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Judgment Call (Joanna Brady #15)

by J.A. Jance (Goodreads Author)

3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 · rating details · 1,276 ratings · 228 reviews

New York Times bestselling author J. A. Jance brings back acclaimed sheriff Joanna Brady in an exciting and twisting mystery set against the beauty and isolation of the Arizona desert

Judgment Call

When Joanna Brady's daughter, Jenny, stumbles across the body of her high school principal, Debra Highsmith, in the desert, the Cochise County sheriff's personal and professional...more New York Times bestselling author J. A. Jance brings back acclaimed sheriff Joanna Brady in an exciting and twisting mystery set against the beauty and isolation of the Arizona desert

Judgment Call

When Joanna Brady's daughter, Jenny, stumbles across the body of her high school principal, Debra Highsmith, in the desert, the Cochise County sheriff's personal and professional worlds collide, forcing her to tread the difficult middle ground between being an officer of the law and a mother. While investigating murders has always meant discovering unpleasant facts and disquieting truths, the experienced Joanna isn't prepared for the knowledge she's about to uncover. Though she's tried to protect her children from the dangers of the grown-up world, the search for justice leads straight to her own door and forces her to face the possibility that her beloveddaughter may be less perfect than she seems—especially when a photo from the crime scene ends up on Facebook. A photo only one person close to the crime scene could have taken.

The gruesome picture is just the tip of the iceberg. Even a small, close-knit town like Bisbee has its secrets. Navigating her way through the unfamiliar world of social media, Joanna discovers shocking—and incriminating—information. The details build, from a hushed-up suspension, to a group of teenagers with a grudge against the late Ms. Highsmith, to a hateful video calling for the principal's death. The video evidence points to one particular privileged boy, who's already lawyered up thanks to his father, a well-to-do doctor determined to protect his son's reputation. Yet the deeper Joanna digs, the more complications she uncovers. It seems the quiet, upstanding principal had a hidden past, full of mysterious secrets she'd successfully kept buried for years.

As the seasoned sheriff juggles professional constraints and personal demands—budget cuts, new team members, an arrogant coroner, a confused teenager, a precocious toddler, and a high-maintenance mother—she finds herself walking a fine line between justice and family that has never been so blurred.(less)

ebook, 464 pages

Published July 24th 2012 by William Morrow (first published January 1st 2012)

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Aug 19, 2012 Robin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

4 stars for the first part, 3.5 for the last 1/4.

I have read every Beaumont title and now all in the Brady series, and have to admit I still prefer the Beaumont series. That being said, I thought for the most part this was a solid mystery with Joanna and her gang performing good thorough investigative skills.

The 3.5 stars comes in after the main mystery was solved and I realized there were still many pages left to read, which the author used to wrap up a personal mystery that started in the firs...more

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Dec 01, 2012 Kristina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads, 2012-goal-60

Keep in mind, 3 Stars means, "I liked it" and I did, enough so that I may one day pick up any of the other 14 books in this series. Admittedly, I didn't realize until after the fact that this is the 15th book in an ongoing series about Sheriff Joanna Brady.

I thought this was a solid mystery novel and I like the characters and the story itself. Throughout though I though it was somewhat heavy on random information about characters, but like I said, I didn't realize at first that it was because i...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Mylinda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Overall, a good, servicable Joanna Brady story. 3.5/5.0

There's a murder, Joanna jumps in, and there is a battle in the desert. (Not really a spoiler since that's how all the books go.) Overall one of the better books, but spoiled by Joanna's apparant complete lack of knowledge of the new-fangled "internet".

Some spolers will follow...

My complaints, nitpicky all, but they bugged me:
As punishment for releasing a crime scene photo, Jenny loses her texting service. Fair enough, but then there is dis...more Overall, a good, servicable Joanna Brady story. 3.5/5.0

There's a murder, Joanna jumps in, and there is a battle in the desert. (Not really a spoiler since that's how all the books go.) Overall one of the better books, but spoiled by Joanna's apparant complete lack of knowledge of the new-fangled "internet".

Some spolers will follow...

