I
enjoyed this police procedure novel and my introduction to Browning.
Jo Wyatt is quite the detective. I had a hard time liking her. She's
got quite a sarcastic and critical mouth. She has an attitude and
serious relationship issues. She seems to have not kept up in her
training, not knowing much about cyber crimes, such as that email
addresses could be spoofed. As the novel progressed and more of her
story came out, I could understand her character but still found her
a bit hard to like to the very end.
Jo's
greatest positive trait is her tenacious attitude toward solving a
mystery. While ruled a suicide initially, something doesn't set right
with Jo and she digs and digs and digs. She alienates people right
and left, except Squint, her faithful co-investigator. She finally
gets to the bottom of the murder(s) and manages to make a friend,
sort of, in the process.
The
novel highlights the prejudice against women in law enforcement, at
least in that area. Jo had been passed up for promotion, unjustly.
But she might just have had the last word. We'll find out in the next
novel in the series. This is a good novel for readers who like a
balance of character development and police procedure with a good
dose of suspense at the end.
My
rating: 4/5 stars.
Colorado
Book Award-winning author M. E. Browning writes the Jo Wyatt
Mysteries and the Agatha-nominated and award-winning Mer Cavallo
Mysteries (as Micki Browning). Browning also writes short stories and
nonfiction. Her work has appeared in magazines, anthologies, and
textbooks. An FBI National Academy graduate, she worked in municipal
law enforcement for more than two decades and retired as a captain
before turning to a life of crime fiction.
Crooked
Lane Books, 296 pages.
(My
star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it,
1-I hate it.)
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