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The Forensic Files #1
Too Close to Home
When the beautiful blond senior head cheerleader, Melissa Cooley, is found stabbed to death on a teacher’s desk in the local high school this small coastal town nestled on the east coast of North Carolina goes into frenzy. To make matters worse another body of slacker boy, Ronald Marks, is found hanging from the field goal post only a day later. Pamlico County native Detective Carma Jones and her partner Harold Green set out on a search for this ruthless assailant who is causing so much havoc in her peaceful home town. No one is safe and everyone is a suspect. The twists and turns along the way lead them in a direction Carma would never have guessed with deep secrets meant to stay buried. Will she be too late to stop the real murder from killing again?
251 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2012
765 people are currently reading
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews
December 15, 2012
I honestly never expected to write this book, or more like this genre. When I started writing I assumed I would write mostly romance and drama but when the idea for a murder/mystery came to me I knew I had to write it. I love the familiarity of this book. It is based where I am from, not only the towns and landmarks but also the feel of the area, and it is filled with the type of people I grew up with. This book is so good and full of unexpected twists. I'm so proud of this work of art and it gives me such confidence to know that I don't have to be put in any certain category.
May 19, 2013
Tressa Messenger wrote an awesome story. So many twists and turns, leaving you in complete awe. Can not wait to read more from her.
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Blurb:
When the beautiful blond senior head cheerleader, Melissa Cooley, is found stabbed to death on a teacher’s desk in the local high school this small coastal town nestled on the east coast of North Carolina goes into frenzy. To make matters worse another body of slacker boy, Ronald Marks, is found hanging from the field goal post only a day later. Pamlico County native Detective Carma Jones and her partner Harold Green set out on a search for this ruthless assailant who is causing so much havoc in her peaceful home town. No one is safe and everyone is a suspect. The twists and turns along the way lead them in a direction Carma would never have guessed with deep secrets meant to stay buried. Will she be too late to stop the real murder from killing again?
Blurb:
When the beautiful blond senior head cheerleader, Melissa Cooley, is found stabbed to death on a teacher’s desk in the local high school this small coastal town nestled on the east coast of North Carolina goes into frenzy. To make matters worse another body of slacker boy, Ronald Marks, is found hanging from the field goal post only a day later. Pamlico County native Detective Carma Jones and her partner Harold Green set out on a search for this ruthless assailant who is causing so much havoc in her peaceful home town. No one is safe and everyone is a suspect. The twists and turns along the way lead them in a direction Carma would never have guessed with deep secrets meant to stay buried. Will she be too late to stop the real murder from killing again?
February 17, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. I've not really read many crime/mystery novels and this one was able to keep my attention. At certain points, I was able to predict what might happen, but even then, there was still twists that I did not expect.
I was worried when I saw this was the first book out of two, as I thought that the case wouldn't be concluded in this book and I would have to read the second one to find out. However this was not the case. I am glad as this actually makes me more willing to read the second book as I know it will be a new case (maybe with ties to the old one) and that the story will move along at a good pace and not be dragged out.
I got this book for free on Kindle several years ago, but I have only recently started trying to read some of my kindle books which is why this book got forgotten about.
I'm glad I've read it and look forward to reading the second book in the future.
I was worried when I saw this was the first book out of two, as I thought that the case wouldn't be concluded in this book and I would have to read the second one to find out. However this was not the case. I am glad as this actually makes me more willing to read the second book as I know it will be a new case (maybe with ties to the old one) and that the story will move along at a good pace and not be dragged out.
I got this book for free on Kindle several years ago, but I have only recently started trying to read some of my kindle books which is why this book got forgotten about.
I'm glad I've read it and look forward to reading the second book in the future.
November 10, 2013
I received a free copy of this book from Tressa
This is a very American murder mystery, the head cheerleader Missy who's dating the quarterback Rob is killed, since this is a small town the killer has to be someone they all know, but who. Then a couple of days later another body is found also on school property, this time it's a guy who had a crush on Missy and followed her around. Trying to solve the case is local Detective Carma Jones and her partner Harold who's moved down from New York.
It was a really good read, the book opens with the first murder and it kept going from there never really slowing down introductions, associations and pasts were all relayed during the investigation which kept up the pace. Carma was a beautiful, strong, intelligent, independent woman who made a great character. I guessed who'd done it, then I changed my mind then I changed it back again. This was a great book, can't wait for the next one.
