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Joanna Brady #2
Tombstone Courage
After solving the mystery of Andy Brady's murder and foiling a large drug-trafficking ring, it has been suggested to Andy's widow that she take over Andy's bid to run for Sherriff.
Her father was a very popular sherriff in the past and JoAnna figures she's qualified so she runs and wins!
Now, Cochise County Arizona has its first female sherriff who is well experienced in beaurocratic nonsense, but now police procedure, but wants to be a sherriff, not just a paper-pusher!
Her father was a very popular sherriff in the past and JoAnna figures she's qualified so she runs and wins!
Now, Cochise County Arizona has its first female sherriff who is well experienced in beaurocratic nonsense, but now police procedure, but wants to be a sherriff, not just a paper-pusher!
408 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
770 people are currently reading
1814 people want to read
About the author
J.A. Jance
117 books4,191 followersJudith Ann Jance is the top 10 New York Times bestselling author of the Joanna Brady series; the J. P. Beaumont series; three interrelated thrillers featuring the Walker family; and Edge of Evil, the first in a series featuring Ali Reynolds. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tucson, Arizona.
Series:
* J.P. Beaumont
* Joanna Brady
* Ali Reynolds
* Walker Family
Series:
* J.P. Beaumont
* Joanna Brady
* Ali Reynolds
* Walker Family
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 483 reviews
September 9, 2022
There's a new sheriff in town!
Tombstone Courage (1994) is book #2 in Joanna Brady series that takes place two months after the first novel, Desert Heat.
After a tragic family loss a few months prior, Joanna Brady moves forward in a new role as the first female sheriff of Cochise County and the state of AZ. There's a lot of resistance and hostility from the boys at the Sheriff's Department that she's a woman and has no law enforcement experience.
With no uniform and a new 9mm Colt that she owned for two weeks, Joanna is in "learning as she goes" mode. She's faced with two homicides in the town's open pit mine.
I'm loving this series! Joanna Brady is a great character; tough, confident and feisty. I'm having a great time listening to the audiobook read by Hillary Huber.
March 9, 2022
4 Stars for Tombstone Courage: Joanna Brady Mystery Series, Book 2 (audiobook) by J. A. Jance read by Nancy Lee-Painter.
The first day on the job, Cochise County’s new sheriff has a murder to solve. She immediately goes to work trying to make her dead husband’s clothes fit. There is no time to prepare for this new job as she has a murderer to track down.
The first day on the job, Cochise County’s new sheriff has a murder to solve. She immediately goes to work trying to make her dead husband’s clothes fit. There is no time to prepare for this new job as she has a murderer to track down.
September 19, 2018
I felt the beginning of the book was really slow paced and that there was a lot that felt like filler. A few of the characters felt a little flat.
The plot was good, but after a long slow start, the ending felt way too fast. The interdepartmental issues that Joanna in her new position as Sheriff faced felt real and were good.
I'll keep reading this series.
The plot was good, but after a long slow start, the ending felt way too fast. The interdepartmental issues that Joanna in her new position as Sheriff faced felt real and were good.
I'll keep reading this series.
September 26, 2015
Good second entry in the Joanna Brady series. This is the followup to Desert Heat where at the end, Joanna is considering running for sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona. In this volume, she is elected sheriff but her lack of experience makes it very hard for her to assume a leadership position, especially since one of her main deputies was campaigning for another person during the election. Then once she gets elected, she has a double murder on her hands, one of which occurred many years before. The current murder is of a local rancher who is accused by his daughter of molestation when she was young. But is that what really happened? Joanna is really feeling her way in this one and along the way makes some key mistakes in law enforcement but with a little help is able to come to the right conclusions. At the end, she is enrolled in a law enforcement course to help her in her duties and responsibilities. The next novel should provide more details...looking forward to it!
October 12, 2020
It's been a while since I read this but I love strong female protagonists and the fact that Joanna became an acting sheriff.
January 8, 2016
This is my fourth book that I've read in this series and so far, this is my favorite one. They have all been 3 stars, but I can give this one 4 stars. I think I liked this one more because it gave me some much needed back story. I liked the explanation about Joanna's rise to sheriff and I also liked the details about her family life.
