Superior Justice: a Lake Superior Mystery

Lake Superior #1

by Tom Hilpert

Jonah Borden is not your typical Lutheran pastor, and he takes pains to make sure everyone knows it. He's a tough-guy, thinks-he's-funny, rock-music-playing, gourmet-cooking, painfully-moderate-drinking, hard-boiled man of the cloth. He is even available for a bit of romance, under the right circumstances. Doug Norstad, a member of Jonah Borden's church, is arrested for a vigilante killing. Norstad shares his true alibi with Borden, under the privileged status of religious confession. Knowing now that the man is innocent, Borden must prove it somehow, without divulging his secret. Along the way he uncovers a twisted series of murders and cover ups. Before it is all over, Borden himself has been bribed, beaten, shot, and arrested for murder. Even worse, he may be falling in love. Set in the midst of the striking beauty of Minnesota's Lake Superior Coastline, Superior Justice is one of the Lake Superior Mysteries, which can be read in any order. They will draw you in with its unique and quirky characters, and keep you guessing until the end.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Contemporary, Suspense, Thriller, Ebooks, Amazon

318 pages, Paperback

First published July 13, 2011

About the author

Tom Hilpert writes character-driven fiction with humor and flair. He loves cats, as well as dogs and is kind to little children.

Reviews

[Bryan Spellman · Rating 5 out of 5]

38 of 75 for 2015. I’m giving this book five stars because I grew up in a parsonage and whatever Tom Hilpert’s background, he really knows about clergy life. The protagonist is a Lutheran pastor in a small town on Minnesota’s North Shore, i.e. Lake Superior. As I read the mystery, and a good mystery it is, with lots of plot twists and enough bad guys to keep you guessing all the way through the book, I kept seeing my father and his role as a minister in and for the communities. You learn things as a pastor—things you can never reveal, not even to those closest to you. Not even when revealing them will save your skin and that of the person who confided in you. And you need an outlet. For our protagonist, as for my father (and, need it be said, for Norm Maclean’s father as seen in A River Runs Through It), that outlet is fishing. When the word gets out, and in a small town the word always gets out, that the pastor spends every Monday on a certain stream, pole in hand, even that outlet can became a trap. This is the first in a Lake Superior series, and I look forward to more from Tom Hilpert. Highly recommended.

[Mahree Moyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone knows I'm an Atheist. I don't have a problem with that. Now here’s a book I would not have given the time of day because the main character is a paster. But it was set by Lake Superior and I am from around the Great Lakes. I am not a God person, but this story was very good. The writing was great and any God stuff was pretty low-key. I can’t be converted, but this story is how I would like to imagine people of a God. “Normal” and he was normal. Thank you for giving a good side of faith, as you call it and not religion. I would read other books by this author. He's funny and real. I needed that for my poor attitude.

[Heather Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great series

The Lake Superior Mysteries are some of the best Christian mysteries available. The characters are well developed, and the plot has enough clues to help you solve the case, but not enough that it is easy to do.

There is an unforced level of humor, and as a Minnesotan, I found the humor and conversation to be very genuine. I have recommended the series to many people, and will continue to.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun mystery. Jonah is a Lutheran pastor, but certainly not your typical sterotype. In his interaction with the people of the town in which he lives, things aren't always reverent. When he tries to help someone he feels was wrongly accused of a crime, it opens up a whole 'nother can of worms. Fresh writing and well-paced with a good balance of humor and suspense. I'm reading the second in the series next :)

[Sally Beaudean · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like to laugh even in the midst of danger and mystery, you will certainly enjoy this book. The protagonist is an affable Lutheran pastor with a love for gourmet cooking and fishing that gets himself embroiled in a series of murders. It's a quick read that I recommend without reservation.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book! I love it! The twists and turns are totally unpredictable. For me, I would rate this novel on par with any by Patterson, Sandra Brown or John Sandford!

[Wendy Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this mystery. I found I tired of the banter dialogue between Jonah and the other characters. But the plot was good and I was totally surprised with the ending.

[Tony Parsons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grand Lake. Daniel Spooner (rapist/pedophile) was shot/killed.
Daniel claims he killed Missy Norstad.
Doug Norstad (husband/father, Lutheran church member) was the primary suspect.
Chief Jonah Jensen, & Chief Daniel “Dan” Jensen (Grand Lake PD) were discussing the murder case.
Pastor Jonah Borden (Harbor Lutheran) had been asked to do his amateur sleuth part also.
Doug had turned himself in.
What did Dr. Rich Solberg (clinical Psychiatrist, GLBTQ clients, MD), & Pastor Borden (32, widower) discuss?

Is there a romance blossoming in the air for Pastor Borden?
Daniel had been killed also.
Will the 2 murder cases get solved & someone brought to justice?

I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.

A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written murder mystery book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a large set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great murder mystery movie, or better yet a mini TV series. A very easy rating of 5 stars.