My complaints, nitpicky all, but they bugged me:
As punishment for releasing a crime scene photo, Jenny loses her texting service. Fair enough, but then there is discussion between Joanna and Butch about how the two of them never text,(Never? Not even "I'm running late" or "Pls get milk" or "ILY"?) and Jenny didn't mind losing it. First, if she doesn't mind losing it, it's not much of a punishment, is it? And second, she's supposed to be 15 - you would have to pry the texting from the cold dead thumbs of most teen girls.

Joanna acts amazed by Facebook. Later she is surprised that Jenny has one. Um, hello? You have a teen daughter - you best be gettin' with the times.

Another plot point involves a character impersonating someone else on Facebook. Ok, that's totally creepy. But the explanation is that a visiting teen relative set up the FB account to friend the local teens and then abandoned the account when she went home, so the (creepy) adult relative lurks on there to get the local scoop. Again, have you MET a teen girl? They all have eleventy-billion friends and it seems unlikely that they would abandon their new AZ friends when they went home. That story line would have been better if the creepy relative had somehow gotten the password and used it to lurk...

I'm tired of hearing about how bad-slutty-Joanna got herself knocked up at 18 and had a shotgun wedding. Especially since that would make it 1994-ish, not the 1986-ish from the beginning of the series. It's just tired and dated at this point. Time to let it drop.

Two 17 yo characters are getting frisky out in the boondocks. Joanna is more concerned that telling the parents will result in the boy being charged with statuatory rape than with telling the kids to stay home because there are *murderers* running around in the desert. (Lots of them, based on this series.) Just seemed like more moralizing. Maybe the Sheriff should just send some patrol cars through lovers lane more often.

More whining - a character was "sent a Twitter message" - um, ok. A text message maybe? Wikipedia is used as a reliable source of police investigation. And poor old Dennis is just a sad, lonely footnote.

Basically a good overall story, but the nit-picky stuff really bugged me and detracted from it.(less)

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Dec 18, 2012 Anthony Pacifico rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

J A Jance is one of my favorite mystery authors. She is known for two series, among others. The first is her Beaumont series set in Seattle. And this series, set in Bisbee, Arizona, featuring County Sheriff Joanna Brady and her rather interesting family and friends. These are definitely not "cozy mysteries." Jance can be pretty descriptive in her telling of a story. But she writes so well, with a mixture of humor and thrills. I have read every book in this series and I have enjoyed every one of...more

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Oct 14, 2012 Kevintipple rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

High school Principal Debra Highsmith was difficult at best for many and flat out hated by some in the local community. First missing and then found dead by Jenny Brady, the daughter of Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady, there is a personal angle to the case. Sheriff Brady has her hands full with the case because now a search for a killer in the Bisbee area begins.

Not only will that investigation reveal some unpleasant truths about the victim and some of the students she tried to help every da...more

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Sep 01, 2012 Nancy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Great book. Couldn't put it down. Love how we learn new pieces of Joanna's life.....

When Joanna Brady's daughter, Jenny, stumbles across the body of her high school principal, Debra Highsmith, in the desert, the Cochise County sheriff's personal and professional worlds collide, forcing her to tread the difficult middle ground between being an officer of the law and a mother. While investigating murders has always meant discovering unpleasant facts and disquieting truths, the experienced Joanna i...more Great book. Couldn't put it down. Love how we learn new pieces of Joanna's life.....

When Joanna Brady's daughter, Jenny, stumbles across the body of her high school principal, Debra Highsmith, in the desert, the Cochise County sheriff's personal and professional worlds collide, forcing her to tread the difficult middle ground between being an officer of the law and a mother. While investigating murders has always meant discovering unpleasant facts and disquieting truths, the experienced Joanna isn't prepared for the knowledge she's about to uncover. Though she's tried to protect her children from the dangers of the grown-up world, the search for justice leads straight to her own door and forces her to face the possibility that her beloved daughter may be less perfect than she seems--especially when a photo from the crime scene ends up on Facebook. A photo only one person close to the crime scene could have taken.

The gruesome picture is just the tip of the iceberg. Even a small, close-knit town like Bisbee has its secrets. Navigating her way through the unfamiliar world of social media, Joanna discovers shocking--and incriminating--information. The details build, from a hushed-up suspension, to a group of teenagers with a grudge against the late Ms. Highsmith, to a hateful video calling for the principal's death. The video evidence points to one particular privileged boy, who's already lawyered up thanks to his father, a well-to-do doctor determined to protect his son's reputation. Yet the deeper Joanna digs, the more complications she uncovers. It seems the quiet, upstanding principal had a hidden past, full of mysterious secrets she'd successfully kept buried for years.

