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Quinn Colson #11
The Heathens
Sheriff Quinn Colson and his former deputy Lillie Virgil find themselves on opposite sides of a case for the first time after a woman is found dead and three delinquent teens go on the run.
Before he was an Army Ranger who came home to become Tibbehah County Sheriff and take down a corrupt system, Quinn Colson was a kid who got into trouble--a lot of it. So when juvenile delinquent TJ Byrd insists that she doesn't know who killed her mother--an unreliable addict who has disappeared--Quinn's inclined to believe her. But no one else does--not the town, not the sheriff in a neighboring county, not her mother's older boyfriend, and certainly not Quinn's friend and former deputy, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil.
The Byrd family has always been trouble, and sixteen-year-old TJ is known for petty theft, fighting, and general hellraising. She's also no fool, and when she senses she's about to take the fall for her mother's murder, TJ, her boyfriend, her best friend, and her nine-year-old brother go on the run. As Lillie Virgil tracks the kids across a trail of burglaries, stolen cars and even a kidnapping, intent on bringing TJ to justice, Quinn sets out to find the truth back in Tibbehah. Someone has gone to a lot of violent trouble to make TJ and her friends the logical target of the investigation. It's easy, and who cares about a bunch of lawless kids?
As the bloody evidence against TJ piles up, Quinn knows someone truly evil is at work here--and that puts TJ and her friends in more danger than they can imagine.
Before he was an Army Ranger who came home to become Tibbehah County Sheriff and take down a corrupt system, Quinn Colson was a kid who got into trouble--a lot of it. So when juvenile delinquent TJ Byrd insists that she doesn't know who killed her mother--an unreliable addict who has disappeared--Quinn's inclined to believe her. But no one else does--not the town, not the sheriff in a neighboring county, not her mother's older boyfriend, and certainly not Quinn's friend and former deputy, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil.
The Byrd family has always been trouble, and sixteen-year-old TJ is known for petty theft, fighting, and general hellraising. She's also no fool, and when she senses she's about to take the fall for her mother's murder, TJ, her boyfriend, her best friend, and her nine-year-old brother go on the run. As Lillie Virgil tracks the kids across a trail of burglaries, stolen cars and even a kidnapping, intent on bringing TJ to justice, Quinn sets out to find the truth back in Tibbehah. Someone has gone to a lot of violent trouble to make TJ and her friends the logical target of the investigation. It's easy, and who cares about a bunch of lawless kids?
As the bloody evidence against TJ piles up, Quinn knows someone truly evil is at work here--and that puts TJ and her friends in more danger than they can imagine.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published July 13, 2021
302 people are currently reading
842 people want to read
About the author
Ace Atkins
71 books1,557 followersAce Atkins is the author of twenty-eight books, including eleven Quinn Colson novels, the first two of which, The Ranger and The Lost Ones, were nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Novel (he has a third Edgar nomination for his short story "Last Fair Deal Gone Down"). He is the author of nine New York Times-bestselling novels in the continuation of Robert B. Parker's Spenser series. Before turning to fiction, he was a correspondent for the St. Petersburg Times and a crime reporter for the Tampa Tribune, and he played defensive end for Auburn University football.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 218 reviews
June 30, 2021
I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review.
In these troubled and complicated times, it’s nice to be able to read a book set in a small town in Mississippi where the people still have old time family values and the problems of the modern world never intrude on them.
And if you actually believe that I can tell you don’t really know anything about American small towns at all.
As usual, there’s big trouble in Tibbehah County, and Sheriff Quinn Colson has to deal with it. The most pressing problem is that a barfly named Gina Byrd has vanished, and when evidence of foul play turns up, her troubled teenage daughter TJ is the prime suspect. TJ is the kind of tough-as-nails poor kid who has no use or respect for the law so despite her claims that she’s innocent, TJ goes on the run with her boyfriend, her best friend, and her younger brother. When they encounter a rich girl with her own problems and a very active Instagram account, TJ’s crime spree goes viral while she continues to claim that her mother’s boyfriend is the real guilty party.
