This is not your typical "who done it" murder mystery, although I did love the twists and turns of trying to guess what was coming next. It was an easy-to-read novel, with characters that developed well and were easily identifiable throughout the book. Rachel Higgins is the grieving mother (grandmotherly age) who realizes why her son dies, and concludes that Archbishop Gillepsie is ultimately at fault, and very methodically and meticulously plots his demise. Ali Reynolds and B. Simpson run the detective agency that Gillepsie contacts when the mystery of who hates him surfaces enough to be a credible threat. Jack Stoneman is a semi-homeless man who has learned how to make it work, had a prior police record, and is befriended by Rachel Higgins. The Phoenix police department is slow to investigate and realize that this is a true crime. Frigg is some kind of robotic computer program that can hack into files illegally and find information that could serve positive or explanative purposes. I especially liked Frigg, even though Frigg was more sci-fi than a real person. I always said that if I could not teach or write, I wanted to be the friendly hacker that could see all kinds of specialized private information, but only use what would be needed to stop fraud. This book was complex, yet easy to understand. I loved the multiple themes that ran throughout: seeking justice, crime does not pay, marital discord, stages of grief after death, love conquers all, getting your soul right, and my favorite in this book: repentance and forgiveness! Even though this book centered around activity in the Catholic church, I did not think the book really had any religious undertones until the very end. If you like a book that is challenging, or love reading about a master mind who could avoid the law by knowing so much how to do evil and not be caught, or you like trying to solve a mystery, this is your book! ( )

Phoenix Archbishop Gillespie receives a series of threats via collection plates around the archdiocese, and turns to High Noon Enterprises for help when the local police chief dismisses the threats. Things ramp up big time when Gillespie's driver is shot to death in the Archbishop's driveway, and a local homeless person is wrongly arrested. Ali Reynolds works mostly on her own as husband B. Simpson is called overseas to deal with a ransomware attack, assisted primarily by Frigg, their AI assistant. The assassin is the grieving parent of a child sexually abused by a priest, whose life ended prematurely from an opioid overdose, who has taken full leave of their sanity, and seems oblivious to Gillespie's strong actions against such priests. I liked Jance's recognition of the Phoenix PD's spokesperson, Isabella Maldonado, who now has published her own series of books. However, this book was overly limited to Ali, the assassin, and Frigg, without the supporting cast, except for Sister Anselm. ( )

Although the synopsis of Credible Threat tries to cloak the identity of the person out to kill Archbishop Gillespie, it's clear from the beginning who's behind the threats and attempts on his life. This is another solid outing for J.A. Jance, who knows how to craft a fast-paced, ironclad mystery.

As good as she is with pacing and plotting; however, Jance's true (and marvelous) strength lies in the creation of her characters. Even characters who don't have that much time in the spotlight come to life under her pen. In many ways, my favorite was Sister Anselm, who has a Taser and isn't afraid to use it, but no one who reads Credible Threat can't help but be touched by the damaged Rachel Higgins. It's not easy to create a sympathetic assassin, but Jance has. It's not always easy to create a sympathetic priest in an organization seemingly riddled with pedophiles, but Jance has. As I've already said, the strength of Jance is in her characters.

I haven't been a faithful follower of the author's Ali Reynolds series. I dip my toe in from time to time just to see what Ali is up to. Even though Ali crashed and burned in her original occupation, I've had the tendency to regard this series featuring her as a sort of fairy tale. Yes, Ali crashes and burns, but she bounces back stronger than ever. She's smart. She's strong. She's pretty. She's rich. She's married to a man who has all the high tech gadgets you could ever dream of. She has all the right clothes and all the right transportation... she even gets notified of traffic jams ahead of time so she can avoid them. I imagine that there's more than one reader who envies Ali Reynolds just a tiny bit.

But-- guided by someone as talented as J.A. Jance-- the Ali Reynolds series is fun, and that can count for a lot right now. ( )

Phoenix Archbishop Gillespie receives a series of threats via collection plates around the archdiocese, and turns to Ali and her husband B. Simpson who run High Noon a security company. High Noon has Frigg a Computer that obtains information in many ways that are not legal.
A grieving Mother, who finds out that her sons suicide may have been caused by a priests sexual abuse sets out to take her revenge on the Archbishop.
The plot thickens when the Archbishop's driver is shot and killed while driving the Archbishop to an event.
An excellent read! Makes you want to read more of J.A. Jance books.
I received this book from goodreads for a review. ( )

J.A. Jance is a prolific writer, penning numerous books in a number of series - all of which I've enjoyed. Credible Threat is the latest (15th) entry in the Ali Reynolds mysteries.

This time out, we know who the antagonist is right from the beginning. A series of threats have Archbishop Francis Gillespie asking Ali to look into things for him as the police have dismissed his concerns.

The listener comes to know the antagonist, her thoughts and actions even as Ali and her team work to put the pieces together. It is always a question - which is preferable - to know the guilty party ahead of time? Or to be along for the ride as the protagonist seeks answers? I don't really have a preference. It depends on how its presented. And I liked the way Jance unfolded things.

Listening to a J.A. Jance book is like settling in with an old friend. I've come to like and enjoy all of her characters. Jance fills out the personal side of them as well, moving along their lives with every new book. There's lots of detail as well of actions, settings and dialogue. This may have some listeners finding the pace a bit slow. I often listen while I'm doing other things such as cleaning or going for a walk. The leisurely, comfortable pace suited me perfectly with this novel. And the level of detail made the story and interactions more realistic. Character development is just as important as plotting with Jance.

There's been one new 'character' introduced in the last couple of books that I wasn't too sure of. Frigg is an AI. (Artificial Intelligence) Ali's husband B. runs a cyber security firm, so Frigg fits into things via this connection. Her use has been toned down a bit and I find it is more realistic in this book. She's also a credible and easy way to introduce new clues and evidence into the plot.

The scenario at the heart of Credible Threat isn't new, but Jance puts a nice spin on her version.

I chose to listen to Credible Threat. The reader was Karen Ziemba. Ziemba has narrated previous Ali Reynolds books, so the continuity is nice. She has a very pleasant voice, is easy to listen to and understand. She's got a calm, measured way of speaking that suits the character. She provides credible voices for supporting characters as well. She captures the emotions, action and tenor of the plot with her voice. Another great listen from Jance. I'll be watching for her next book. ( )