March 17, 2024
Good characters and story. Eii definitely continue the series
November 24, 2025
It will be interesting to watch her grow in this series.
April 27, 2011
I ordered a huge box of books off ebay from some poor sap who basically gave 22 books away for 2.00. When I got the box it was full of books by JA Jance and Stuart Woods. From there my love affair began with JA Jance's series. I read all of Joanna Brady's books out of order but I loved each and every one. I even went on the author's website and read where she told how she got the idea for each of the books she has written. It only made me love each book more :) How sad was I when I realized yesterday that I am now up-to-date on all the Joanna Brady books!! Now I am just hoping she continues to write this series.. I have to know what happens to her little family :)
January 29, 2016
I'm liking this series!
In the second novel in the Joanna Brady series, Joanna is running for sheriff and in her sleepy town of Bisbee, Arizona a murder occurs. The murder is connected with a lawsuit between a father and a daughter.
Through out the novel, Joanna's storyline took a back seat, and the murder and the relationships between this family took priority. I found it a bit odd that there was so much about this family. I also didn't like how not much information was given out. It only came together at the end of the novel.
I will be continuing this series.
In the second novel in the Joanna Brady series, Joanna is running for sheriff and in her sleepy town of Bisbee, Arizona a murder occurs. The murder is connected with a lawsuit between a father and a daughter.
Through out the novel, Joanna's storyline took a back seat, and the murder and the relationships between this family took priority. I found it a bit odd that there was so much about this family. I also didn't like how not much information was given out. It only came together at the end of the novel.
I will be continuing this series.
March 14, 2021
Tombstone Courage by J.A. Jance is the second in a series centered on Joanna Brady, unlikely new sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona. I have found a series I believe I will thoroughly enjoy for much pleasurable reading to come.
Tombstone Courage we learn is a phrase used to describe a failing of law enforcement officers ... failure to call for backup.
Joanna Brady becomes the newly elected Sheriff of Cochise County in an election where the two registered candidates had recently been killed. One was her husband, Andy Brady. When all candidates had to be write-ins to be voted for, Joanna win in a landslide. Her troubles, however, are only beginning. As the first female to hold the office of county sheriff anywhere in the state, there is immediate skepticism by the officers she inherits and resistance from them, many openly. In addition, one of the old-time ranchers in the area goes missing, only to turn up dead at the bottom of a mine pit. Additionally, his aren't the only remains found there.
Who killed the rancher and why? Could it have anything to do with a family law suit heading to court from his oldest daughter accusing him of assault when she was growing up?
Joanna finds herself battling not only the internal conflicts of departmental problems but her lack of true police procedure knowledge combined by an instinct to get involved in aspects she might best not concern herself with. Those instincts, however, are what led to solving the murder of her husband. Those instincts lead her in a direction others have failed to consider or be sensitive to. It is also those instincts that puts her in the position of confronting Tombstone Courage.
A very intriguing and fun read.
Tombstone Courage we learn is a phrase used to describe a failing of law enforcement officers ... failure to call for backup.
Joanna Brady becomes the newly elected Sheriff of Cochise County in an election where the two registered candidates had recently been killed. One was her husband, Andy Brady. When all candidates had to be write-ins to be voted for, Joanna win in a landslide. Her troubles, however, are only beginning. As the first female to hold the office of county sheriff anywhere in the state, there is immediate skepticism by the officers she inherits and resistance from them, many openly. In addition, one of the old-time ranchers in the area goes missing, only to turn up dead at the bottom of a mine pit. Additionally, his aren't the only remains found there.
Who killed the rancher and why? Could it have anything to do with a family law suit heading to court from his oldest daughter accusing him of assault when she was growing up?
Joanna finds herself battling not only the internal conflicts of departmental problems but her lack of true police procedure knowledge combined by an instinct to get involved in aspects she might best not concern herself with. Those instincts, however, are what led to solving the murder of her husband. Those instincts lead her in a direction others have failed to consider or be sensitive to. It is also those instincts that puts her in the position of confronting Tombstone Courage.