Quinn has a further complication because his former deputy turned US Marshal, Lillie Virgil, was a friend to the missing woman who automatically believes the worst about TJ, and she goes on a personally motivated hunt for the girl and her half-assed gang despite Quinn’s belief that their might be some truth to TJ’s story. Meanwhile, an old enemy of Quinn’s has returned and is quietly rebuilding his criminal empire as he tries to use the media firestorm around TJ to his own advantage. Adding to the mess are the utterly disgusting and psychotic father & son house painters who also moonlight as thugs for hire.
Ace Atkins spent several of the previous books bringing several plots to a head which culminated nicely in the last one so this seems like a turning point in the series. There’s still a lot of the same characters, and previous events still have on-going consequences, but this feels like a new phase in the adventures of Quinn Colson is beginning. It’s a helluva good start, too.
Atkins continues to nail the whole vibe of a small town from its low key charms and the complex relationships among people who know each other all too well. He also shows clear vision when exploring the flaws of some folks like the stomach turning hypocrisy or stubborn nostalgia for times that weren’t really all that great.
There’s another interesting factor in play here. Atkins sometimes likes to slyly play off other fiction. For example, in one of his Spenser books he recreated a scene from True Grit, and he also used a darker version of The Dukes of Hazard as a template for another Quinn Colson novel. Here, I get the distinct impression that the inspiration may have been an ‘80s movie called The Legend of Billie Jean although it’s been a very long time since I’ve seen that one so take this observation with a grain of salt.
Overall, it’s Atkins doing his usual thing of telling a rural crime story with social commentary mixed in, and there's damn few writers who can do it as well as he does.
In these troubled and complicated times, it’s nice to be able to read a book set in a small town in Mississippi where the people still have old time family values and the problems of the modern world never intrude on them.
And if you actually believe that I can tell you don’t really know anything about American small towns at all.
As usual, there’s big trouble in Tibbehah County, and Sheriff Quinn Colson has to deal with it. The most pressing problem is that a barfly named Gina Byrd has vanished, and when evidence of foul play turns up, her troubled teenage daughter TJ is the prime suspect. TJ is the kind of tough-as-nails poor kid who has no use or respect for the law so despite her claims that she’s innocent, TJ goes on the run with her boyfriend, her best friend, and her younger brother. When they encounter a rich girl with her own problems and a very active Instagram account, TJ’s crime spree goes viral while she continues to claim that her mother’s boyfriend is the real guilty party.
Quinn has a further complication because his former deputy turned US Marshal, Lillie Virgil, was a friend to the missing woman who automatically believes the worst about TJ, and she goes on a personally motivated hunt for the girl and her half-assed gang despite Quinn’s belief that their might be some truth to TJ’s story. Meanwhile, an old enemy of Quinn’s has returned and is quietly rebuilding his criminal empire as he tries to use the media firestorm around TJ to his own advantage. Adding to the mess are the utterly disgusting and psychotic father & son house painters who also moonlight as thugs for hire.
Ace Atkins spent several of the previous books bringing several plots to a head which culminated nicely in the last one so this seems like a turning point in the series. There’s still a lot of the same characters, and previous events still have on-going consequences, but this feels like a new phase in the adventures of Quinn Colson is beginning. It’s a helluva good start, too.
Atkins continues to nail the whole vibe of a small town from its low key charms and the complex relationships among people who know each other all too well. He also shows clear vision when exploring the flaws of some folks like the stomach turning hypocrisy or stubborn nostalgia for times that weren’t really all that great.
There’s another interesting factor in play here. Atkins sometimes likes to slyly play off other fiction. For example, in one of his Spenser books he recreated a scene from True Grit, and he also used a darker version of The Dukes of Hazard as a template for another Quinn Colson novel. Here, I get the distinct impression that the inspiration may have been an ‘80s movie called The Legend of Billie Jean although it’s been a very long time since I’ve seen that one so take this observation with a grain of salt.
Overall, it’s Atkins doing his usual thing of telling a rural crime story with social commentary mixed in, and there's damn few writers who can do it as well as he does.
July 6, 2021
A paragraph of The Heathens (Quinn Colson #11) and I’m in. A couple of pages and it’s thirty-five years ago and I am living a ways down the road from Tibbehah county (so to speak) and dealing with my own crooked sheriffs and third generations of crime families. I’m long gone and miss it still. I grab my yearly dose of Sheriff Quinn Colson and just close my eyes every few pages as Ace Atkins’s lyrical writing takes me back to the Deep South.
