps its’ secrets buried deep within the walls. Jealousy and envy, secrets and lies, infidelity and obsession blur as the investigation takes a twist no one expected. The premise is intriguing and enthralling; the characters are edgy, broken and struggling. Not everyone will get their happily ever after, and those that will, reveal a surprising and impassioned love.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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FOREST OF SECRETS (Alexis Forrest FBI Mystery 3) by Kate Gable

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FOREST OF SECRETS (Alexis Forrest FBI Mystery Thriller 3) by Kate Gable

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 31 , 2024

Forensic psychologist and FBI agent Alexis Forrest’s search for the serial killer responsible for her sister’s murder has hit a wall. All the evidence she has found has led her to the identities of numerous victims, yet the killer is still unknown.But he knows who she is, and he is watching her from the shadows. He is hiding in plain sight near Broken Hill, the snowy New England town that Alexis used to call home.

Meanwhile, a young suburban mother goes missing while out on a morning run. When Alexis starts to dig deeper, she finds out that the woman’s perfect marriage and family are not what they seem. Secrets and resentments are swirling around the couple. Did someone take her or was it the husband after all?While Alexis is busy with her new case, the serial killer continues to watch. He is close. Close enough to strike.Can Alexis find the woman before she’s killed? Can she figure out who is stalking her before he makes his move?

••••••

REVIEW: FOREST OF SECRETS is the third instalment in Kate Gable’s contemporary, adult ALEXIS FORREST FBI MYSTERY THRILLER series focusing on thirty year old, forensic psychologist and rookie FBI agent Alexis Forrest.

SOME BACKGROUND: Twenty years earlier, Alexis’ older sister Maddie was abducted and murdered, destroying the Forest family in the process. With her return to Broken Hill to investigate a series of similar abductions, Alexis will reconnect with family, and the man who once held her heart.

Told from several first person perspectives including Alexis and the killer FOREST OF SECRETS focuses on our story line heroine as she continues to search for a serial killer. FBI Forensic psychologist Alexis Forrest is hoping to find her sister’s killer but twenty years has passed, and a killer is luring Alexis with all the right clues and history from the past . The discovery of a number of victims pushes Alexis beyond her abilities alone, and the threats are once again becoming personal and dark.

Ripped from actual and real headlines, the search for a missing woman, a young mother of two preschool toddlers begins to take an ominous turn when any and all potential witnesses weave a tale of secrets and lies, lies that turn the focus on the victim, herself. A distraught husband, infidelity, and a need for fame and attention, reveals a woman whose fragile ego and scream for help is nothing less than unbelievable and mad.

Once again, Kate Gable pulls the reader into a story of secrets and lies, betrayal and madness, power, control and obsession. FOREST OF SECRETS is a suspense filled, fast paced, character driven story that is intriguing, dramatic and gripping; the characters are desperate and determined; the romance between Alexis and her high school sweetheart Mitch is struggling is the face of Alexis’ preoccupation with past, and her need to, most often, go it …alone.

Reading Order and Previous reviews
Forest of Silence
Forest of Shadows

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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The Good The Bad and The Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto – a Review

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The Good The Bad and The Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto – a Review

 

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Description:
After an ultra-romantic honeymoon across Europe, Meddy Chan and her husband Nathan have landed in Jakarta to spend Chinese New Year with her entire extended family. Chinese New Year, already the biggest celebration of the Lunar calendar, gets even more festive when a former beau of Second Aunt’s shows up at the Chan residence bearing extravagant gifts—he’s determined to rekindle his romance with Second Aunt and the gifts are his way of announcing his courtship.
 
His grand gesture goes awry however, when it’s discovered that not all the gifts were meant for Second Aunt and the Chans—one particular gift was intended for a business rival to cement their alliance and included by accident. Of course the Aunties agree that it’s only right to return the gift—after all, anyone would forgive an honest mistake, right? But what should have been a simple retrieval turns disastrous and suddenly Meddy and the Aunties are helpless pawns in a decades-long war between Jakarta’s most powerful business factions. The fighting turns personal, however, when Nathan and the Aunties are endangered and it’s up to Meddy to come up with a plan to save them all.  Determined to rescue her loved ones, Meddy embarks on an impossible mission—but with the Aunties by her side, nothing is truly impossible…

 

 

Review:

The Good, The Bad, and the Aunties is the 3rd third and final book in the Aunties series.  Meddy Chan and her husband, Nathan finished their romantic honeymoon across Europe, and decide to spend the Chinese New Year with their family in Jakarta. They are happily greeted by Meddy’s mom and aunties, as well as so many of their Jakarta relatives. During the celebration, a surprise visitor shows up at the party, bringing gifts for the children. Abraham Lincoln is a former beau of Second Aunt, and is determined to rekindle their romance, with the gifts his way of resuming his courtship.