A very intriguing and fun read.
January 6, 2019
Tombstone Courage is the second in the Sheriff Joanna Brady series. It provides the back-story on how Joanna Brady became a sheriff. The mystery itself was somewhat predictable, I had an inkling where the story was going to go from the beginning. Definitely enough here for me to move on to book #3.
May 31, 2020
Great mystery! 4+ stars
March 2, 2025
Joanna Brady makes the perfect Sheriff. A hurt and frustrated daughter, bureaucratic systems, and a frustration I too had to prove being a qualified woman in a position normally held by men. But when a person can balance all the above in excellence and exceptionalism it makes for an excellent read.
October 19, 2009
The murder in this mystery doesn’t occur until about half way through. And that’s okay because what Jance is really writing about is family relationships, life in a small western town, women breaking stereotypes and pushing the ceiling. By the time the dastardly deed happens I had actually forgotten I was reading a mystery. The characters are well drawn out and unfolding events are logical—there’s never a moment when you think ‘this doesn’t make sense.’
This is my third Jance novel. I liked her style enough to pick up two more in the Brady series. I am not sure if I am a fan yet but there seems to be more substance to her writing than typical of the genre. If you said to me a year ago ‘you’ll be reading murder mysteries and liking them’ I would have snickered and walked away. I may just be a phase—but I’m having a good time.
This is my third Jance novel. I liked her style enough to pick up two more in the Brady series. I am not sure if I am a fan yet but there seems to be more substance to her writing than typical of the genre. If you said to me a year ago ‘you’ll be reading murder mysteries and liking them’ I would have snickered and walked away. I may just be a phase—but I’m having a good time.
October 4, 2018
Joanna Brady is the newly elected Sheriff. The only female Sheriff in the state of Arizona. If that were not enough pressure, she has to deal with hostile deputies, the investigation of two homicides, and find a way to cope with her husband's death and reassure her young daughter that all will be well.
If this continues, Joanna Brady is going to wind up being one of my fictional heroes. She's a strong woman. I enjoyed this book every bit as much as DESERT HEAT, the first book in the series--maybe even more so due to the complexity of the plot. I highly recommend these books. They are not fluffy mysteries. They're about real life and real problems. You go, Joanna Brady! Can't wait to see what you'll do next.
April 15, 2022
Before starting my review, I read a few of the existing reviews, and one
of them, by GR member Ubalstecha, really says what I was thinking.
Joanna Brady is a terrific character, and she gets off to a good start in spite of many difficulties in this first book as sheriff. I listened to this book, and it took a while to get used to Hillary Huber's voice; she's a good narrator, not great.
I give this 4.5 stars, which I can't do within the GR system. Well worth your time to read or listen to this book.
of them, by GR member Ubalstecha, really says what I was thinking.
Joanna Brady is a terrific character, and she gets off to a good start in spite of many difficulties in this first book as sheriff. I listened to this book, and it took a while to get used to Hillary Huber's voice; she's a good narrator, not great.
I give this 4.5 stars, which I can't do within the GR system. Well worth your time to read or listen to this book.
February 2, 2019
I really,REALLY wish some of you guys would learn the difference between the REVIEW of a book and GIVING AWAY THE ENTIRE STORY! Dont you all realize that people come to the reviews and read so they can decide if the book is good enough to make the investment of our time in reading it or not? NOT to have it read FOR US? At least label your review "Spoilers Alert"! If you insist on giving the story away please? A review is what you thought of how the book was written and WHY you recommend or do not recommend the book. Its NOT a synopsis of the book.
August 1, 2008
TOMBSTONE COURAGE - Ex
Jance, J.A. - 2nd in Joanna Brady series
When a young widow named Joanna Brady runs for sheriff in Cochise County, Arizona, she earns the enmity of the local police force and gets involved in investigating a strange double homicide.
Enjoyed. Like this even better than the 1st book.
