Day: December 16, 2020

The third book in the Detective Casey White series picks up where The Innocent Girls left off. She’s been reunited with her daughter and her relationship has progressed with Jericho. In fact, it’s progressed quite a bit.

This is both a blessing and curse for Casey. While it’s a happy event, not only does she have the usual rigors of policework to deal with, but her emotions have gone haywire.

All of gets compounded when a dead body is found. Casey undertakes the investigation, but soon learns that this case may be more personal, as there are similarities to an older case involving the death of Jericho’s wife.

I don’t want to share too much more about the plot (there are several other reviews with spoilers if that’s your thing). But I do want to talk about Casey.

I thought the author did a good job illustrating the pressures that members of law enforcement are under on a daily basis. That’s been standard across all three books in the series.

This time, however, we also get the added insight into what happens when an investigation hits close to home and gets personal.

Many authors have used this twist in other series. It certainly adds tension and the sense that there is a more immediate need for resolution, while often making for more pulse-pounding action.

It’s a “Can the detective stop the killer before he attacks one of her own” type of thing.

In this case, however, someone close to Casey becomes a suspect. Well, that’s sort of true. There’s being an actual suspect due to proof and there’s being a suspect in the public eye. Those are two very different things.

The latter is one that is highlighted in this book, and it hit close to home. The outside pressures from gossip and innuendo can derail even the sturdiest of detectives – and Casey isn’t that in this book.

I thought the emotion of the characters was what made this story stand out from others that use this type of plot point. Casey has been an emotional character across the three books – with a history like hers, how could she not be – so it seemed natural that those took center stage in this one.

That being said, I did reach a point when I started to wonder how much a person could take. I’m not going to say any more about that. I will also say that I am now even more curious to see where this series goes next.

I don’t think it’s over.

Author Bio:

B.R. Spangler here. I’m a resident of Virginia along with my family, five cats, two birds, a hamster, and a lizard. During the day, I work as an engineer and spend my off hours writing, editing, and thinking up the next great story.

I split my time across pen names, writing crime thrillers, science fiction, horrors, paranormal and contemporary fiction.

Author Website: https://brspangler.com/sign-up/