This is two books in one. The one I enjoyed the most is the taut, bare-knuckled adventure of 'Skin' Kadash as he searches Portland, San Francisco, and a small Ohio town for the woman he has decided he loves. While he was recuperating from another adventure, she has taken off for parts unknown, for reasons unknown, and has not returned as quickly as she led her friends to believe. He knows he has to track her down. Along the way, there are murders, attempted murders, brawls, and scant clues.

Compressed between the two halves of this thriller is another story. This one about the confused teenage version of Ruby Jane-the woman Kadash loves. She's in and out of trouble. Fighting to make her way through life against the odds. In a way, this backstory is what drives the rest, but I found it mostly a distraction. The style is different. The tone is different. And I wasn't invested enough in her to stick with it. I skimmed through and got the gist of it.

The writing was pretty good. The characters and settings well presented. The mystery was OK. What knocked this book down from 4 to 3 stars was the weak center section. ( )

Another book that is not in my normal reading type but I couldn't pass up the price (free). Good story though it turns out it's the 3rd or 4th book in a series. ( )

When Skin returns home to find Ruby Jane missing he sets off on search that seems to be dangerous to everyone, including himself. ( )

Recently I have had the pleasure of reading some very good books. Some have been okay, but others have been mind-blowing. County Line by Bill Cameron was right smack in the middle of okay and mind-blowing at a steady awesome. From the beginning I was wondering how it was all going to wrap up and then right between section one and two there was a wallop when the entire style of the book changed pace as we switched voices. That’s when it started to get exciting.

Part One: Skin. This was my first introduction so Skin Kadash and I can say that it was a pleasant one. Skin is a retired cop with a little bit of an authority problem. He has just wrapped up a winter retreat at a nice bed and breakfast to get his head set straight and he’s been starting to worry about his friend Ruby Jane. It’s possible she just disappeared because she was tired of Skin, but what if that wasn’t it? Skin begins to investigate and discovers a dead man in Ruby Jane’s bathtub. Okay – that’s a little tricky to blow off, now isn’t it? Skin starts tracking Ruby Jane down through her various relatives and friends and connections (and not via Facebook might I add) when he starts to realize he’s stumbled on something big. Ruby Jane’s not quite as innocent as she seems, but Skin has to figure out where she is and just how deep into it she is.

Part Two: Roo. Ruby Jane’s section passes quickly as your mind starts to piece together all the information that is being thrown at you haphazardly. I’m the type of person that loves to read with a pencil and a piece of paper right next to me (Sorry Prof. Slinkard – I still can’t write in my books). I jot down clues, I jot down dates, I jot down names. I needed that skill in this section as Ruby Jane’s story flips and flops back and forth through time. It’s normally pretty easy to follow along, but occasionally I had to stop and backtrack or think. This was the highlight of this book.

Part Three: Biddy. I won’t give away the conclusion, since I’m not into spoilers, but I will say that while this book could be called formulaic (as most books are – even really great books), I still found the conclusion satisfying and somewhat surprising.

I did have to send a tweet to Mr. Cameron at one point, asking him for clarification on one of the passages in the book, and wouldn’t you know it – he replied back! Props to Mr. Cameron. Overall, I found this book to be engaging and fast paced (after you got past Skin’s section) and I really love the characters. Since this is part of a series, I’m going to have to make time to go back and read some of the other bits and pieces of Skin’s story.

Thank you Mr. Cameron.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received County Line by Bill Cameron free from Tyrus Books through the FSB Media review program. I was not required to write a positive review and did not receive any other compensation. The opinions I have expressed are my own and no one else’s. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ( )

I downloaded this book as a freebie from Barnes and Noble. IT was ok as a free book, mainly it intrigued me because of the location that the story takes place, (familiar territory). BUT with that being said, I was anxious to finish the book, and I wasn't overly impressed with the typical fairy tale ending. ( )