Jance, J.A. - 2nd in Joanna Brady series
When a young widow named Joanna Brady runs for sheriff in Cochise County, Arizona, she earns the enmity of the local police force and gets involved in investigating a strange double homicide.
Enjoyed. Like this even better than the 1st book.
June 18, 2014
I don't know how, but with every Jance book, I become a bigger fan. This second in the series kept me reading instead of napping on the commuter train in the morning. A bunch of new characters that I look forward to know more about in the coming novels.
November 27, 2020
Two-haiku review:
Rancher being sued
Daughter said he molested
Then there's a murder
Enjoyed it a lot
Good series second entry
Like main character
Rancher being sued
Daughter said he molested
Then there's a murder
Enjoyed it a lot
Good series second entry
Like main character
October 9, 2018
It was ok. It picked right up where the last book left off, which was good. Joanna ends up having to solve 2 murders 2 days after she’s sworn in as the new sheriff, the position her husband was running for when he was killed. So she’s a new widow, trying to help her daughter grieve & accept her mother’s new job (Joanna worked in an insurance office before) and deal with the rampant sexism in the Sheriff’s office. What I like about this series is that the books are easy reads.
August 23, 2020
Notes:
Narration by Hillary Huber was good.
Character driven plot. I like the main characters. The case was handled in a willy-nilly fashion but kind of makes sense in context of the story.
Entertaining but not really sold on it. Library only has a handful of the series on audio. Will put the next audio available book on my TBR to try later.
Narration by Hillary Huber was good.
Character driven plot. I like the main characters. The case was handled in a willy-nilly fashion but kind of makes sense in context of the story.
Entertaining but not really sold on it. Library only has a handful of the series on audio. Will put the next audio available book on my TBR to try later.
August 7, 2020
Another great for this series
It was fun to read the #2 in the series already knowing what happens in the series later. It was like going back in time with your favorite characters and learning new stories about them. Highly recommended.
It was fun to read the #2 in the series already knowing what happens in the series later. It was like going back in time with your favorite characters and learning new stories about them. Highly recommended.
June 12, 2021
Joanna Brady has won election for sheriff of Cochise County AZ and assumed office immediately afterward and now things are happening so fast she doesn’t have a chance to catch her breath. With no direct experience in law enforcement, she faces a steep learning curve on the job, both with her staff and with running two new murder investigations. Although I’ll definitely continue reading this series, the ending was not as convincing as that of the two others I’ve read.
December 29, 2021
2.5 stars, possibly 3. I was very disappointed in this book. It was so S.L.O.W. Nothing even happened until about 50% through. Joanna was barely even in the first half. Even the murder was just ‘ah’. However the ending was good, though predictable. Can’t decide if I want to try book #3 or not.
April 17, 2019
This is a good easy read. It started off kind of slow but the paced picked up and I had to read it as fast as I could
January 16, 2021
Nice 2nd book in the series. Definitely built up a mystery, so much so I was concerned we'd be left with questions. Can't wait to see how some of these Characters play out in the coming books.
January 26, 2021
Why is this series so much fun?
June 26, 2023
Tombstone Courage by J. A. Jance
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:
-Print: COPYRIGHT: January 1, 1994; PUBLISHER: William Morrow & Company; ISBN 9780688132477; PAGES 300; Unabridged (Amazon Hardcover)
-Digital: COPYRIGHT: (1/1/1994) March 17, 2009; PUBLISHER: William Morrow reprint edition; ISBN 0380765462; FILE SIZE: 3335 KB; PAGES: 416; Unabridged (info from: Amazon: Kindle edition)
*Audio: COPYRIGHT: 19 Oct 2009; PUBLISHER: HarperAudio; DURATION: 8 hrs (approx.); Unabridged (INFO FROM Libby, OC Public Libraries)
Feature Film or tv: Not that I’m aware of.