TJ Byrd never stood a chance. She was born into poverty to a junkie mom, Gina, and to an adored father who died when she was very young. Gina brings home man after man, squanders her money on drugs and liquor, spending her nights in bars and juke joints. When TJ is about eight Gina has another baby, John Wesley.
TJ basically becomes the adult in the family, and when she is in her teens. Gina disappears. Not too long after that her body is found. Gina died hard, horribly hard. Her latest beau, a man old enough to be her daddy starts blaming TJ and her boyfriend Ladarius.
TJ can read the writing on the wall and she knows a poor white girl doesn’t have much chance for a fair shake; in that part of Mississippi money is what matters most. TJ doesn’t even trust Colson because she believes his crooked uncle (former sheriff) let her daddy drown.
TJ knows families don’t change much from generation to generation. She is a fine example of that viewpoint. Born into trash, die as trash, but she has tried. Keeping an old broke down trailer as neat as possible; acting as a mother to her brother, even when she was almost a baby herself. But what is bred in the bone…
So whataya goin do? If you are TJ, you snatch up your brother John Wesley, grab Ladarius and accept your best friend Holly’s offer of her mama’s mini van. Holly’s only caveat is she joins the escape to help balance out the incipient craziness. They are on the run, without much money, gas, food, or a real plan.
The odyssey begins with two major problems looming.
Problem #1: a young crazy rich girl insists on being “kidnapped” and then making TJ an internet star by telling her own story.
Problem #2, Federal Marshall Lillie Virgil is after TJ. Lillie remembers two things, Gina as a close childhood friend before the drugs and boys took her away; and Lillie tangling with TJ during Lillie’s Tibbehah deputy years.
I thought I knew poverty, living and working in a large city. Then I moved to Mississippi and discovered true poverty. Atkins brings this poverty to life, but showing everyone who deserves respect should get respect. Sometimes it is so hard to escape your family’s seeming destiny, especially in a rural county where there aren’t many jobs, and your granddaddy’s land is all you have to farm a little and hunt for survival.
Atkins doesn’t write one-sided. He writes his bad guys with a skill that puts him he up there with Thomas Harris and Cormac McCarthy. Old evil is back; new stomach turning evil comes to the fore. He does as well writing the in-between evil, those who don’t start out truly bad; but seem to get on that crazy train and rarely manage to get off in time.
The warmth of close family ties helps balance the grimness of Tibbehah County and makes you just wish you were digging in at Miss Jean’s kitchen table. The importance of lifelong friendships, not internet friendships also balances the bleakness of life for some in Tibbehah County.
Atkin’s has continued to develop his main characters. Sheriff Colson has married the true love of his life and has a new baby, finally realizing the life he needs. Lillie has continued her life as a Federal Marshal, having realized she needed to move on personally and professionally. Boon wasn’t too much in evidence in this book. This is one of the charms of the series, Colson, Lillie and Boone are happy to share the pages with new and old characters. They no longer have to take center stage.
If you are looking for a cozy mystery, this isn’t it. If you are looking for a sharply intelligent crime story, this IS it.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC for review purposes.
TJ Byrd never stood a chance. She was born into poverty to a junkie mom, Gina, and to an adored father who died when she was very young. Gina brings home man after man, squanders her money on drugs and liquor, spending her nights in bars and juke joints. When TJ is about eight Gina has another baby, John Wesley.
TJ basically becomes the adult in the family, and when she is in her teens. Gina disappears. Not too long after that her body is found. Gina died hard, horribly hard. Her latest beau, a man old enough to be her daddy starts blaming TJ and her boyfriend Ladarius.
TJ can read the writing on the wall and she knows a poor white girl doesn’t have much chance for a fair shake; in that part of Mississippi money is what matters most. TJ doesn’t even trust Colson because she believes his crooked uncle (former sheriff) let her daddy drown.
TJ knows families don’t change much from generation to generation. She is a fine example of that viewpoint. Born into trash, die as trash, but she has tried. Keeping an old broke down trailer as neat as possible; acting as a mother to her brother, even when she was almost a baby herself. But what is bred in the bone…
So whataya goin do? If you are TJ, you snatch up your brother John Wesley, grab Ladarius and accept your best friend Holly’s offer of her mama’s mini van. Holly’s only caveat is she joins the escape to help balance out the incipient craziness. They are on the run, without much money, gas, food, or a real plan.