This is a very American murder mystery, the head cheerleader Missy who's dating the quarterback Rob is killed, since this is a small town the killer has to be someone they all know, but who. Then a couple of days later another body is found also on school property, this time it's a guy who had a crush on Missy and followed her around. Trying to solve the case is local Detective Carma Jones and her partner Harold who's moved down from New York.
It was a really good read, the book opens with the first murder and it kept going from there never really slowing down introductions, associations and pasts were all relayed during the investigation which kept up the pace. Carma was a beautiful, strong, intelligent, independent woman who made a great character. I guessed who'd done it, then I changed my mind then I changed it back again. This was a great book, can't wait for the next one.
July 25, 2016
I was originally going to give this a two star rating because I thought this was a self-published author and this was her first attempt at a crime series. While this is the author’s first attempt at a crime novel, this is not the author’s first book, nor is this a self-published work. This book actually has a publisher (Limitless Publishing LLC). This is why I ultimately bumped it from two stars down to one.
The concept of this book wasn’t bad, but the actual writing was less than stellar. I had issues with so many parts of this book that I actually took notes so I could remember them all. The positive was that I read the entire book (so maybe this actually deserves one and a half stars). I would really like to see this author succeed, because I think she actually has talent, but I think she tried to wrap too much into this story to do it justice. I think with some proper editing, some good beta readers, and hard-line revisions, this book could really knock it out of the ballpark.
The negatives:
1. Possibly, I was not the target audience.
I am a 40-something mom of three (two are teenagers). The reason I say that I am not the target audience is because there were a few things that struck me as irritating and, frankly, not very believable. First, I don’t know people that talk the way the characters in her book do. Most men don’t repeatedly say “Damn, girl!” Maybe that’s just my profession. Maybe cops say that all the time. I’m not a police officer, I wouldn’t know.
Also, this quote: "Even at the ripe age of thirty-six..." So, does that make me, at 41, older than dirt? Maybe that was supposed to be funny, but most books that I read usually have one of the characters complaining about feeling old, not the narrative stating that if you’re over 35 you’re washed up.
2. Rivers are made of fresh water, not salt water.
Yes, this is nit-picky, I know, and probably most people wouldn’t pick up on this detail or even care about this, but this bothered me. There were several instances where the author states that Carma took a deep breath of the “salty river air.” I’m pretty sure I understood where the author was going, but river air shouldn’t be salty. Ocean water is salty. Seawater can be salty. River water is not salty unless you have serious issues with intrusion because of too much water demand (like we have here in the Sacramento Delta).
The author also makes a comment about one of the characters coming up from the salty water of the creek. Creeks are also fresh water, so, again, unless you have saltwater intrusion, there shouldn’t be any salt in the creeks. And so ends my water quality lesson for the day. We can also refer back to point one of my not being the target audience – I doubt that a water/wastewater engineer was her intended reader.
3. The second murder suspect, Ronald
“Isn’t Ronald a white kid?” Yes. Yes he is, and that is why it is weird for him to be poor and live on the wrong side of the tracks? Can white people not be poor? But we’ll explain that away because the officer who said that is from New York. And in New York, all white people are rich? I still don’t get it. Never mind. Let’s move on….
I don’t understand why Ronald was killed. This, to me, is a major story flaw. There was no reason to murder him. I’ll explain (warning, this may be a spoiler). Ronald finds a photo on his flash drive that supposedly cracks a part of the case wide open. When he discovers this photo, he panics and decides to hide the memory stick in his locker at school. This is what gets him killed (I think). This memory stick is the focus of a couple of points in the story, including the (very weak) red herring suspect.
But we still don’t know why he was killed. The author could have had him come into the police station with the flash drive and hand it over. She could have had Ronald’s dad find the thing and turn it in. He could have dropped it in the school hallway. Why did he have to die? I can sort of figure out why the killer would have gone after Ronald, but I don’t see how he would have known where Ronald would have been in order to do it. The murder didn’t fit, and added nothing to the story. I think that the author would have been better off leaving it out and focusing more on other character development (like backstory on Carma, because I really don’t care about this detective one bit).
4. Mike
“Mike looked from his daughter to Carma, desperation shooting out of his eyes.” (Like fricken laser beams pew pew!)
He has to be one of the weakest characters I have ever come across. He is Carma’s five-second love interest, has sex with 17 year old, is our 2-second red herring suspect, and finally tragically dies by slashing his wrists with his keys while in jail. He made me want to shoot BB’s into my eyes so I wouldn’t have to read about him. Refer to item three about removing Ronald’s murder. Spending more time developing Mike’s character would have gone a long way here.