SERIES: Joanna Brady, Book 2
CHARACTERS: (Not comprehensive)
Joanna Brady-Employee at an insurance agency running for Shariff of Cochise County, AZ
Jennifer (Jenny) Brady – Daughter of Joanna and Andrew
MaryAnn Maculyea – A Reverend and Joanna’s friend
Jeff Daniels – MaryAnn’s significant other who helps run a parsonage
Eleanor Lathrop – Joanna’s mother
Frank Montoya – Running for Shariff of Cochise County, AZ
Dick Voland – Bisbee Chief Deputy
Dave Hollicker – Bisbee Deputy
Milo Davis – Joanna's boss at the insurance agency
Eva Lou Brady – Joanna’s mother-in-law
Jim Bob Brady – Joanna’s father-in-law
Antonio (Tony) Vargas –Criminal
Angie Kellogg – Former hooker; barmaid at the local Blue Moon Saloon
Harold Lamm Patterson – Owner of the Rocking P Ranch
Ivy Patterson – Harold’s daughter
Holly Patterson – Harold’s daughter
Emily Patterson – Harold’s late wife
SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
-How I picked it: Don and I have enjoyed listening to Jance’s J.P. Beaumont series, where we are currently ready to begin book 12. Book 11 was written in 1993, and so was Book 1 of this series. This one was written in 1994, and seems to be the next one she wrote. Besides, we were anxious to learn what would happen next. 😊
-What’s it about? One theme is the contention between Harold’s daughters over Harold’s estate. Another is the race for Cochise County Shariff.
-Liked: Great characters and plot; That the primary character is an even-tempered, sensible female. And I like learning about local colloquialisms…which brings us to----I thought “gloryhole” was some sort of geologic term, but when I check search engines all I get is a list of porn items. That isn’t entirely inconsistent with the plot, but I still wonder if there is another use of the term that I am missing.
-Disliked: Nothing comes to mind.
-Overall: Good progression of the main characters and the crime and new characters made for a fine plot.
AUTHOR: J. A. (Judith Ann) Jance -- (born October 27, 1944) "Jance was born in Watertown, South Dakota,[2] and raised in Bisbee, Arizona (the setting for her Joanna Brady series of novels). Before becoming an author, she worked as a school librarian on a Native American reservation (Tohono O'Odham), and as a teacher and insurance agent." – Wikipedia
NARRATOR: Hillary Huber – “Hillary has recorded close to 700 audiobooks spanning many genres. She is a multiple Audie Award finalist, multiple Earphone Award winner, Voice Arts Awards winner and one of Audiofile Magazine's best voices. Hillary has a BA in English Literature and is a voracious reader and listener. Likes: yoga, hip hop dancing, baking sourdough, bourbon. Dislikes: liver. Raised in conservative Connecticut and hippy Hawaii, Hillary now splits her time between Santa Monica and New York. Most of that time is in a 4x4 padded room. Er...booth. Her super power is reciting the alphabet backwards.
-HillaryHuber-dot-com
I liked Hillary’s narration. She doesn’t get too loud in the tense sections, she does different voices with great subtlety.
GENRE:
Fiction; Mystery; Thriller; Crime; Suspense
SUBJECTS: (Not comprehensive)
Small desert communities; Bisbee police force; Estate planning; Child abuse; Hypnosis; Dysfunctional family relations
LOCATIONS:
Bisbee, Arizona; Tucson, Arizona; Cochise County, Arizona
TIME FRAME:
Contemporary (1993)
DEDICATION:
I didn’t find it.
EXCERPT: (From Chapter One)
“Holly was Harold’s firstborn daughter. If she had needed help and asked for it, he would have given it to her gladly, regardless of the heartaches and disagreements that might have gone before. But Holly’s reappearance had come in the form of a legal attack, mounted by some big-time California attorney who expected Harold to just lie down and play dead. And the attack had been aimed, with pinpoint accuracy, at the one place in Harold’s life where he was most vulnerable. And guilty.
Of course, he had denied Holly’s allegations. And when the People magazine reporter had shown up at the Rocking P and told him she was doing an article on “forgotten memories,” Harold had tried to throw her off track without having to tell his side of the story. But the woman was one of those sharp-eyed, sharp-tongued little city women. He couldn’t remember now exactly how it was she had phrased the critical question.