Thank you for the free author; Spring Creek; BookSends; Amazon Digital Services LLC.; book
Tony Parsons (Washburn; MSW)

[Patty U. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give more stars I would. This was an awesome book. Jonah Borden is the pastor of a Lutheran church in Minnesota. He has a wicked sense of humor and gets involved in police matters. He tries to get a man out of jail he believes is innocent of a murder charge. Then Jonah get threatened several times for sticking his nose into the matter. He then winds up in jail accused of two murders. But trouble keeps following him when he gets jumped and ends up in the hole. All because people in power want to be the most powerful.

[Kim P · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book - it was an easy read and a gripping narrative. I even enjoyed the apologetics - the explanation of the gospel was spot on, and narrated in a believable way - in other fiction books with an evangelical aspect this can be quite clunky, but I felt the dialogue ran true.

I would thoroughly recommend to fans of John Grisham style thrillers, Christians and non -Christians alike.

I will definitely be coming back for more Lake Superior stories.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast moving read

Oh my, I liked the way the story started, it got attention, and page after page I couldn't put the book down. And just about when I thought I had the plot figured out, there was another twist to the mystery, never a dull moment. I'm a resident of northern Minnesota, and have enjoyed trips up to the north shore, and Lake Superior. I will be reading Tom's other books soon!

[Jeff Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice story, well told.

This is my first Hilpert book, it won't be my last. Recently I really and reviewed a book that wasn't labeled YA or religious, it wasn't very well written (IMO), I didn't finish it, the writer tried to fool me. Hilpert doesn't do that, he is an excellent writer.

[Jim Noland · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is rare at my age to happen on a wonderful author I’d never heard of; and I did just stumble on to Tom Hilpert. I felt the same refreshing surprise after starting this book that Simon Cowell expressed after hearing Paul Potts sing Nessun Dorma. “I wasn’t expecting that!” What a wonderful book and amazing author. I can’t wait to read the rest of his books!

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dramatic Murder Mystery

Superior Justice is a great read. Action Packed and full of twists and turns. A small town Lutheran pastor finds himself in the spotlight when one of his parishioners is accused of murder. A compelling story with fantastic characters and great descriptions.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling Read

It is not every day you find a crime fighter who is a pastor. Follow Pastor Jonah while he helps a parishioner price he is innocent of a murder. Fathers are trying to stop him and he faces many challenges, including becoming involved with a TV reporter. I enjoyed this book and will read more of Tom Hilpert.

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Even with a few editing issues, I still give this book 5 stars. Blush factor = 0. The main character was unique and very likeable. Supporting characters were developed enough. Descriptive writing flowed smoothly. There were a few twists and surprises that kept me turning pages. I will read more by this author.

[Lynne Alexander Hollingsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was one of the BEST stories I have read to date! I LOVED it! The main character was so relatable, and I would like to MEET him! The twists and turns in the investigation were surprising to an enthusiastic reader like myself ( I can almost ALWAYS figure it out--not this time). I HIGHLY recommend this book and I want to read MORE of Tom's books!

[Patricia Lee Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

What a great character in Jonah. He's handsome, funny, can cook and a pastor...wow. Leyla sounds like she just might be the one. I actually wish they were real. Other cast doing a great job with the humor.

[Terry Blanz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this mystery book. It is very easy to read and goes very fast. I lived in Duluth about 45 years ago for 3 years and relived the descriptions of the North Shore of Lake Superior. l bought the other three books in the series, and will start reading them also.

[Mary Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonah Borden is not your typical pastor. He's a tough-guy, thinks-he's-funny, rock-music-playing, gourmet-cooking, painfully-moderate-drinking, hard-boiled man of the cloth. He is even available for a bit of romance, under the right circumstances.

[Martin Pingree · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a blast to read. A widowed Lutheran minister in a small Minnesota town gets involved in a small town murder mystery conspiracy that almost costs him his life. A refreshing look at ministers who can kick some ass if they need to.

[Christine Dillon · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Witty, fun, some lovely descriptions, good mystery. Especially loved the truths scattered throughout as Jonah talked to people in daily life. Looking forward to the next ones.

[Gail Mathers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superior lake

Very good and complete surprise. I never saw the ending coming. Energy and excitement and adventure. Lots of fun and describes MN well and our beloved lake. Highly recommended.

[Karen Sweeney-Ryall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading this so much

I don't remember ever feeling like reading a novel was so much fun. I liked the characters, Jonah's sense of humor, the mystery, the romance. Can't wait to read the other books in this series!

[GW · Rating 3 out of 5]

Superior Justice

I really enjoyed this book up until about the 90% point. Then it became very unrealistic in the final action scenes. It was still a nice read but if the author had worked a little harder at presenting realistic scenarios it would have been a 5 star book for me.

[Victor Schreffler · Rating 5 out of 5]

fun read

The author obviously has deep insight into the vocation of his protagonist. This in itself makes the book refreshing and humorous. Good story development, good characters, nice local color.

[Sandra Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

holy cow

Fantastic story that is full of twists and turns. Great characters and stunning setting. I love Jonah. And I love that this book was a clean read. Too many authors add trashy sex and language that is never needed if the story is good enough.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book

You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA

[Norma Polan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very good book about a pastor. It was a murder mystery. I really enjoyed reading the book.

[Don Paske · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good mystery with interesting characters. What is more to like?