Book Review: BLACK JASMINE by Toby Neal
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Black Jasmine is the 3rd book in Toby Neal’s Lei Crime Series, and I had the good fortune of being approached by the author for a review. Now, I loved the first two books, Blood Orchids and Torch Ginger (click on the titles for my reviews), so I was looking forward to book 3.
Black Jasmine by Toby Neal
Black Jasmine
The island of Maui is turquoise ocean, stunning vistas, and whalesong â but organized crime has a hidden hold, and Detective Lei Texeira tracks evil that hides behind a beautiful face.
Lei and Stevens find a haven on Maui â until their new life as a couple is interrupted by murder. When a nameless teenage girl dies in an apparent vehicular suicide, Lei canât rest until she finds out what really happened. She blazes through all the wealth and poverty of island society in her quest for justice, rousing a deadly foe â even as she faces the personal demons of commitment and revenge that threaten the only real love sheâs ever known.
Purchase Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
Review
In Black Jasmine, Ms. Neal weaves yet another mesmerising mystery set in the exotic locales of the Hawaiian isles. This time, the death of a young girl, the victim of an apparent suicide, leads Detective Lei Texeira on a twisted trail through the island of Maui, from its homeless camps, to the fleets of luxurious cruise ships docking regularly on the island, all the way to its glitzy arts scene, as Lei uncovers the details of an elaborate and cruel organised crime operation.
Once more, Lei’s investigations take the reader on a relentless thrill ride, with clever plot twists that kept me guessing till the very end, proving yet again that Ms. Neal is a master of the whodunit. The fact that Lei herself becomes a target for a professional hit drives the stakes closer to home, and while it does ramp up the tension in the story, I found it just a tad unbelievable just how lucky Lei is to survive that many close shaves in such a short space of time. As one of her colleagues said in the book, she must have nine lives!
In terms of Lei’s private life, I was glad to see her back together with the dashing Detective Stevens, but once again their relationship is strained by her unwillingness to commit to marriage, and the tempting call of a promising career in the FBI. I still can’t decide if I agreed with Lei’s final decision, but the open-endedness of the ending makes me think that this love story is far from over.
On another note, I’m glad that Ms. Neal finally resolves the shadows from Lei’s past. I symphathised with Lei in the first two books, but her hang-ups about her past was starting to wear thin by book 3, so I’m happy she appears to have finally faced up to and slayed her childhood demons.
All in all, Black Jasmine is a satisfying continuation of the Lei Crime Novels, and I continue to look forward to what else Ms. Neal has in store for the series.
4½ stars!
½
About the Author
Toby Neal
Toby Neal was raised on Kauai in Hawaii. She wrote and illustrated her first story at age 5 and has been published in magazines and won several writing contests. After initially majoring in Journalism, she eventually settled on mental health as a career and loves her work, saying, “I’m endlessly fascinated with people’s stories.”
She enjoys many outdoor sports including bodyboarding, scuba diving, beach walking, gardening and hiking. She lives in Hawaii with her family and dogs.
Toby credits her counseling background in adding depth to her characters-from the villains to Lei Texeira, the courageous and vulnerable heroine in the Lei Crime Series.
Contact: Website/Blog | Twitter
Source: J.C. Martin, Fighter Writer