The odyssey begins with two major problems looming.
Problem #1: a young crazy rich girl insists on being “kidnapped” and then making TJ an internet star by telling her own story.
Problem #2, Federal Marshall Lillie Virgil is after TJ. Lillie remembers two things, Gina as a close childhood friend before the drugs and boys took her away; and Lillie tangling with TJ during Lillie’s Tibbehah deputy years.
I thought I knew poverty, living and working in a large city. Then I moved to Mississippi and discovered true poverty. Atkins brings this poverty to life, but showing everyone who deserves respect should get respect. Sometimes it is so hard to escape your family’s seeming destiny, especially in a rural county where there aren’t many jobs, and your granddaddy’s land is all you have to farm a little and hunt for survival.
Atkins doesn’t write one-sided. He writes his bad guys with a skill that puts him he up there with Thomas Harris and Cormac McCarthy. Old evil is back; new stomach turning evil comes to the fore. He does as well writing the in-between evil, those who don’t start out truly bad; but seem to get on that crazy train and rarely manage to get off in time.
The warmth of close family ties helps balance the grimness of Tibbehah County and makes you just wish you were digging in at Miss Jean’s kitchen table. The importance of lifelong friendships, not internet friendships also balances the bleakness of life for some in Tibbehah County.
Atkin’s has continued to develop his main characters. Sheriff Colson has married the true love of his life and has a new baby, finally realizing the life he needs. Lillie has continued her life as a Federal Marshal, having realized she needed to move on personally and professionally. Boon wasn’t too much in evidence in this book. This is one of the charms of the series, Colson, Lillie and Boone are happy to share the pages with new and old characters. They no longer have to take center stage.
If you are looking for a cozy mystery, this isn’t it. If you are looking for a sharply intelligent crime story, this IS it.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC for review purposes.
April 30, 2021
Quinn Colson and his former deputy Lillie Virgil find themselves on opposite sides of a case for the first time after a woman is found dead and three teens go on the run.
Ace Atkins has once again written a great story that really makes you feel as if you are right there in Tibbehah County with Quinn, his friends, the locals, and the criminals. The Heathens is the 11th book in the Quinn Colson series and I'm amazed how Ace Atkins manage to develop the story and the characters year after year. I absolutely loved the Revelators but I think that he has managed to top that book with the Heathens. The story is dark, gritty and gripping. I loved it.
This was a book that kept my interest all the way through and that I would recommend to anyone looking for mystery, violence, and a dark look at the modern West.
Thanks to the author, Putnam's Sons and Edelweiss for this ARC.
Ace Atkins has once again written a great story that really makes you feel as if you are right there in Tibbehah County with Quinn, his friends, the locals, and the criminals. The Heathens is the 11th book in the Quinn Colson series and I'm amazed how Ace Atkins manage to develop the story and the characters year after year. I absolutely loved the Revelators but I think that he has managed to top that book with the Heathens. The story is dark, gritty and gripping. I loved it.
This was a book that kept my interest all the way through and that I would recommend to anyone looking for mystery, violence, and a dark look at the modern West.
Thanks to the author, Putnam's Sons and Edelweiss for this ARC.
May 30, 2021
Ace Atkins has done it again, The Heathens is a new masterpiece with Quinn Colson set as ususal in Tibbehah county down south. Did TJ Byrd kill her momma? Or is she running because no one believes her? What is it with the roofers and what has Johnny Stagg going on? Well read the damn book for your self and find out. If you by some strange reason haven't started reading this series you better do so right now. It's fenomenal. By the way don't miss the Quinn Colson playlist on Spotify, it's great. My thanks goes out to @putnambooks and @this_is_edelweiss for giving me this advance copy of the latest book by @aceatkins one of the best authors out there.
October 14, 2022
I would give this tale 4 1/2 stars if I could. Quinn & Lillie are on the trail of a young girl who is suspected of killing her mother. Great action, good dialogue. This series is one of the best. Highly recommended.
June 7, 2021
This is a well-written, well-thought-out entry in this popular series - of which I've read several of the 11 so far - but I can't say it was totally enjoyable. The subject matter, and myriad of characters, were too dark for my liking, and former Army Ranger and Tibbehah County Sheriff Quinn Colson, the "star" of the series, could use more page time. In fact, the spotlight seemed to be more on characters from previous books - whether they be cool or dangerous - than on Quinn, who I must say has become more likable to me as the series moves along.