As the seasoned sheriff juggles professional constraints and personal demands--budget cuts, new team members, an arrogant coroner, a confused teenager, a precocious toddler, and a high-maintenance mother--she finds herself walking a fine line between justice and family that has never been so blurred.(less)

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Aug 22, 2012 Luanne Ollivier rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3.5/5
I've been following the trials and tribulations of Sheriff Joanna Brady of Cochise County, Arizona for many years. J.A. Jance released the first book in 1993 and the latest installment - Judgment Call - marks the 15th entry in this long running and much loved series.

Joanna's fifteen year old daughter Jenny stumbles upon a body while out for an early morning ride. It turns out to be the body of the local high school principal, who had been reported as missing. And with that discovery, her pe...more 3.5/5
I've been following the trials and tribulations of Sheriff Joanna Brady of Cochise County, Arizona for many years. J.A. Jance released the first book in 1993 and the latest installment - Judgment Call - marks the 15th entry in this long running and much loved series.

Joanna's fifteen year old daughter Jenny stumbles upon a body while out for an early morning ride. It turns out to be the body of the local high school principal, who had been reported as missing. And with that discovery, her personal and professional lives collide. It seems that Principal Highsmith had some secrets....

What has kept me coming back to this series over the years? The strength is in the recurring characters. Sitting down to read a Brady book is like listening to an old friend tell a good story. Brady's life has continued to change and evolve over the years, in a believable manner. She's a character I've come to know and like. So, the personal story lines are always a draw. I always enjoy the setting descriptions as well. Jance owns a home in Arizona, so the descriptions are drawn from personal observation.

The mystery is solid in Judgment Call, as is Joanna's investigation of it. Nothing earth shattering, but again, it's all in the telling. This is the first time I've chosen to listen to a Brady book. I was quite concerned what the reader would sound like, as I have developed a mental image for Joanna over the years. The reader was Hilary Huber and she was an excellent choice. I have listened to her narrate other audio books and enjoyed them. She has a slightly gravelly tone to her voice that is quite unique. Her voice is very well modulated and conveys strength, purpose and urgency without being raised. It conveyed the calm confidence of Sheriff Brady easily. Different characters are portrayed using easily differentiated voices.

The only jarring note in The Judgment was the inclusion of a secondary plot involving the death of Joanna's father that seemed almost tacked on. It was another link in Joanna's story and I was glad of the revelations but it just felt a little clumsy.

All in all, another good solid read from Jance(less)

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Aug 21, 2012 Anita rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: police-procedural, mystery

I've read most if not all of Jance's books, and like the JP Beaumont series best, and Joanna Brady is a close second. The setting and characters are fleshed-out and detailed, but I found myself skipping the occasional paragraph in this book because there was a bit too much description for followers of the series. The story begins with Joanna's daughter discovering the body of her high school principal in the desert not far from their ranch. It is all-too believable that Jenny would take a pictur...more

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Jul 27, 2012 T. Edmund rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Judgment Call, finds recurring hero Joanna Brady investigating the shock killing of a local high-school principal, and also confronting some ghosts of mysteries past when new information about her father's death is revealed.

The strength of Jance's writing is in her believable and fleshed out characters. Jance does well in avoiding cliché and stereotype (mostly) aside from a few generalisations about teenagers and older folk, there wasn't one character I thought couldn't be a real person.

Judgment...more Judgment Call, finds recurring hero Joanna Brady investigating the shock killing of a local high-school principal, and also confronting some ghosts of mysteries past when new information about her father's death is revealed.

The strength of Jance's writing is in her believable and fleshed out characters. Jance does well in avoiding cliché and stereotype (mostly) aside from a few generalisations about teenagers and older folk, there wasn't one character I thought couldn't be a real person.

Judgment Call is ultimately a flawed piece however, the first weakness being the prose style. Jance adopts way too much 'tell' - her daughter is snarly, we're told about it, Brady manipulates a reporter, we're told everything, even the jokes are explained, very frustrating given many of them would otherwise be funny. The story would be much more enjoyable if people just did what they did, rather than listening to Brady just tell us what was what.

