Tropical Delusions……

Night Moves – Jonathan Kellerman

Milo Sturgis & Alex Delaware are back again, as they team up together to solve another perplexing case.

A family goes to dinner one night, only to return to find a corpse in their father’s study – and not just any corpse – there’s no blood, no clues as to his sudden appearance, and the victim is missing his face and his hands, making identification difficult. Milo Sturgis lands the case, and quickly asks Alex Delaware to assist. The family in question appears to cooperate, but reeks of dysfunction – the brash overbearing father, the meek timid mother, the quiet, reserved daughter, and the son who acts out loudly and inappropriately. But collectively, no one knows the identity of the body in their home, or has any idea who might have left it there…or why.

As missing persons reports eventually lead to the identification of the body, yet more questions arise, and the focus shifts to the reclusive neighbor, remembered for his unscrupulous cartoon drawings, yet rebuffs any interaction from his neighbors, or police. As Milo & Alex navigate each new lead, new motives, and long buried secrets are revealed, and the case reaches a stunning, yet unexpected conclusion! This is Kellerman in top form!

A Merciful Secret – Kendra Elliott

Mercy Kilpatrick is an FBI special agent living in rural Oregon. Raised in a very small town there, she remains close to her roots in her downtime, and is in the process of building a survivalist foothold deep in the mountains. As she’s leaving her mountain hideaway, she barely misses striking a child who comes dashing from the woods into the roadway, seeking help for her injured grandmother. Mercy finds a fatally injured older woman, who dies shortly after her arrival, despite her best efforts.

Meanwhile, three hours away, a similar death occurs, and the pathologist makes the connection due to the similarity in wounds. But who would want an old woman and a nationally renowned Judge with no apparent ties to one another, dead? And why?

So, begins Mercy’s next adventure. Despite being barred from the investigation due to her being a witness to a murder, Mercy inserts herself into all aspects of the case, with the help of fellow agent Ava, and boyfriend, chief of police Truman. As new clues are uncovered, and connections are made, yet another snowstorm is barreling in on Oregon, setting events in motion that will threaten all Mercy holds dear…

Kendra Elliott is quickly becoming one of my favorite new authors – her books are suspenseful, difficult to put down reads, and yet easily read – this one took me only a few hours – the perfect beach read!

As many of you who know me know, I’m not much for organized religion. Having lived in the deep south (North Carolina) for some time, I had the opportunity to meet many devoutly religious people – some were wonderful people, and some were the most racist, judgmental people I’ve ever come across. I do not for a second believe that your religious beliefs or practices can define you as a person. I do not go to church, have no desire to ever go to church, struggle with the thought that ‘God’ is an individual who is not only solely responsible for my life, but guides it daily, etc. However, I try to be a good person, and I DO believe that there is more than just us – fragile creatures of Earth – spinning on a blue marble in space, alone. I just cant fit my beliefs, or my assumptions, neatly into a box, as defined by a specific religion. None of them truly make any sense to me. I am at heart, a scientist. (NOT to be confused with scientologist!)

That being said, a couple of months ago, I lost my precious dog Sophie to complications from cancer. It was a quick, unexpected death for her, and while I knew it was inevitably coming, it happened with a suddenness that I did not expect. While I’m grateful that she didn’t overly suffer, and that I was with her when it happened (instead of the kids), I have found that I miss her profoundly. I don’t possess that sixth sense that some seem to have – I don’t feel her nearby – or see her in her favorite places (lying in the backyard in the sun). I have since adopted another rescue dog (a story for another time, for sure), but I still miss my sweet but stubborn Sophie terribly, and can literally count the days and hours since she had to go. (It’s been 56 days and 17 hours as I write this).

The other day, Ellie Bean (my new pup) and I went for a long walk through the nature trails that surround my neighborhood. It was a bit chilly and we were alone for the entire five miles we walked. Like most dog owners, I babble constantly to my pets, and today was no exception. I told her how Sophie and I used to take walks like this and that she and Soph would have been buddies, etc. Blah, blah, blah. I looked to the sky, told Sophie I missed her, and would love for her to send me a sign so I would know she’s okay. I also said, “you know me Soph, it cant be subtle either, else I’ll miss it”.

The next day, I had to work. I am an ICU nurse and work in an 18 bed unit. I had been hoping to care for the patients I had had before my day off, but was assigned to two other patients. Both were critically ill, on life support, with multiple medicated drips and other equipment at the bedside, so it was a crazy busy day. That morning, one of my patient’s daughters was in to see her dad, and said she’d be back later that afternoon. She did return, and she came in carrying a little ‘beany baby’ sized stuffed tan dog for her Dad. As she put in in his hand, she looked up at me and said that the stuffed dog was named Sophie, and that she was very special to her Dad. It took me a minute to realize what she called the dog, but as signs go, it wasn’t subtle. Soph had found a way to let me know she was okay.

Coincidence? Sure, maybe…but I asked for it, and I’ll take it. ♥

I LOVE YOU, SOPHIE!!

The Third Victim – Phillip Margolis

Driving through the woods at night, a motorist slams on the brakes as something tumbles out of the forest into the roadway. It’s a female, bearing the appearances of having been held captive and abused. As she recovers from her ordeal, she remembers enough to lead detectives to the cabin in the woods where she had been held, and a prominent local attorney is arrested for the alleged crime. In another seemingly unrelated event, a pimp threatens a decorated police officer when he finds him beating one of his prostitutes, and then winds up dead himself.

High powered attorney Regina Barrister and her capable assistant Robin are hired to defend the accused Alex Mason who swears he is innocent. Despite his pleas of such, the evidence appears cut and dried, and he is ultimately convicted and sent to death row.

But Regina has been experiencing episodes of forgetfulness, that do not go unnoticed by her legal team, and they have lingering doubts about Alex’s guilt. As they delve deeper into the investigation for the defense appeal, it appears that not all things are as they seem – is Alex’s wife a grieving spouse, or is she a master manipulator? Is the rescued victim, Meredith, really the victim she appears to be? Is a decorated police officer a sadistic bully, or is he a murderer??

This book had me hooked from the very beginning and kept me guessing until the end. Full of action, suspense, and enough twists and turns that keep you guessing until the very end. I couldn’t put it down!!!