5. Bad police work
“Carma looked up from the book in shock. That beautiful all-American girl who was seemingly perfect in every way had an abortion a few months ago” EYE ROLL. And then Carma goes on to hide the evidence to protect Missy’s parents. Carma later goes on to say that if she had actually read the diary, she would have known who the killer was sooner. Huh, guess that’s why you don’t hide evidence.
Then there is the bringing in and questioning Mike for Missy’s murder. No internal affairs, just Carma’s partner interviewing another cop. Because that’s how it works in the small town, apparently. And not one other officer thinks to check Mike’s pockets before putting him in a jail cell? And nobody checks in on him after they lock him up. For all the work the author supposedly did on the forensics, she missed researching some very basic police procedures.
6. Grammar, word choice, and slang
Commas can be a beautiful thing. They can also be distracting and often misused. This book was full of fragments, run-on sentences, and comma splices. If I hadn’t been reading it on my kindle, I would have been tempted to break out my red pen and start correcting errors. I caught myself rereading several paragraphs because I couldn’t understand what was written. That is never a good sign.
"It was a bath towel saturated with blood"... "it's still damp." The above conversation would work if the next line were a sarcastic comment like “you think?” But sadly, it wasn’t. This was a serious crime scene discussion in the book and the sarcastic comment was from me. If a towel is sitting in a pool of blood, I'm betting it's not just damp, it's probably - what's the word I'm looking for - SATURATED.
And finally, there is the issue of slang. Sometimes it works, but in this story, it didn’t. We all use slang in our daily lives, but seeing it written in a novel can be jarring. For example, “I’ll see you in a couple of days.” That’s how we see it written usually. When talking, especially if we’re talking quickly, the “of” comes out sounding like “a.” Unfortunately, in this book, that was how it was written “couple a days.” That is technically how it sounds, but seeing it written that way isn't cool, it's jarring.
The positives:
1. It appears that the author did try to research the forensics, although there wasn’t a lot of that in the book.
2. The concept was good. I could see this as a made for TV cop drama (but maybe with better editing)
3. This could make a decent series (again with better editing and more focus on character development – don’t try to cram so much into one book)
I don't know whether to recommend this book or not. Part of me is really rooting for this author. I'd like to see her succeed. I know she has a second book out, but I don't know if I will pick it up to see if the writing has matured. Part of me wants to see if this book was simply the awkward start to something great, but the other part of me fears that maybe this is all there is - poor grammar, bad character development, and misused slang.
The concept of this book wasn’t bad, but the actual writing was less than stellar. I had issues with so many parts of this book that I actually took notes so I could remember them all. The positive was that I read the entire book (so maybe this actually deserves one and a half stars). I would really like to see this author succeed, because I think she actually has talent, but I think she tried to wrap too much into this story to do it justice. I think with some proper editing, some good beta readers, and hard-line revisions, this book could really knock it out of the ballpark.
The negatives:
1. Possibly, I was not the target audience.
I am a 40-something mom of three (two are teenagers). The reason I say that I am not the target audience is because there were a few things that struck me as irritating and, frankly, not very believable. First, I don’t know people that talk the way the characters in her book do. Most men don’t repeatedly say “Damn, girl!” Maybe that’s just my profession. Maybe cops say that all the time. I’m not a police officer, I wouldn’t know.
Also, this quote: "Even at the ripe age of thirty-six..." So, does that make me, at 41, older than dirt? Maybe that was supposed to be funny, but most books that I read usually have one of the characters complaining about feeling old, not the narrative stating that if you’re over 35 you’re washed up.
2. Rivers are made of fresh water, not salt water.
Yes, this is nit-picky, I know, and probably most people wouldn’t pick up on this detail or even care about this, but this bothered me. There were several instances where the author states that Carma took a deep breath of the “salty river air.” I’m pretty sure I understood where the author was going, but river air shouldn’t be salty. Ocean water is salty. Seawater can be salty. River water is not salty unless you have serious issues with intrusion because of too much water demand (like we have here in the Sacramento Delta).
The author also makes a comment about one of the characters coming up from the salty water of the creek. Creeks are also fresh water, so, again, unless you have saltwater intrusion, there shouldn’t be any salt in the creeks. And so ends my water quality lesson for the day. We can also refer back to point one of my not being the target audience – I doubt that a water/wastewater engineer was her intended reader.