The second major concern is the pacing, the prologue is familiar crime thriller territory, but probably contains the best action seen in the whole book. After the shocking murder we have to sit through around 200 pages of family dramas, media relations, and miscellaneous. Even when the murder plot starts to be revealed the pacing only picks up marginally, making the 400ish pages seem longer.

Jance is also clumsy in balancing the father's death plotline with the 'crime of the week'. Not that there is much tension to speak of, but my interest had totally waned by the time the main story was resolved, and I didn't appreciate needing to read through another several chapters of story. Whenever Brady looked into her father's death, it felt like a sudden unwelcome intrusion into the other storyline.

And what a storyline! Without spoiling anything lets just say "disbelief not suspended" the crime story did not gel well with the tone or side-plots of the story, leaving me wondering if I just missed the part where is was revealed the bad-guy was just crazy and all that elaborate plotting was just made-up.

One final hilarious bit which unfortunately completely undermined Brady as a authority was when they looked up a person of interests details on the web. Brady actually uses the line: (*** added to remove spoilers)

"If the guys at Wikipedia believed Gunnar Creswell was a ****, maybe there was something to the ***** story."

picky I know but how good is it to present your detective protagonist, not only showing no knowledge of how Wikipedia works, but also believing such a source to be reliable in a police investigation?

I recommend sticking to the Ali Reynolds series.(less)

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Oct 20, 2012 Sue rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, southwest-u-s, library-book, read-in-2012

I've been reading this series set in Arizona for some time now and I find that my tastes seem to be changing. While the characters certainly are consistent with those of the books I've read before, they just don't seem multi-dimensional enough for me in this episode. The plot was interesting with some clever twists, but I found myself thinking about how I felt when reading James Lee Burke's Creole Belle just a week ago. Then I was excited and very engaged, wrapped up in the writing, plot and cha...more

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Mar 15, 2013 Joel Anderson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Sheriff Joanna Brady is back with not one, but multiple murders on her hands...quite the spree for the small Arizona town. The first victim in the principal of the local school and it appears there may be a suspect or two amongst the students given past events in which one was suspended...or is it possible that one of the student's parents is involved? In the midst of investigating the murder of the principal, another murder occurs, seemingly unrelated, but is it? Working their way through sever...more

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Oct 12, 2012 Gloria Feit rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The latest novel in the Joanna Brady series is basically a step-by-step police procedural, although there is some material on her family background as a sub-plot. It basically revolves around the murder of a high school principal, whose body is found by Sheriff Brady’s teenage daughter who then, perhaps thoughtlessly, takes a picture with her phone and sends it to a friend. The photo then finds it way onto Facebook and the web, complicating the investigation.

As a result, Joanna’s efforts are mad...more

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Aug 05, 2012 Kelly Knapp rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: thriller and mystery buffs

Recommended to Kelly by: Goodreads Firstreads giveaway

This is the first Jance novel that I have read and it has made me interested in finding and reading some of her earlier works in the series. That being said, I found this story too long for the subject. I like detail, but this was overkill. I prefer to see through the actions of the characters what I found carefully described by the author. I found myself skipping a few pages.

I really enjoyed the case and the clues, but some of the familial drama was too long.
What I really liked about the story...more

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Oct 23, 2012 Nell rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

Brady has a lot on her plate: her demanding job with some inexperienced and some touchy coworkers and colleagues; husband, teenager, and toddler; difficult mother; unresolved issues about her late father. To the criticisms that the story glosses over her family life: If each book addressed each sphere equally, it would be 600 pages long, and overwhelming. And less true to life, I think, because different things take precedence at different times. (But thank goodness for Butch and the rest of Joa...more

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Aug 11, 2012 Kathy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First of all I have a bit of an issue with book pricing. I bought the trade paperback of this book at Costco for three dollars less than the Kindle edition is priced. I find that really annoying. I have a lot of books and to save on clutter I prefer ebooks these days of novels. I don't think that any ebook should be over $9.99 and if they are priced more than that then it is very unlikely I will purchase it. I will wait my turn at the library usually.