The main story follows Tanya "TJ" Byrd, an errant 17-year-old whose equally errant mother, Gina, goes missing. Based on the outcome of her disappearance, TJ - well-known for her mental and physical battles with her mother - is the prime suspect despite, she claims, her innocence (she puts the blame squarely on an older, local ne'er-do-well who turns the tables by accusing TJ). Facing almost certain arrest for a crime she did not commit, she takes off with her younger brother, John Wesley, her boyfriend (and frequent lawbreaker in his own right, Ladarius) and her best friend Holly.
Along the way, they pick up another troubled teen - this time a pampered rich girl with the ironic misnomer Chastity who's fond of drugs and getting "likes" on her Internet posts. Claiming she has a plan that will clear TJ's name, she manages to coerce TJ and Ladarius into following her lead - which turns out to be neither a good idea nor the truth; in fact, her plan only digs a deeper legal hole for the teens and a not-bright future for any of them.
Meanwhile, Quinn isn't convinced that TJ is guilty, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. He tries, and comes close to, winning over old friend and former partner, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil - but as they track the rampage and devastation the teen runaways leave behind, it becomes harder to believe they have any chance of getting off with no consequences (a belief shared by TJ, who is convinced she'll never get a fair shake). Back on the home front, some seriously bad guys make appearances as they're recruited to pull off some seriously grisly stuff (just a warning to readers who don't enjoy that kind of thing). Still other bad guys are hard at work trying to appear legitimate, muddying up the investigative waters even more.
After a lot of sleuthing, the truth starts to emerge - but it may come too late to be of much help to the runaway teens. At that point, it's a wild ride to see who can get to them first - and the winner likely will determine whether they live or die. The ending is only partially satisfying, with plenty of loose ends that no doubt will be woven into another book. I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy of this one.
The main story follows Tanya "TJ" Byrd, an errant 17-year-old whose equally errant mother, Gina, goes missing. Based on the outcome of her disappearance, TJ - well-known for her mental and physical battles with her mother - is the prime suspect despite, she claims, her innocence (she puts the blame squarely on an older, local ne'er-do-well who turns the tables by accusing TJ). Facing almost certain arrest for a crime she did not commit, she takes off with her younger brother, John Wesley, her boyfriend (and frequent lawbreaker in his own right, Ladarius) and her best friend Holly.
Along the way, they pick up another troubled teen - this time a pampered rich girl with the ironic misnomer Chastity who's fond of drugs and getting "likes" on her Internet posts. Claiming she has a plan that will clear TJ's name, she manages to coerce TJ and Ladarius into following her lead - which turns out to be neither a good idea nor the truth; in fact, her plan only digs a deeper legal hole for the teens and a not-bright future for any of them.
Meanwhile, Quinn isn't convinced that TJ is guilty, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. He tries, and comes close to, winning over old friend and former partner, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil - but as they track the rampage and devastation the teen runaways leave behind, it becomes harder to believe they have any chance of getting off with no consequences (a belief shared by TJ, who is convinced she'll never get a fair shake). Back on the home front, some seriously bad guys make appearances as they're recruited to pull off some seriously grisly stuff (just a warning to readers who don't enjoy that kind of thing). Still other bad guys are hard at work trying to appear legitimate, muddying up the investigative waters even more.
After a lot of sleuthing, the truth starts to emerge - but it may come too late to be of much help to the runaway teens. At that point, it's a wild ride to see who can get to them first - and the winner likely will determine whether they live or die. The ending is only partially satisfying, with plenty of loose ends that no doubt will be woven into another book. I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy of this one.
August 3, 2021
I did not like this latest book in the Quinn Colson series as much as I've liked the previous books. The cast of characters have changed a bit since Lillie took out Fannie, but I think the real problem is that the runaways were exceedingly annoying. Through no fault of their own, they are being hunted by the law, but I just could not get into any sympathy for them, given how ruthlessly uncouth and reckless they are. I'm mostly talking about TJ, of course; the others are just along for the ride. What this novel does share with the others is great dialogue, some of it funny as hell. As when someone is contemplating the passing of a close relative: "She died. She's up there in heaven with Jesus and Dale Earnhardt." Snappy stuff like that will keep me coming back to Ace and his character Quinn. And as usual, some of the regular baddies make their mark and seem destined to continue to wreak havoc on poor ole Tibbehah County.
