First Impression

Jackie Kaminsky #1

by Dalton

The case: A parent's nightmare. The moment his mother turns her back, three-year-old Michael Panesivic vanishes.

The cop: She grew up on the streets of L.A., so Detective Jackie Kaminsky understands the troubled kids and broken families she deals with every day. And she knows when people are lying. Like now. Despite eyewitness accounts and lie-detector tests, something about little Michael's disappearance doesn't ring true.

The witness: His story is chilling, but is he a credible witness? He claims he's never met the Panesivic family; he's simply a carpenter who dreams of returning to his Montana ranch. Hell, he's not even sure what he knows or what he's seen.

Jackie has three choices. She can dismiss the man as a handsome nutcase. She can arrest him as the only suspect. Or she can believe him.

With a little boy's life at risk, she can't afford to make the wrong choice.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

378 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It caught my interest from the start. It's funny because the reason I added it to my TBR is that I saw an ad for it in another mystery book, and it made me so curious that I wanted to read it. It was definitely worth the purchase and time spent!
This book is about a little boy who gets kidnapped from his mother and the detective, Jackie Kaminsky, who works hard with other detectives and officers to find Michael. The main characters are Michael's parents and extended family members, Jackie and her colleagues and friends, and some other interesting people who aren't related to Michael but fit into the picture. The book isn't solely focused on the mystery though that's the main plot line. There are a couple subplots that I really enjoyed that added depth to the story and the characters. My favorite subplot was with Alex, a young girl Jackie meets on the streets of Spokane, but there is another really interesting one with a psychic named Paul.
Overall, this story caught my attention from an ad in the back of another book to the last scene, which was moving yet also slightly ominous in a way. I know there's at least one other Jackie book, and I'm definitely interested in reading more about her! I strongly recommend this to people who enjoy mysteries and police stories.

[Terry Polston · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars because it was just so unbelievable that Kaminsky was allowed to just take Michael home. It was THE big news story and the media was left in the dark? Then the guilty party confesses in 5 minutes. No getting a lawyer or anything. Also the lack of cell phones in the late nineties was unbelievable for the wealthy families. I can see not answering while driving but if your waiting to hear from the police you don't go off for hours without your phone
I liked the characters but the end was just wrapped up to quick and pretty with a bow on it.

[Sana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading that book:As a teen who prefers mysteries this book contains a lot of spoilers the kind that you need to work your mind on it and enjoying it....



J’ai lu ce livre en français et c’est préférable pour moi d’en parler en français vu que je l’ai lu sur cette langue.J’ai bcp aimé le mystère que ce livre tient surtout qu’à la fin j’étais stupéfaite à l’idee que le coupable n’était pas ce que j’y croyais et enfin l’amour présente à la fin était à la fois inattendue et parfaite....ça m’a pris à peu près une semaine pour finir ce livre ceci montre à quel point il est génial

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jackie is an interesting character, I think it will be fun to read other books about her. This one was a good quick read, I enjoyed it.

[J.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from someone on my "read 'n swap" list because it sounded good. I don't usually go for mysteries but I thought hey, why not give it a go? The story centers around a detective who is assigned to a missing child case. Between the divorced parents and their ruthless families, there are plenty of suspects to go around. Add in a carpenter who works in the neighborhood of one of the families, who just happens to have a psychic flash about the missing boy, and you can see from the start that Jackie has her hands full with this case.

It's a quick read. I was fine with it until the end, when in an effort to wrap up all her loose ends, the author throws in a bit of romance that I could have lived without (then again, I don't like romance in the books I read, even though that's what I write myself). Certainly not an earth-shattering book by any stretch of the imagination, but a good read nonetheless. I finished it in two days. The kidnapper wasn't who I thought it was simply because I suck at deciphering mysteries (probably one reason why I don't like to read them much ~ I'm the type to flip ahead to see who did it just to save myself the aggravation of figuring it out).

Those who enjoy Mary Higgins Clark and her style of writing will certainly like this book.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this one. The first in an old trilogy by Margot Dalton. I am reading the 2nd one now, and am already liking it. Easy read and can't wait to read the 3rd and 4th (they are on my shelf waiting.)

[Angela]

040302

[Hildegart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't remember much about this book but I did enjoy it when I read it, enough that I went out and bought other books by Dalton.;