Anyways, another good read by J.A. Jance. I'...more

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Aug 07, 2012 Marilyn rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

J.A. Jance is a steady and dependable writer. Her books are well constructed and I enjoy all three of her series. This latest in the Joanna Brady stories was a wonderful summer read. I like the way that Jance develops her main characters' personal lives as they relate to the mystery at hand. I have heard her say that her readers appear to prefer the series that they first read. I actually like all three protagonists and have followed her mysteries from the beginning. I loved the Beaumont books s...more

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Aug 13, 2012 Charles rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Another great book by J.A. Jance, Judgement Call continues the story of Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady. I started reading the work of J.A. Jance over ten years ago With her J.P. Beaumont Mysteries. each book is well planned and while each book would stand alone as a complete novel the more you read the more you appreciate each character.

Ms. Jance who was brought up in Bisbee, Arizona and now has homes in Tuson Arizona as well as Seattle Washington. All of those locations are settings for he...more

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Aug 14, 2012 Corinne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook

I enjoyed this most recent Joanna Brady novel. I particularly liked that they reopened a past story line in addition to the present-day murder and intrigue. Jance isn't the best writer in history but this series delivers.

My main complaint is the token 2 year old son. As a mom to two kids under age 4 I find it unrealistic and disheartening to see how little the central character attends to and connects with her toddler son. The relationship between Joanna Brady and her older daughter is pretty w...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Carolyn Roys rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adult, adult-mysteries

I pick up her series books and occasionally her singletons. I love a kickass more-my-age character so Johanna Brady is my gal. Her daughter is touted as being not such a good-girl in this one but I was expecting more. She is stupid and takes a picture at a crime scene and sends it to a friend. The picture then goes viral and complicates things for Jo as she tries to solve the murders. Her daughter is remorseful but the build up made me think there would be a lot more conflict. Jo is even startin...more

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Mar 16, 2013 Susan Vanderploeg rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Sheriff Joanna is a pretty cool character and most of the characters in "Judgment Call" are well developed. Unfortunately the plot is pretty sophomoric. I stuck with it but wish I hadn't. The last quarter of the book was a true disappointment. Her brother was the killer? Give me a break. He was a Stanford prof specializing in facial recognition software because he was so obsessed with finding his sister who really didn't ever do anything to deserve any retribution for simply having observed her...more

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Jan 20, 2013 Donna rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-crime-fict-etc

Meh. It was better than trying a wild card, but I don't like the Joanna Brady series nearly as well as the JP Beaumont series. Brady is a little too right-wing for my tastes. In an age where I feel the authorities in Arizona are somewhat bullyish, Jance's main character is mostly worried about "bad guys" (well sure, she's the sheriff) but also views the Bill of Rights as a pain in the ass, or so she implies. (The next time I read that someone has "lawyered up" as if it were a sign of dishonesty...more Meh. It was better than trying a wild card, but I don't like the Joanna Brady series nearly as well as the JP Beaumont series. Brady is a little too right-wing for my tastes. In an age where I feel the authorities in Arizona are somewhat bullyish, Jance's main character is mostly worried about "bad guys" (well sure, she's the sheriff) but also views the Bill of Rights as a pain in the ass, or so she implies. (The next time I read that someone has "lawyered up" as if it were a sign of dishonesty or wrong doing to seek the right to counsel, I just may scream. If you are in the Pacific NW, you may hear me).

The plot has a few too many turns, and yet manages to slow to a point where I found myself to be a reluctant reader in certain places.

The redeeming factors (that exist) are the way she has developed the characters and their relationships. Brady has developed a little stiffer spine and does not feel the need to turn the other cheek when a large issue that affects her is at stake. I respected that.

The even better part is the careful truce developing betwen herself and her mother. who was sort of a stereotypic hen-pecker when the storyline began several books ago. When previously unknown facts surrounding Joanna's father's (and so, her mother's first husband's) death surfaces, Joanna goes to speak with her, deciding what to do. She has a viewpoint, but owes to her mother, she feels, to consult her before moving forward, given the nature of life and gossip in a small town.

"She was amazed to see her mother dissolve into a spasm of unapologetic grief. Eleanor buried her face in her hands and wept in great gulping sobs".

Seeing this reaction, Joanna offers to back off. "If you want me to drop it..."

