4.5 stars. Excellent novel! Had NO idea who the killer could be so the revelation caught me totally by surprise! ( )

Gut wrenching, heartbreaking, thought provoking and spiritual are all words to describe this book. John Inman is an amazing writer, he so easily captures a mood or a moment so clearly and truthfully you have no doubt that these are real people who you can empathize with and feel for.

The story is set in a small farming community somewhere in the Midwest, God's country. Bryan is a Methodist minister with a secret, and a well developed sense of snark. I loved Bryan, although at times I wanted to smack him upside his head. He could be so intelligent and understanding one minute and completely clueless the next.

The murders take place over a long hot rainy summer while Bryan, his best friend Sam, Sam's Aunt, Bryan's nephew Jesse and Jess's friend Kyle are getting the Methodist Summer Camp ready to open in August. Sam is a wonderful man and I don't know how he waited for Bryan so patiently for so long. I don't think I could have done it.

The location and the weather are as much characters in the story as the open letter are. The peace of the lake set against the horror of he murders; the heavy rains and violent storms help create that oppressive atmosphere you feel growing as the deaths pile up.

I figured out who the killer was early in the story, only because I have reads hundreds of mysteries and this reminded me of a pretty famous one. Not that there is any similarity between the two, just the thought of that one sparked an idea which lead me to a suspect and once that happened there are plenty of clues scattered through the ot the story. This didn't detract anything from the book, I keep reading to see how the truth would play out and how everything would be resolved. I admit I cried when the truth was revealed, so many emotions, so much pain, yet a chance for a better future. Read the book, it is so very very good.


( )

Story: 9
First MC: 9
Second MC: 7
Secondary characters: 7
Mystery: 9
Sexual tension: 4
Humor: 5
Hotness: 3
Product placement: 4
Ridiculousness: 2
Annoying: 1
Audio: 10
To re-read:7

Whodunnit story. This isn't a romance. Though the MC in an established relationship, some sex scenes but mostly fade to black. Many secondary characters since we are looking for a killer. Some humor and colorful characters made it a good read.

( )

BR with Marte on Monday, September 21st

"