Things will take a nasty turn, on the day after the party, when Abraham realizes that one of the gifts was erroneously given out. He explains that one of the gifts that was handed out was actually a deed to some property that he had promised to Julia Child. Meddy and the aunties learn that Abraham is one of the three crime lords, with Julia and Kristofer Kolumbes being the other two in Jakarta.  Now they are desperate to find the gift, in order for Abraham to make peace with Julia.

This leads Meddy and her meddling aunties to being caught up eventually with all three crime lords, in their decades-long war. There was a lot of hilarious action throughout, especially with the aunties their sass and constant meddling.  The fourth aunt was always the strongest one, always meddling, but all of them were totally a riot. To get out of this mess, Meddy would be the one to save the day. 

What follows is a wild, hilarious, roller coaster ride, with the aunts totally over the top with their crazy antics. Meddy was a great heroine, and I loved Nathan.  The aunts/mom (sisters) were always entertaining and humorous, though at times a bit ridiculous. The Good, the Bad and the Aunties was a fun story, that was also weird and insane.  The Good the Bad and The Aunties was well written by Jesse Q Sutanto, which was entertaining and humorous.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

 

 

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How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin – a Review

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How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin – a Review

 

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Description:
It’s 1965 and teenage Frances Adams is at an English country fair with her two best friends. But Frances’s night takes a hairpin turn when a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. Frances spends a lifetime trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet, compiling dirt on every person who crosses her path in an effort to prevent her own demise. For decades, no one takes Frances seriously, until nearly sixty years later, when Frances is found murdered, like she always said she would be.
 
In the present day, Annie Adams has been summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is already dead. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder. Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer?
 
As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to the danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune.

 

 

Review:

How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin is the 1st book in her new Castle Knoll Files series.  The story starts off in 1965 when 3 teenage friends visit a fortune teller at the Castle Knoll Country Fair, when Francis is given a bad prediction that she will be murdered.  Francis spent most of her life fixated on that message, always trying to avoid her death.  The story revolves around two POV’s 1965 with a teenage Frances and present time (60 years later), with the perspective of Annie, Frances’s great niece.  Frances is now making a will, and summons her niece, Annie, as well as other family/friends. Annie, who writes mystery stories, heads to Castle Knoll, to discuss changes to her aunt’s will, and meets Frances’ lawyer, Walter Gordon, his son, Oliver, and Saxton and his wife, Elva. Others working within the lands and mansion are also in attendance.   When they arrive at the mansion to meet with Francis to review the will, she is found dead. Was the prophecy true? Was she murdered?

During the reading of the actual will, everyone learns that both her and Saxton will have to compete to uncover the truth about her murder with the person who resolves it, receiving the entire estate.  If neither solves the crime, the house will be sold and broken down. Detective Crane notifies everyone that further examination proves that Francis was indeed murdered.

Annie is determined to find the killer and with an old diary belonging to Frances, she learns more about the past.  Francis, Rose and Emily were best friends back in the 60’s. The past POV has a lot of information about their friendship, and the mysterious disappearance of Emily. The diary gives Annie an immediate connection the past, and how it effects the present.  We switch seamlessly between Annie’s perspective in the present and Frances’ diary entries from the past, creating intrigue and suspense.  Someone in the past knows the secrets, which will put Annie possibly threaten by a dangerous killer.

What follows is a captivating and intriguing small-town mystery, with a number of suspects, including the one who disappeared 60 years ago. I really liked most of the characters, with Annie being the lead.  To say too much more, will ruin it for you. You need to read this book from start to finish.

How to Solve Your Own Murder turns into a wild gripping ride that will have you unable to put the book down. The plot was extremely well done, with a number of surprising twists.  This was a very exciting masterpiece of a thriller.  How to Solve Your Own Murder was very well written by Kristen Perrin.  