He may have mentally misplaced the exact text, but he recalled the reporter’s meaning well enough. He had wondered if that particular line of questioning had come directly from Holly or from that so-called hypnotherapist of hers, Amy Baxter. The assumption behind the question was the idea that since one daughter had been forced to run away from home in order to avoid sexual abuse, what about the daughter who didn’t leave? Was Ivy—the stay-at-home, old-maid daughter—a willing participant?
The reporter had made a big deal about the fact that Harold and Ivy lived alone together on the Rocking P, as though that in itself was enough to raise suspicions. Harold had exercised incredible restraint in not throwing the woman bodily out of his house. It was no surprise that the resulting article had made Harold sound like some kind of sex-crazed monster whose incestuous relations with his daughters had no doubt ruined both their lives.
The usually even-tempered Ivy had been livid when the article came out, and she had blamed Holly for it. Ivy had wanted Harold to sue, wanted him to have Burton Kimball go after the magazine for defamation of character. Harold had his own good reasons for refusing, but when he did, there had been a huge blowup between him and Ivy. For weeks now, they had barely spoken, doing their chores together around the ranch, but with none of their customary camaraderie. By attempting not to fight with one daughter, Harold had inevitably quarreled with the other.
Determined to solve the problem with the least additional damage to everyone concerned, Harold had put all his hopes in what would happen once Holly came home for the trial. He had thought that somehow he would be able to get his two daughters together in the same room where he would finally, once and for all, put the past to rest. But that hadn’t happened.
For the entire week since Holly had been back home in Bisbee, she had insisted that all contact be conducted on a lawyer-to-lawyer basis. Harold hadn’t been allowed access to her by telephone, and no one would tell him where she was staying. Well, that was changing today. He had figured out a way to make it happen, a way to bring her around.
Harold was coming to town with what, on the surface, would appear to be an enticing carrot. He was prepared to offer Holly the ultimate prize—total capitulation. Everything she wanted. For someone like Holly, that should prove irresistible, but there was a stick as well. And when it came to those two things, both carrot and stick, what he had to say would not be discussed on a lawyer-to-lawyer basis. Those were private—to be discussed with his daughters alone. No one else. Once and for all time, he would finally tell both of them the truth.
Surely, once they both knew the truth, he might be able to find some common ground, some avenue for reconciliation. Once he came up with the plan, he had allowed himself to hope it would work. Perhaps if Holly knew all of it, she’d call off the trial and her hired attack dogs. Harold Patterson could imagine nothing worse than having to endure the humiliation of a public trial. He could imagine how it would feel to sit in one of those overheated Cochise County courtrooms. The place would be packed with friends and neighbors, people who had known him all his life. He would have to sit there and be stripped bare; would be forced to listen while his daughter recounted the exact nature of his alleged crimes and the horrible things he had supposedly done to her.
The possibility that Holly might really remember caused Harold to squirm on the Scout’s sway-backed front seat. Just thinking about it set off a severe ache that started in Harold’s breastbone, spread across both shoulders, and arched down his tense forearms. What if she really did remember? What then?
Harold remembered hearing someone say that the truth would set you free. Could it do that for him? Harold doubted it. In this case, truth seemed like some kind of evil genie. Harold worried that once he rubbed the bottled past and set the genie loose in the world, things would never be the same. Telling the truth meant that long-made promises would have to be broken, that the lives of innocent people would be forever changed. But then, innocent people were always being hurt. That was the way the world worked.”
RATING:
4 stars
STARTED READING – FINISHED READING
6-8-2023 to 6-12-2023
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:
-Print: COPYRIGHT: January 1, 1994; PUBLISHER: William Morrow & Company; ISBN 9780688132477; PAGES 300; Unabridged (Amazon Hardcover)
-Digital: COPYRIGHT: (1/1/1994) March 17, 2009; PUBLISHER: William Morrow reprint edition; ISBN 0380765462; FILE SIZE: 3335 KB; PAGES: 416; Unabridged (info from: Amazon: Kindle edition)
*Audio: COPYRIGHT: 19 Oct 2009; PUBLISHER: HarperAudio; DURATION: 8 hrs (approx.); Unabridged (INFO FROM Libby, OC Public Libraries)
Feature Film or tv: Not that I’m aware of.