Her mother pulls herself together and proclaims, "You have to do this. You must. No question".

In an earlier book, we have learned that Joanna's father had been involved in an affair with his secretary. Here again, her mother is full of surprises. "[It] will be far worse for her than it is for me...I don't believe that poor woman has anyone."

Nicely crafted.

My overall sense is that as Jance ages, she is spending more time in Arizona, where she grew up, and less in Seattle, where she lived most of her adult life and still maintains a home. Those of us up here are the poorer for it. But if you are flat out of fiction and like mysteries and/or police procedurals, there are worse ways to spend a chilly weekend than curled up with this book.(less)

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Aug 27, 2012 Barbara rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, adventure-spy-thriller-police-fbi, fiction, library, mysteries

Was four stars through three-quarters but finally some (to some maybe inconsequential) mistakes bothered me enough--like what antidepressants actually do--that I just couldn't do it. Certainly it is a high 3 stars. The fact that the motivation(s)of the numerous "bad guys" were simply not
reasonable (as far as I'm concerned--and they were presented as possible-to-be-understood) exacerbated my pique. Unlike in Midnight in Death to which I am listening at the same time, where of the "bad guy"--it i...more

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Aug 03, 2012 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I liked it.

I did read some of the criticisms leveled at the book here on Good Reads, and agree to some extent with some of them, but they are so trifling that I don't even want to bother addressing them. I know that when I finished the last page and closed the book it was with a sense of completion and enjoyment.

I liked the characters. I liked the way Joanna dealt with some of the issues facing her. I liked that her marriage was portrayed as strong and fulfilling. I liked that the family unit w...more

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Aug 02, 2012 Cathy Cole rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First Line: The car stopped in the middle of a stretch of rough dirt road.

Sheriff Joanna Brady's daughter Jenny decides to go for an early morning ride and stumbles across the body of her high school principal, meaning that Joanna's personal and professional lives are about to meet head on. Not only did the murderer have to pass right by the ranch, the situation gets even stickier when a photo of the dead woman's body gets posted on Facebook. Joanna knows that there's only one person who could'v...more First Line: The car stopped in the middle of a stretch of rough dirt road.

Sheriff Joanna Brady's daughter Jenny decides to go for an early morning ride and stumbles across the body of her high school principal, meaning that Joanna's personal and professional lives are about to meet head on. Not only did the murderer have to pass right by the ranch, the situation gets even stickier when a photo of the dead woman's body gets posted on Facebook. Joanna knows that there's only one person who could've taken that picture: her own daughter.

As the investigation begins, Joanna would dearly love to avoid her mother, who's one of the people in charge of Bisbee's big art show and auction, but it's not meant to be. Joanna has to juggle her demanding mother along with the touchy situation with her daughter, a murder investigation, budget cuts, new employees, and a coroner who thinks he's God's gift. Only her writer husband and energetic toddler aren't adding to her to-do list.

As Joanna deals with that to-do list, the investigation seems to point to a group of teenagers who have a grudge against the deceased high school principal, but the more the sheriff digs, the more she learns that the educator had lived a very secretive life. Joanna knows that the woman's buried past undoubtedly holds the key to identifying her killer.

I make no secret of the fact that J.A. Jance's Sheriff Joanna Brady series is one of my all-time favorites, and Judgment Call is one of the very best in the series. It's not necessary to read these books in order for them to make sense, but when you do-- as I have-- you can't help but appreciate and admire Jance's skill at putting together a wonderful cast of characters in the perfect setting.

Yes, the story is a strong one that blends good old-fashioned detective work with the ever-pervasive internet. I knew who the killer was, in a manner of speaking, but I swung and missed at a fast ball of a clue that the author threw right down the middle of the plate and could only exclaim at my blindness when the all-important identity was revealed. But story isn't the only good thing about a Sheriff Joanna Brady novel.

The setting-- the very real old mining town of Bisbee, Arizona-- is pitch perfect. Jance grew up in Bisbee, and you can follow the directions she gives in her books like a road map through the area and the town. When a chase at the end of the book veers onto a dirt "road" that heads up a mountain to the cell phone towers, I had to smile. I've been on that trail, and there's no way a limosine's going to make it in one piece. Strong story and a strong setting. Are you still with me?