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

 

 

 

 

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Cheater by Karen Rose – Review and Excerpt

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Cheater by Karen Rose – Review and Excerpt

 

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Description:
Death is not an unfamiliar visitor to Shady Oaks Retirement Village, which provides San Diego with premier elderly support from independent retiree housing to full-time hospice care. But when a resident’s body is found brutally stabbed and his apartment ransacked, it’s clear there’s someone deadly in their community. Detective Katherine “Kit” McKittrick quickly discovers that Shady Oaks is full of skeleton-riddled closets, and most tenants prefer to keep their doors firmly closed to the SDPD.

A longtime volunteer at the retirement facility, Dr. Sam Reeves honors his late grandfather’s memory by playing the piano for the residents regularly. So it shouldn’t be such a surprise when Kit crosses paths with him during her investigation, after she’d avoided the criminal psychologist—and the emotions he evokes—for the last six months.

Sam’s rapport within the retirement village proves vital to the case, and the pair find themselves working together once again—much to Kit’s dismay. But she is determined to apprehend the shadow of death lurking around Shady Oaks…and equally determined to ignore the feelings she’s developing for a certain psychologist.

 

 

Review:

Cheater by Karen Rose is the 2nd book in her The San Diego Case Files series. The story takes place at Shady Oaks Retirement Village, which provides elderly support from independent housing to hospice care.  When a resident’s body is found stabbed to death, Detective Kit McKittrick is on the scene, with her partner, Connor; as they are both homicide detectives. In a short time, there are another two deaths, with three bodies all connected to the retirement home.  It is clear someone deadly is in the home.

Kit is surprised to see Dr. Sam Reeves at Shady Oaks (last book Kit walked away from a relationship with Sam).  Sam volunteers at the retirement home playing the piano, as well as offer help to the elderly.  Sam is a psychologist, knowing a lot about Shady Oaks, and will play a big part of the investigation, helping the SDPD.  Sam was close to some of the residents, especially Frankie (who was killed), a former cop; to his shock, Frankie’s best friend, Benny died the following day. 

Kit and Connor begin their interviews with staff and some residents, and when the Shady Oaks security officer is missing, they learn he too was murdered; as well as discovering that Benny did not die a normal death.  Shady Oaks is an expensive place to reside, and with a number of residents being wealthy.  Kit begins to suspect that some of the staff is stealing from residents; with Connor, her colleagues at SDPD, they will need unravel the case, which includes wealthy items stolen.  Besides the three deaths, other staff are part of the thefts; however, they need to discover who is behind the actual murders. 

I really liked Kit and Connor together as partners, as they made a great team.  Some of the residents were terrific, such as Georgia and Eloise, who were very close to Frank and Benny.  I also enjoyed Kit’s family, and how they opened their arms to help young teenagers who need to have homes.  Of course, I liked Sam, who was a great guy. He strongly cared about Kit, but he knew she needed to open her heart.

Cheater was an exciting, intense and fantastic thriller; with Kit being a fabulous detective. As we reached the last quarter of the book, there were a number twists and turns, with the murderer willing to kill anyone trying to stop them.  Cheater was so very well written by Karen Rose, who always writes fantastic mystery thrillers.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 


                CHEATER by Karen Rose
           Berkley Hardcover | On sale March 26, 2024
                                  Excerpt

                                 Chapter One

Shady Oaks Retirement Village
Scripps Ranch, San Diego, California
Monday, November 7, 11:20 a.m.

Kit McKittrick allowed herself a moment to feel pity as she stood over the body of the elderly man lying dead on his apartment floor in the Shady Oaks Retirement Village. Then she squared her shoulders and proceeded to do her job.

The mood in the dead man’s living room was subdued. The ME was examining the body while CSU took photos and Latent dusted for prints, but there was little of the normal scene-of-the-crime chatter to which Kit had become accustomed in the four and a half years she’d been in Homicide.

Everyone spoke in hushed whispers, like they were in church. Because it kind of felt like they were. Haunting melancholy music from a single piano was coming from the speaker mounted on the victim’s living room wall. The music wasn’t loud, but it was overwhelming nonetheless. Kit wanted to turn it off, because the music was so sad that it made her chest hurt and her eyes burn.

But neither the speaker nor its volume controls had been dusted for prints, so she couldn’t touch it yet. Until then, she could only square her shoulders, ignore the music, and focus on getting justice for Mr. Franklin Delano Flynn.

