The Choking Game

John and Sarah Jarad Nantucket Mystery #1

by Martha Reed

The Whistler, a seasonal stalker, is terrorizing the women of Nantucket as they head home from the bars. When the body of a missing nanny is found anchored to the bottom of a bog, police Lieutenant John Jarad fears that this year The Whistler is upping his twisted game, and that more women may be in danger.
Mainland artist Sarah Hawthorne is fleeing her blistered past. When Sarah takes a barmaid's job at The Tap Room, a Nantucket pub, she is looking for a safe haven, a place of rest. Instead, Sarah finds herself the focus of a cruel team of sexual predators. Is she the next fresh item on their menu?
Offering a cast of colorful characters, and a riveting plot, THE CHOKING GAME promises to be the perfect summer beach read.

Genres: Thriller

259 pages, Paperback

Published December 7, 2014

About the author

Martha Reed is an independently published multi-award-winning mystery and crime fiction author.

Her Crescent City NOLA Mystery (#1), LOVE POWER was a 2021 Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Best Attending Author Award winner as well as a Silver Falchion Finalist in the Best Mystery category. UP JUMPED THE DEVIL (#2) and THE SEVEN GATES OF GUINEE (#3) continue the NOLA adventure.

Her John and Sarah Jarad Nantucket Mystery series, THE CHOKING GAME (#1), THE NATURE OF THE GRAVE (#2) and NO REST FOR THE WICKED (#3) garnered an Independent Publisher (IPPY) Book Award for Mid-Atlantic Best Regional Fiction.

Her short story, THE HONOR THIEF was selected for "This Time For Sure," the 2021 Anthony-award winning Bouchercon anthology edited by Hank Phillippi Ryan. Other stories have appeared in Pearl, Suspense Magazine, Spinetingler, Mystery Readers Journal, Mysterical-e, and in "Lucky Charms - 12 Crime Tales," an anthology published by the Mary Roberts Rinehart Pittsburgh chapter of Sisters in Crime.

Martha adores travel, big jewelry, and great coffee. She delights in the ongoing antics of her family, fans, and friends who she lovingly calls The Mutinous Crew.

Follow her on Facebook and BlueSky or visit her website www.reedmenow.com.

Reviews

[Sue Em · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sarah escapes from a personal peril in Pittsburgh to "idyllic" Nantucket only to find a serial killer, The Whistler, has re-emerged. This is not only the story of the search to unmask him before he kills again, but also how Sarah meets John, a local policeman. They are both interesting, well-written characters. While I have never been to Nantucket, the writing is so evocative that I feel that I have. Recommended!

[J.E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read all three of the books in this series, set on Nantucket Island. Well-plotted and interesting in the detailed descriptions of island life, I found the characters a bit too nice to see them embroiled in the dark and devious machinations of murder. It's requires some stretching of the imagination to accept the naivete of Sarah and her role as a co-investigator with John. In fact, it seems she doesn't so much act as find herself acted upon, although there are instances when she does make decisions, usually with dire consequences. Lovely beach reads that offer a glimpse into the world of Nantucket most summer vacationers never know.

[Holly Dynoske · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well developed relatable characters in a story that you cannot put down until you find out who did it!! Worth reading!!!

[Michele Shimko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book one in the Sarah and John Jarad Nantucket mysteries. These books don't let you down with plot twists and likeable characters. Plus Martha's descriptions of Nantucket make you feel like you're there. Highly recommend this series.

[Rosemary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author knows how to write a mystery, that's for sure. I enjoyed the book and look forward to the next two in the series. The characters were well drawn and the plot kept me guessing as to who did what, and why.

[GailW · Rating 2 out of 5]

The storyline was terrific. The descriptions were good. The dialogue was ... Not good. But I read it to the end because no matter how much I groaned at the dialogue, I wanted to see what happened.