SERIES: Joanna Brady, Book 2
CHARACTERS: (Not comprehensive)
Joanna Brady-Employee at an insurance agency running for Shariff of Cochise County, AZ
Jennifer (Jenny) Brady – Daughter of Joanna and Andrew
MaryAnn Maculyea – A Reverend and Joanna’s friend
Jeff Daniels – MaryAnn’s significant other who helps run a parsonage
Eleanor Lathrop – Joanna’s mother
Frank Montoya – Running for Shariff of Cochise County, AZ
Dick Voland – Bisbee Chief Deputy
Dave Hollicker – Bisbee Deputy
Milo Davis – Joanna's boss at the insurance agency
Eva Lou Brady – Joanna’s mother-in-law
Jim Bob Brady – Joanna’s father-in-law
Antonio (Tony) Vargas –Criminal
Angie Kellogg – Former hooker; barmaid at the local Blue Moon Saloon
Harold Lamm Patterson – Owner of the Rocking P Ranch
Ivy Patterson – Harold’s daughter
Holly Patterson – Harold’s daughter
Emily Patterson – Harold’s late wife
SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
-How I picked it: Don and I have enjoyed listening to Jance’s J.P. Beaumont series, where we are currently ready to begin book 12. Book 11 was written in 1993, and so was Book 1 of this series. This one was written in 1994, and seems to be the next one she wrote. Besides, we were anxious to learn what would happen next. 😊
-What’s it about? One theme is the contention between Harold’s daughters over Harold’s estate. Another is the race for Cochise County Shariff.
-Liked: Great characters and plot; That the primary character is an even-tempered, sensible female. And I like learning about local colloquialisms…which brings us to----I thought “gloryhole” was some sort of geologic term, but when I check search engines all I get is a list of porn items. That isn’t entirely inconsistent with the plot, but I still wonder if there is another use of the term that I am missing.
-Disliked: Nothing comes to mind.
-Overall: Good progression of the main characters and the crime and new characters made for a fine plot.
AUTHOR: J. A. (Judith Ann) Jance -- (born October 27, 1944) "Jance was born in Watertown, South Dakota,[2] and raised in Bisbee, Arizona (the setting for her Joanna Brady series of novels). Before becoming an author, she worked as a school librarian on a Native American reservation (Tohono O'Odham), and as a teacher and insurance agent." – Wikipedia
NARRATOR: Hillary Huber – “Hillary has recorded close to 700 audiobooks spanning many genres. She is a multiple Audie Award finalist, multiple Earphone Award winner, Voice Arts Awards winner and one of Audiofile Magazine's best voices. Hillary has a BA in English Literature and is a voracious reader and listener. Likes: yoga, hip hop dancing, baking sourdough, bourbon. Dislikes: liver. Raised in conservative Connecticut and hippy Hawaii, Hillary now splits her time between Santa Monica and New York. Most of that time is in a 4x4 padded room. Er...booth. Her super power is reciting the alphabet backwards.
-HillaryHuber-dot-com
I liked Hillary’s narration. She doesn’t get too loud in the tense sections, she does different voices with great subtlety.
GENRE:
Fiction; Mystery; Thriller; Crime; Suspense
SUBJECTS: (Not comprehensive)
Small desert communities; Bisbee police force; Estate planning; Child abuse; Hypnosis; Dysfunctional family relations
LOCATIONS:
Bisbee, Arizona; Tucson, Arizona; Cochise County, Arizona
TIME FRAME:
Contemporary (1993)
DEDICATION:
I didn’t find it.
EXCERPT: (From Chapter One)
“Holly was Harold’s firstborn daughter. If she had needed help and asked for it, he would have given it to her gladly, regardless of the heartaches and disagreements that might have gone before. But Holly’s reappearance had come in the form of a legal attack, mounted by some big-time California attorney who expected Harold to just lie down and play dead. And the attack had been aimed, with pinpoint accuracy, at the one place in Harold’s life where he was most vulnerable. And guilty.