The cause of death of the eighty-five-year-old white male was most likely the butcher knife still embedded in his chest. But she’d learned long ago not to assume. Still, a butcher knife to the chest was never good. It was a long wound, the gash in the man’s white button-up shirt extending from his sternum to his navel. Whoever had killed him had to have had a lot of strength to create such a wound.

The victim had been dead long enough for his blood to dry, both the blood that had soaked the front of his shirt and the blood that had pooled on the floor around his torso.

His eyes, filmy in death, stared sightlessly up at the ceiling. His arms lay at his sides, his hands slightly curved. Not quite flat, but not quite fists, either. It wasn’t a natural pose for the victim of a homicide who’d fallen after being stabbed. She wondered if his killer had repositioned his arms.

Mr. Flynn had been a hardy man, broad-shouldered, tall, and still muscular. Not in bad shape for eighty-five, she thought. He wore dark trousers, the pockets turned out, as if he’d been searched.

His shoes were black oxfords, buffed to such a shine that she could nearly see her own reflection. She wondered if he’d come home, surprising his attacker, or if he’d welcomed his killer into his home.

His living room had been ransacked, books knocked off shelves, knickknacks strewn on the floor. The sofa cushions had been slashed open, foam stuffing on the floor as well. The man’s bedroom was in a similar state. The drawers in the kitchen had been opened and emptied, their contents dumped on the counters. Flour and sugar containers had been dumped on the kitchen’s tiled floor. Someone had been looking for something and had left a terrible mess.

Kit wondered if they’d found what they’d been looking for. She wondered if Mr. Flynn had fought back.

Kit crouched on the victim’s right side, leaning in so that she could better examine his hands. The knuckles of his right hand were scraped and bruised, but his fingernails were what caught her attention. They were mostly gone, clipped way past the quick, down into the nail bed.

That he’d fought back was a decent assumption, then. His killer hadn’t wanted any evidence to be found under the man’s nails.

Excerpted from Cheater by Karen Rose Copyright © 2024 by Karen Rose. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved.


 

 

 

 

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The Truth About the Devlins by Lisa Scottoline-Review & Giveaway

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The Truth About the Devlins by Lisa Scottoline-Review & Giveaway

 

 

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Description:
TJ Devlin is the charming disappointment in the prominent Devlin family, all of whom are lawyers at their highly successful firm—except him. After a stint in prison and rehab for alcoholism, TJ can’t get hired anywhere except at the firm, in a make-work job with the title of investigator.

But one night, TJ’s world turns upside down after his older brother John confesses that he just murdered one of the clients, an accountant he’d confronted with proof of embezzlement. It seems impossible coming from John, the firstborn son and Most Valuable Devlin.

TJ plunges into the investigation, seizing the chance to prove his worth and save his brother. But in no time, TJ and John find themselves entangled in a lethal web of deception and murder. TJ will fight to save his family, but what he learns might break them first.

 

 

Review:

The Truth About the Devlins by Lisa Scottoline is a standalone crime mystery thriller that grips you from the start. The story is set in Philadelphia, centered around the Devlins, who are a family of successful lawyers, in their own law firm. The story revolves around TJ Devlin, who is the black sheep in the family, as he is a recovering alchoholic, as well as having spent time in prison.  TJ works at his family’s law firm as investigator, working hard to redeem himself to his family.

It is his father’s birthday party, when his older brother needs help, and asks TJ to come with him.  Seems John (the older successful brother) met with a client, who pulled a gun on him, and John threw a rock at the client, hitting him in the head.  John fears he killed the man, but when they get to where John left him, there is no body. When they get back to the party, the family immediately thinks that TJ was in trouble.  John tries to conceal where they went, making up a lie that TJ had a relapse, even though he has been sober for a while.  TJ is angry with John, for lying, and when he tries to explain to the family, they brush him off as he is not telling the truth.

The next day TJ learns that John’s client was dead, supposedly by suicide, due to embezzlement, at a different site. This relieves John, and he no longer worries; but TJ is suspicious because he sees he is being followed.  TJ continues his investigation, putting himself into dangerous situations.   TJ is also helping out his sister, Gabby on a pro bono case, related to illegal drugs conducted on inmates in prison by pharmaceutical companies. TJ begins to suspect that John has some issues, causing his downward spiral endangering his family.   Were both of these cases related?

I really liked TJ, who was dedicated to proving himself to his family, despite them treating him like a lost cause; which was heartbreaking at times.  Only his sister, Gabby was always believing in him; as his mother usually did.  His father was harsh to him, always believing the worst; especially with John’s lies to defend himself.  TJ also closer to the end will find the perfect woman for him, as they made a great couple.

