Wednesday, July 20, 2011

In The Belly of Jonah - Review

In The Belly of Jonah (Mystery)
By Sandra Brannon
ISBN #978-1-60832-050-9
Greenleaf Book Group LLC  www.gbgpress.com
Price: $14.95
250 Pages
Rating: 5-Stars

“Sandra Brannon’s writing is superb, fresh and entertaining!”

Liv Bergen manages a limestone quarry in Colorado, where she has learned to be tough while caring for her employees. On occasion she hires university students during their school semesters. When one of the students is brutally murdered, it throws her right in the middle of an F.B.I. investigation.

The serial killer has been nicknamed the Venus de Milo murderer for one case where he cut off the arms and legs of his victims. Each killing appeared staged, as if as an art piece, gruesome in every detail. With the hotels filled up, and the bureau profiler turns out to be an old friend, she invites the F.B.I. agents to set up their operations in her home, bringing her under the evil attention of the killer. Would she be his next target?

I was intrigued by such an interesting read, and found the author’s portrayal of characters to be three-dimensional, and down to earth. The writing is smooth, and the story never slows down for long. The author seems to know when to pick up the pace again. The murderer is easily figured out, which may be a let down for some readers, but the investigators must work to discover his identity before he kills again. Not your current trend of wise cracking, gun-slinging hot shot detectives on the make for blond Hollywood stars. This is a well-paced murder mystery, with a gritty setting in rough mining country with a human monster stalking innocent victims. It felt like a mix of Murder She Wrote and Blood Work, perhaps, but a well balance between the two.

One of the most enjoyable novels I’ve read this year!

Tom Johnson, Editor
Detective Mystery Stories

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