3. The second murder suspect, Ronald
“Isn’t Ronald a white kid?” Yes. Yes he is, and that is why it is weird for him to be poor and live on the wrong side of the tracks? Can white people not be poor? But we’ll explain that away because the officer who said that is from New York. And in New York, all white people are rich? I still don’t get it. Never mind. Let’s move on….
I don’t understand why Ronald was killed. This, to me, is a major story flaw. There was no reason to murder him. I’ll explain (warning, this may be a spoiler). Ronald finds a photo on his flash drive that supposedly cracks a part of the case wide open. When he discovers this photo, he panics and decides to hide the memory stick in his locker at school. This is what gets him killed (I think). This memory stick is the focus of a couple of points in the story, including the (very weak) red herring suspect.
But we still don’t know why he was killed. The author could have had him come into the police station with the flash drive and hand it over. She could have had Ronald’s dad find the thing and turn it in. He could have dropped it in the school hallway. Why did he have to die? I can sort of figure out why the killer would have gone after Ronald, but I don’t see how he would have known where Ronald would have been in order to do it. The murder didn’t fit, and added nothing to the story. I think that the author would have been better off leaving it out and focusing more on other character development (like backstory on Carma, because I really don’t care about this detective one bit).
4. Mike
“Mike looked from his daughter to Carma, desperation shooting out of his eyes.” (Like fricken laser beams pew pew!)
He has to be one of the weakest characters I have ever come across. He is Carma’s five-second love interest, has sex with 17 year old, is our 2-second red herring suspect, and finally tragically dies by slashing his wrists with his keys while in jail. He made me want to shoot BB’s into my eyes so I wouldn’t have to read about him. Refer to item three about removing Ronald’s murder. Spending more time developing Mike’s character would have gone a long way here.
5. Bad police work
“Carma looked up from the book in shock. That beautiful all-American girl who was seemingly perfect in every way had an abortion a few months ago” EYE ROLL. And then Carma goes on to hide the evidence to protect Missy’s parents. Carma later goes on to say that if she had actually read the diary, she would have known who the killer was sooner. Huh, guess that’s why you don’t hide evidence.
Then there is the bringing in and questioning Mike for Missy’s murder. No internal affairs, just Carma’s partner interviewing another cop. Because that’s how it works in the small town, apparently. And not one other officer thinks to check Mike’s pockets before putting him in a jail cell? And nobody checks in on him after they lock him up. For all the work the author supposedly did on the forensics, she missed researching some very basic police procedures.
6. Grammar, word choice, and slang
Commas can be a beautiful thing. They can also be distracting and often misused. This book was full of fragments, run-on sentences, and comma splices. If I hadn’t been reading it on my kindle, I would have been tempted to break out my red pen and start correcting errors. I caught myself rereading several paragraphs because I couldn’t understand what was written. That is never a good sign.
"It was a bath towel saturated with blood"... "it's still damp." The above conversation would work if the next line were a sarcastic comment like “you think?” But sadly, it wasn’t. This was a serious crime scene discussion in the book and the sarcastic comment was from me. If a towel is sitting in a pool of blood, I'm betting it's not just damp, it's probably - what's the word I'm looking for - SATURATED.
And finally, there is the issue of slang. Sometimes it works, but in this story, it didn’t. We all use slang in our daily lives, but seeing it written in a novel can be jarring. For example, “I’ll see you in a couple of days.” That’s how we see it written usually. When talking, especially if we’re talking quickly, the “of” comes out sounding like “a.” Unfortunately, in this book, that was how it was written “couple a days.” That is technically how it sounds, but seeing it written that way isn't cool, it's jarring.
The positives:
1. It appears that the author did try to research the forensics, although there wasn’t a lot of that in the book.
2. The concept was good. I could see this as a made for TV cop drama (but maybe with better editing)
3. This could make a decent series (again with better editing and more focus on character development – don’t try to cram so much into one book)
I don't know whether to recommend this book or not. Part of me is really rooting for this author. I'd like to see her succeed. I know she has a second book out, but I don't know if I will pick it up to see if the writing has matured. Part of me wants to see if this book was simply the awkward start to something great, but the other part of me fears that maybe this is all there is - poor grammar, bad character development, and misused slang.
Read
September 2, 2015Carma Jones and her new partner have a murder to investigate. He’s transferred in from New York and isn’t used to the small town but he’ll have to learn fast.