The Truth about the Devlins is an exciting, fast-paced story in the last third of the book, with a dangerous lethal web of deception and murder. I was unable to put the book down, as it was a heart-pounding, captivating page-turner.  The Truth About the Devlins was very well written by Lisa Scottoline.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

 

The Reading Cafe is offering a paper copy of THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEVLINS to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe

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8. Giveaway runs from March 25th – March 29th, 2024

 

 

 

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Pirate Trap (Clay Wolfe / Port Essex Mystery) by Matt Cost-review

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Pirate Trap (Clay Wolfe / Port Essex Mystery 5) by Matt Cost-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 27, 2024

Did Black Sam bury pirate treasure in Port Essex 300 years ago?

After finding an incredibly lucrative Spanish treasure in the Keys of Florida, Black Sam Bellamy decided to leave the pirate life and return to his true love in New England. Before being shipwrecked on the way to retrieve her, he hid his booty with the Chbo So Clan in Port Essex.

“Well, Mr. Wolfe, to get straight to the point, we want you to help us find a lost pirate treasure.”

Clay Wolfe had been slouched in the desk chair of his P.I. office, but now he straightened up and sat forward. His normally natty attire was ruffled, stubble dotted his face, and his eyes were red. “In Port Essex?”

Clay Wolfe, devastated by the death of his grandfather, is hired by an antiques dealer to find a long-lost pirate treasure and finds himself pitted against an unscrupulous sex doll businessman, a motorcycle gang, a greedy salvage boat operator, and other mysterious entities. Also recruited for this treasure hunt is Clay’s Westy, Crystal, Murphy, Cloutier, and of course, Baylee Baker.

And the spark between Clay and his partner, Baylee, finally bursts into flame…

•••••

REVIEW:PIRATE TRAP is the fifth instalment in Matt Cost’s contemporary, adult CLAY WOLFE/PORT ESSEX MYSTERY series focusing on former homicide detective turned private investigator Clay Wolfe, and his rag-tag team of wanna-bes and undercover operatives. PIRATE TRAP can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty but I recommend reading the series in order for back story and cohesion as to the history of Clay Wolfe and people he calls family and friends.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise including graphic violence, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from several third person perspectives including Clay Wolfe, following several intersecting paths, PIRATE TRAP focuses on the search for sunken treasure. Over three hundred years earlier, a ship suspected of carrying several trunks of stolen fire opals was reported to have gone down near Port Essex, Maine. Hired to ‘search’ for the whereabouts of the sunken treasure, a drunk and embittered Clay Wolfe and his business partner turned lover Baylee Baker begin to hunt for the truth but all is not as is appears to be when the bodies begin to amass, another treasure hunting crew takes notice, and a dangerous MC begins to target everyone involved.

Clay Wolfe has been spiralling since the murder of his beloved grandfather, and in this, our hero is struggling to move on with his life. Placing himself in danger and the direct line of fire, Clay Wolfe’s overwhelming behavior is a threat to his own safety and often the safety of others. Finding solace in his partner Baylee Baker, Clay sees an opportunity for a different future, a future involving family and friends.

Blending historical fact, fiction, and Indigenous lore, Matt Cost enlightens the reader onto a three hundred year old case referencing pirate ‘Black’ Sam Bellamy, and twelve cases of fire opals, stolen or taken from a mine in Mexico, then disappearing off the coast of Maine. Rumors abound as to what happened: from a storm at sea to a buried treasure never to be found but greed and betrayal will be at the heart of Clay Wolfe’s investigation crossing paths with another case towards a deadly betrayal.

PIRATE TRAP is an action packed story of betrayal and vengeance, secrets and lies, power and control, violence and murder, friendships and relationships. The premise is detailed, gritty and intriguing; the characters are captivating and suspenseful; the romance is limited but encouraging.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Wolfe Trap
Mind Trap
Mouse Trap
Cosmic Trap

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

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Over the years, Cost has owned a video store, a mystery bookstore, and a gym. He has also taught history and coached just about every sport imaginable.

Cost now lives in Brunswick, Maine, with his wife, Harper. There are four grown children: Brittany, Pearson, Miranda, and Ryan. A chocolate Lab and a basset hound round out the mix. He now spends his days at the computer, writing.

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