Of course, he had denied Holly’s allegations. And when the People magazine reporter had shown up at the Rocking P and told him she was doing an article on “forgotten memories,” Harold had tried to throw her off track without having to tell his side of the story. But the woman was one of those sharp-eyed, sharp-tongued little city women. He couldn’t remember now exactly how it was she had phrased the critical question.
He may have mentally misplaced the exact text, but he recalled the reporter’s meaning well enough. He had wondered if that particular line of questioning had come directly from Holly or from that so-called hypnotherapist of hers, Amy Baxter. The assumption behind the question was the idea that since one daughter had been forced to run away from home in order to avoid sexual abuse, what about the daughter who didn’t leave? Was Ivy—the stay-at-home, old-maid daughter—a willing participant?
The reporter had made a big deal about the fact that Harold and Ivy lived alone together on the Rocking P, as though that in itself was enough to raise suspicions. Harold had exercised incredible restraint in not throwing the woman bodily out of his house. It was no surprise that the resulting article had made Harold sound like some kind of sex-crazed monster whose incestuous relations with his daughters had no doubt ruined both their lives.
The usually even-tempered Ivy had been livid when the article came out, and she had blamed Holly for it. Ivy had wanted Harold to sue, wanted him to have Burton Kimball go after the magazine for defamation of character. Harold had his own good reasons for refusing, but when he did, there had been a huge blowup between him and Ivy. For weeks now, they had barely spoken, doing their chores together around the ranch, but with none of their customary camaraderie. By attempting not to fight with one daughter, Harold had inevitably quarreled with the other.
Determined to solve the problem with the least additional damage to everyone concerned, Harold had put all his hopes in what would happen once Holly came home for the trial. He had thought that somehow he would be able to get his two daughters together in the same room where he would finally, once and for all, put the past to rest. But that hadn’t happened.
For the entire week since Holly had been back home in Bisbee, she had insisted that all contact be conducted on a lawyer-to-lawyer basis. Harold hadn’t been allowed access to her by telephone, and no one would tell him where she was staying. Well, that was changing today. He had figured out a way to make it happen, a way to bring her around.
Harold was coming to town with what, on the surface, would appear to be an enticing carrot. He was prepared to offer Holly the ultimate prize—total capitulation. Everything she wanted. For someone like Holly, that should prove irresistible, but there was a stick as well. And when it came to those two things, both carrot and stick, what he had to say would not be discussed on a lawyer-to-lawyer basis. Those were private—to be discussed with his daughters alone. No one else. Once and for all time, he would finally tell both of them the truth.
Surely, once they both knew the truth, he might be able to find some common ground, some avenue for reconciliation. Once he came up with the plan, he had allowed himself to hope it would work. Perhaps if Holly knew all of it, she’d call off the trial and her hired attack dogs. Harold Patterson could imagine nothing worse than having to endure the humiliation of a public trial. He could imagine how it would feel to sit in one of those overheated Cochise County courtrooms. The place would be packed with friends and neighbors, people who had known him all his life. He would have to sit there and be stripped bare; would be forced to listen while his daughter recounted the exact nature of his alleged crimes and the horrible things he had supposedly done to her.
The possibility that Holly might really remember caused Harold to squirm on the Scout’s sway-backed front seat. Just thinking about it set off a severe ache that started in Harold’s breastbone, spread across both shoulders, and arched down his tense forearms. What if she really did remember? What then?
Harold remembered hearing someone say that the truth would set you free. Could it do that for him? Harold doubted it. In this case, truth seemed like some kind of evil genie. Harold worried that once he rubbed the bottled past and set the genie loose in the world, things would never be the same. Telling the truth meant that long-made promises would have to be broken, that the lives of innocent people would be forever changed. But then, innocent people were always being hurt. That was the way the world worked.”
RATING:
4 stars
STARTED READING – FINISHED READING
6-8-2023 to 6-12-2023
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