***
The first chapter is a huge info dump… and then she ends up being the murder victim… what? That seems kind of odd for a murder mystery.
Did she scream or did she whimper? Because they are very different things and once you start screaming it’s hard to stop.
Ugh… that is an awful sentence.
Omg… now Carma’s partner (who has already described her down to the color of the bra she is wearing) is making jokes about going into the girls’ locker room over the dead, naked body of the murdered teenager. Wow.
Dialog - people do NOT keep repeating the name of the person they are talking to; they just don’t say it, so don’t write it. There are only two people in the room. The reader won’t be confused.
Furry? What the…? Does she really need to tell the principal to cancel school? And why hasn’t he already done it?
Another awful sentence…
Out of his eyes??? Wow.
Oh, that’s it. I can’t read any more. She just advised them to assemble ALL the high school students in the grounds while they remove the body - walking it right past all the students, parents and teachers. No.
***
I had been reading a lot of heavy books and I thought this looked like an entertaining read with a lot of good reviews. Guess I was wrong. What I didn’t notice was the mistakes in the Goodreads summary.
And I am very leery of authors giving their own works five stars.
The writing is pretty poor with convoluted sentences that don’t make sense, tense changes, and it’s very repetitive.
Did not finish at 15%
***
The first chapter is a huge info dump… and then she ends up being the murder victim… what? That seems kind of odd for a murder mystery.
Missy’s eyes widened at the sight of the blade and she began to scream. “What do you want from me?” she whimpered.(p. 12).
Did she scream or did she whimper? Because they are very different things and once you start screaming it’s hard to stop.
Carma stared at him longingly, hidden desires radiating through her wide green eyes at the sight of him.(p. 16).
Ugh… that is an awful sentence.
Omg… now Carma’s partner (who has already described her down to the color of the bra she is wearing) is making jokes about going into the girls’ locker room over the dead, naked body of the murdered teenager. Wow.
Dialog - people do NOT keep repeating the name of the person they are talking to; they just don’t say it, so don’t write it. There are only two people in the room. The reader won’t be confused.
The principal, Mr. White, hurried up to them as soon as they began to exit the building, concern etched on his furry face. (p. 26)
Furry? What the…? Does she really need to tell the principal to cancel school? And why hasn’t he already done it?
A commotion stirred up, breaking her spell on the intimate moment. (p. 28)
Another awful sentence…
Mike looked from his daughter to Carma, desperation shooting out of his eyes. (p. 29)
Out of his eyes??? Wow.
Oh, that’s it. I can’t read any more. She just advised them to assemble ALL the high school students in the grounds while they remove the body - walking it right past all the students, parents and teachers. No.
***
I had been reading a lot of heavy books and I thought this looked like an entertaining read with a lot of good reviews. Guess I was wrong. What I didn’t notice was the mistakes in the Goodreads summary.
And I am very leery of authors giving their own works five stars.
The writing is pretty poor with convoluted sentences that don’t make sense, tense changes, and it’s very repetitive.
Did not finish at 15%
April 28, 2013
Suspenseful, heart-pounding, emotional!
The cover of this book makes sense, because it is a mystery, but it feels a little understated for the amazingness (is that even a word?) of this story. The title, however, is perfect for the story.
I’m usually really good at keeping my emotions in check during killings, rapes, etc (in books and TV shows), but as the victim was being “claimed” in this book my heart pounded in fear and I actually started crying for her. This read like I was watching an episode of a crime show! Crime scenes were realistic and the law enforcement wasn’t “glamorized”. It was unpredictable and there were a lot of unexpected twists and turns as we followed Carma (love the name, by the way) through her investigation. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I hope we will see a follow up.
The one and only note I have is that the author seemed to go back and forth with the name of the High School coach; a one minute he was Coach Brady and the next it was Coach Grady and kept changing.
~Genevieve~
The cover of this book makes sense, because it is a mystery, but it feels a little understated for the amazingness (is that even a word?) of this story. The title, however, is perfect for the story.
I’m usually really good at keeping my emotions in check during killings, rapes, etc (in books and TV shows), but as the victim was being “claimed” in this book my heart pounded in fear and I actually started crying for her. This read like I was watching an episode of a crime show! Crime scenes were realistic and the law enforcement wasn’t “glamorized”. It was unpredictable and there were a lot of unexpected twists and turns as we followed Carma (love the name, by the way) through her investigation. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I hope we will see a follow up.