If you are, then let's add that cast of characters I mentioned earlier. Throughout the series I've watched Joanna Brady grow as a person, as a wife, as a mother, and as the sheriff of one of the largest counties in the United States. She continues to grow with each book; in this book, she sees her mother in a new light, and she learns something about her father's death that leads her to making a very important decision, a judgment call. Joanna may not always make the right choice, but you respect how she comes to make each one.

It may be Joanna's show in this book and in this series, but she's not the only character you come to care about. Her husband, her children, her mother... you even grow to know and care about Joanna's co-workers and people like Junior, a developmentally disabled man who works at a local diner. Jance's Joanna Brady novels are what I like to call "slice of life" books because they are so real, so down-to-earth, that you feel as though you know these people. You come to care for them, and you come to each new book wanting to know where this latest adventure will take them. If you like to feel involved with the characters in the books you read, come on down to Bisbee, and sit a spell with the Sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona.
(less)

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May 14, 2013 Dee Bright rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed this book!

Jance is new to me but I'll definitely add her to my "favorite author" list. The family characters are likable and (mostly) believable--the husband is a bit too good to be true!--and Jance does an excellent job of creating conflict with other characters.

One observation: she casts almost all of her story's positive, strong leadership roles with women, so I don't yet know if she's making a statement, or if that's just the way this story happened to pan out. I'm willing to rea...more

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Aug 05, 2012 Martha rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

J.A. Jance's mysteries offer little challenge, but that is what makes them perfect for a day at the beach. The Joanna Brady series is the one I enjoy most, maybe because of its funky setting in Bisbee, Arizona. Judgment Call follows the author's usual pattern: murder, investigation, twist (another murder), a sub plot that seems irrelevant but ends up helping to solve the first murder, some bumps in family life, and a new revelation about the past. Joanna Brady isn't one to make you laugh, but a...more

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Apr 22, 2013 Scilla rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a Joanna Brady novel. The high school principal is found murdered in the desert by Jenny, Joanna's daughter. Joanna soon finds that she is using an assumed name since the social security number and name belong to a dead woman. Although a high school boy has been bad mouthing the principal, Joanna feels the murdered may belong to her past. A second murder occurs during a fancy dinner/auction for an art group. Meanwhile, Dennis, Joanna's husband is reading through Joanna's father's journal...more

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Jul 29, 2012 Rachel rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Jance does a great job staying true to the region she's writing about. I can appreciate that. But the oblivion of the main character to social meeting seemed insincere. Even an isolated region like Bisbee is steeped enough in social media that the Sheriff's office is using it as much as possible. So the introduction of it through Brady's naivete grated on me at times. The main storyline was a bit of a change of pace, and a good one, and the revelations about Brady's father's death was welcome an...more

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Oct 16, 2012 Nancy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, audio-books, mystery

The latest installment of the Joanna Brady series. Sheriff Brady's daughter Jenny finds the body of her murdered high school principal. You would think the daughter of a law enforcement officer would know NOT to take a picture of the body and send it to a fellow student who posts it online for the whole world to see the gruesome murder scene but that is the unbelieveable beginning to this story.

After the somewhat sad beginning the story has some twists and turns and updates on continuing charact...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Liz rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Decided to take a little trip into the familiar and read another JA Jance book. I have read many of her works and find them entertaining. In the past I couldn't relate to the setting of the Brady series, but now that we live in TX I can visualize the scenery which somehow adds to the suspense. The beginning of the book, when a young girl finds a body in the desert, is surprisingly eerie as I now realize how very alone one can be in the broad expanses of desert and mesa. The characters are relata...more

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About J.A. Jance

Judith Ann Jance is the top 10 New York Times bestselling author of the Joanna Brady series; the J. P. Beaumont series; three interrelated thrillers featuring the Walker family; and Edge of Evil, the first in a series featuring Ali Reynolds. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tucson, Arizona.

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* J.P. Beaumont
* Joann ...more

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Books by J.A. Jance

Fire And Ice (J.P. Beaumont, #19 / Joanna Brady, #14)

Partner In Crime (J.P. Beaumont, #16 / Joanna Brady, #10)

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Judgment Call (Joanna Brady #15)

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