Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Book Review: Secrets to Die For

Detective Jackson is quickly becoming one of my favorites! Secrets to Die For is the second book featuring the Eugene, Oregon homicide detective that I've read (The Sex Club being the first), and L.J. Sellers is one of those writers I'm going to keep following.

When a series of rapes in the city of Eugene suddenly turns to murder, Detective Wade Jackson and his team are on the case. But what they at first thought were crimes against women soon reveal themselves to be much darker hate crimes. Jackson begins to question himself in this book, asking how he feels about things and wondering if he's lost his edge when he doesn't clue into certain aspects of the case as quickly as he'd like.

A young social worker, Raina Hughes, is found murdered, and it looks like it might be by the same person who has been targeting and raping women in the area. The one common factor between the rape victims and Raina is something her friend and lover, Jamie Connor, will keep secret at any cost. When Jamie disappears, Jackson is sure the killer has taken her and he races to find her before she too is murdered.

In the midst of all this he's dealing with his teenaged daughter, an ex-wife who seems to be up to some of her old tricks, and his girlfriend's ex-husband trying to muddy the waters of their relationship. It's a lot to deal with while you're trying to stop a dangerous criminal.

But rest assured, with Jackson on the case the bad guys don't stand a chance. This is a terrific mystery with twists, turns and questions flying every which way and it will keep you guessing the whole time. I had to shush my son from talking to me towards the end because I literally couldn't stop reading! I'm anxious to read the next one in the series, and hope Sellers and Jackson keep going for a long, long time!

One other thing ... I found the title of this book very poignant. If solving this case had Jackson questioning himself, I hope the book might help others question their views of people as well. I hope that no one would ever feel they have a secret they would be willing to die for. Something else to think about as you read this book.

1 comment:

  1. Wow. Thanks for a terrific review. Writing this series has been the most rewarding work I've ever done.

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