The one and only note I have is that the author seemed to go back and forth with the name of the High School coach; a one minute he was Coach Brady and the next it was Coach Grady and kept changing.
~Genevieve~
May 11, 2013
I really liked this book because it kept my interest and there where surprises all through the book. The plot has to do with murders in a town where the main detective has grown up. The author does a good job of pulling you into the murders by describing how scared the victim was and how they felt through the whole ordeal. I felt like I was feeling what the victims where feeling. Any crime is hard for everyone involved and the Detective finds out it's really hard when it happens in your town with people you grew up with and she finds out people are not always what they seem to be. About the only thing I honestly didn't like was the ending. I think it could have had a different ending. But otherwise I do recommend this book if you like Crime books. Enjoy :)
December 4, 2014
I felt like I was reading the script to a B horror movie. I gave it two stars because I at least wanted to read to the end to make sure I was right about who the killer was. Extremely predictable. There were several grammatical mistakes and issues with the continuity. It looks like something that someone may have written for a school project or something.
The main character was supposed to be a strong, female lead; but she was over-sexualized and exaggerated. An experienced New York cop would not be as incompetent as her partner, and she doesn't seem to know the basic police procedures that even a standard citizen would know.
Not awful, but I definitely will not read anything else by this author unless she does some more research in the area she is writing in.
The main character was supposed to be a strong, female lead; but she was over-sexualized and exaggerated. An experienced New York cop would not be as incompetent as her partner, and she doesn't seem to know the basic police procedures that even a standard citizen would know.
Not awful, but I definitely will not read anything else by this author unless she does some more research in the area she is writing in.
May 1, 2013
Riveting!!, May 1, 2013
This review is from: Too Close To Home (Carma Jones) (Kindle Edition)
Carma is a detective is a small North Carolina county. She grew up here and knows everyone. When the High School's head cheerleader is murdered at the school, Carma is determined to find the killer. It is a suspenseful story. I don't wish to give anything away, because that would ruin it for the reader. Tressa's story flows smoothly and you feel for everyone. Her characters are well-developed and you become part of the town. I hope she continues doing these stories because she has a definite feel for them. It ain't over until the last page!!! Awesome!
May 4, 2013
This was a really entertaining story, it certainly grabs you from the first page! I liked the competent detective, Carma, makes a nice change to have a woman who is more than just support for a male detective, she was calm and thoughtful but not over the top in anyway. This is also one of those books where every time you think you have it figured out you are proved wrong and time actually passes not like in CSI where everything is wrapped up by the end of a shift lol In fact everything was just great until the last page - now GIMME A SEQUEL!!!!! lol
I was gifted a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I was gifted a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
April 7, 2015
Amazon gave me this for free. How kind. I'd never heard of the author or title - but given my love of forensic pathology I jumped right in. The book is the equivalent of what makes a really good TV detective drama better than a crap one. Ok so this story line isn't groundbreaking but it's really well written. For me, it's too on the fence between short story and novel - Id have liked the author to be brave and just go for it, add a bit more depth to the twists that are just plainly presented.
I'm not sure I'll ready the second book. But if you're after a quick bit of murder mystery give this a go.
I'm not sure I'll ready the second book. But if you're after a quick bit of murder mystery give this a go.
March 5, 2013
I Love love LOVE this book! I've read everything she has out, except her newest which I WILL read this weekend, and I get SO excited for everything she puts out! Tressa is a ROCKSTAR! This book has gotten her reading community to start calling her Mrs. Sparks! This particular story was captivating! I literally could NOT put it down for 2 straight days! I fell asleep reading and I woke up wanting to read it! I've never read another book that I actually WANTED to re-read! Well done Tressa, well done!!!! Keep 'em comin!!!!
November 9, 2014
I thought that this story wasn't bad, but it could have been better. The main character, detective Carma Jones, just wasn't a very strong, likeable character. She defied police procedure when dealing with crime scenes and evidence, and she came off as too confident and empowered, which ended up getting her into trouble. Also, the author made Carma's partner Harold, a former New York city detective, seem inexperienced, which isn't very believable.
August 3, 2014
Great mystery
Great mystery
This book was full of suspense! Throughout the whole book I was trying to figure out the answer to the "who is the killer" question. I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns. I am so glad that I read this book and it only took me hours to read it because I couldn't put it down. This is definitely on my recommended list!
Great mystery
This book was full of suspense! Throughout the whole book I was trying to figure out the answer to the "who is the killer" question. I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns. I am so glad that I read this book and it only took me hours to read it because I couldn't put it down. This is definitely on my recommended list!
February 1, 2017
Interesting read
Not having read this author before I was pleasantly surprised. She had me wanting to read more and more and her crime story had twists and turns with a bit of a love story gone, wrong. I feel for her character wanting her to realise her dreams but not yet it seems in this story so will have to read the next one.
Not having read this author before I was pleasantly surprised. She had me wanting to read more and more and her crime story had twists and turns with a bit of a love story gone, wrong. I feel for her character wanting her to realise her dreams but not yet it seems in this story so will have to read the next one.
January 11, 2014
Very suspenseful, with great twists.
August 6, 2014
Great new style by Tressa Messenger! Loved the twists and turns & cannot wait to start I'll See You Soon!
April 27, 2015
Greatvreas
Great criminal story with a lot of twists. Had to read it in one day. Couldn't put it down once I started
Great criminal story with a lot of twists. Had to read it in one day. Couldn't put it down once I started
November 23, 2021
It was okay. It was about a cheerleader Melissa, who was found murdered, then a few more follow. Two american cops are investigating this and getting nowhere fast, until one of the cheerleaders makes the connection and finds herself being hunted in a wood. They do catch the killer in the end but I confess to not slavishly following the story, it gripped me in parts and in others left me unbothered. I may need to read another book by Ms Messenger to see how that grabs my attention and concentration!
November 14, 2017
Such a great suspenseful thriller! Had several twists that left your head spinning. Just when you think you've figured it out.... BANG! I very rarely read reviews before I buy a book and I am thankful for that. There are so many bad reviews for this book but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It does end in a cliffhanger, however, the plot to this one is finished out. Before writing this review, I went in and purchased the next book so I can immediately start on it.
It does end in a cliffhanger, however, the plot to this one is finished out. Before writing this review, I went in and purchased the next book so I can immediately start on it.
November 24, 2018
An Exciting book!
I really enjoyed this book. It had a love story in the background of killings in a small town. People knew just about everyone. I loved the determination of the main character. The ending was surprising too. I am glad that I read this book. I see the author has books to look into too!
I really enjoyed this book. It had a love story in the background of killings in a small town. People knew just about everyone. I loved the determination of the main character. The ending was surprising too. I am glad that I read this book. I see the author has books to look into too!
December 21, 2018
Couldn't put it down
Being from North Carolina myself I'm always drawn to stories and writers from here. Although I've never been to the areas mentioned in this story I was easily able to imagine the scenery due to the writers ability to describe the characters surroundings. Well written, intriguing storyline and personable characters made this book a great read.
Being from North Carolina myself I'm always drawn to stories and writers from here. Although I've never been to the areas mentioned in this story I was easily able to imagine the scenery due to the writers ability to describe the characters surroundings. Well written, intriguing storyline and personable characters made this book a great read.
December 9, 2018
High school can be deadly
If you enjoy a good thriller this is it. I was hooked from the start of this story. Just when you think you know who did it they end up dead. Full of twists and turns. Really like the dynamic personalities of the detectives.
If you enjoy a good thriller this is it. I was hooked from the start of this story. Just when you think you know who did it they end up dead. Full of twists and turns. Really like the dynamic personalities of the detectives.
April 9, 2022
Great police thriller
This story kept you on your toes until the end. Lots of action and suspense. Loved the main character. The twist at the end makes you eager to read the next book.
This story kept you on your toes until the end. Lots of action and suspense. Loved the main character. The twist at the end makes you eager to read the next book.
July 18, 2017
Great storyline
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I could not out it down, I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good page Turner.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I could not out it down, I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good page Turner.
March 31, 2018
Excellent read!
Great suspense, plot, and a touch of romance! I didn’t want to put it down. This is one you’ll be reading well into the night!!
Great suspense, plot, and a touch of romance! I didn’t want to put it down. This is one you’ll be reading well into the night!!
June 17, 2018
Solid crime novel.
Small town detective uses good police work. Unexpected twist but you could kind of seeing it coming. A little romance but basic crime story.
Small town detective uses good police work. Unexpected twist but you could kind of seeing it coming. A little romance but basic crime story.
July 19, 2018
First time reading this author and love her writing style. This story is suspenseful and captivating from start to finish!!!...I will definitely look out for more of her books....
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