July 27, 2021
17 year old TJ's mother has been murdered and, been a lawless teen, TJ is the main suspect. She takes off on the run with her nine year old brother John Wesley, her boyfriend Ladarius, and her best friend Holly. Along the way, she picks up another teen Chastity. Deputy U.S. Marshall Lillie Virgil and Sheriff Quinn Colson are after the fugitives. Lillie believes in their guilt but Quinn believes in their innocence. But having Lillie after you should put true fear into anyone.
I really like this series and have read every book. You will understand the characters more if you start at the beginning. It's a rough talking, violent bunch! I sure do miss Fannie who was killed by Lillie in the last book. Fannie was so bad, it was good. Johnny Stagg is nowhere near as fascinating a character as Fannie. I also missed Caddy in this story.
I really like this series and have read every book. You will understand the characters more if you start at the beginning. It's a rough talking, violent bunch! I sure do miss Fannie who was killed by Lillie in the last book. Fannie was so bad, it was good. Johnny Stagg is nowhere near as fascinating a character as Fannie. I also missed Caddy in this story.
August 1, 2021
Ace Atkins isn’t getting any younger, but he doesn’t seem to be getting any older either. THE HEATHENS is the newly published 11th book in his critically acclaimed Quinn Colson series, and he continues to perform yeoman’s work in keeping Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series alive. Here he gives readers a tale that should please longtime fans and newcomers alike.
Quinn Colson is the sheriff of Tibbehah County, Mississippi, but as a teenager he was well known to law enforcement in all of the worst ways. A stint in the Army Rangers shaped his resolve but not to the extent that he forgot who he was and where he came from. So when Gina Byrd, a local hardcore drug addict, disappears and is believed to be dead, Quinn is inclined to keep an open mind regarding the legally presumed innocence of Gina’s daughter, TJ. The problem is that TJ is a 16-year-old wild child who has tangled with her mother physically and emotionally for years.
Gina’s remains are ultimately located, and it appears that TJ is responsible for her death. TJ, her boyfriend (who also is no stranger to law enforcement), her best friend and her brother all hit the highway in a journey that takes them in fits and starts across multiple states with U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil in pursuit. Virgil is Quinn’s friend and former deputy, but she is not quite as willing as he is to be persuaded of TJ's innocence. Quinn is not about to let a guilty party go free, but he is not entirely convinced that TJ, as problematic as she has been, committed the murder.
In THE HEATHENS, readers are given just a bit more information than the principals, so a great deal of suspense comes from whether TJ and her little band of desperados will be caught on their interstate flight and who will nab them. Virgil is no wallflower, but the actual killers are a pair of memorable characters and are capable of murdering again if it suits their needs. Things sort themselves out in one of Atkins’ best final vignettes, followed by what amounts to an intriguing prelude of what is to be expected in the next installment of the Colson saga.
THE HEATHENS may put one in the mind of THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER in all of the best ways, especially with its “innocents on the run” who are being pursued by both sides of the law. Atkins continues to pepper his narrative and dialogue with homespun and regional colloquialisms from a seemingly and hopefully bottomless well. They are worth the price of admission all by themselves, though Atkins’ straightforward plotting and well-turned prose will keep you in your seat reading, which is as it should be.
Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
Quinn Colson is the sheriff of Tibbehah County, Mississippi, but as a teenager he was well known to law enforcement in all of the worst ways. A stint in the Army Rangers shaped his resolve but not to the extent that he forgot who he was and where he came from. So when Gina Byrd, a local hardcore drug addict, disappears and is believed to be dead, Quinn is inclined to keep an open mind regarding the legally presumed innocence of Gina’s daughter, TJ. The problem is that TJ is a 16-year-old wild child who has tangled with her mother physically and emotionally for years.
Gina’s remains are ultimately located, and it appears that TJ is responsible for her death. TJ, her boyfriend (who also is no stranger to law enforcement), her best friend and her brother all hit the highway in a journey that takes them in fits and starts across multiple states with U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil in pursuit. Virgil is Quinn’s friend and former deputy, but she is not quite as willing as he is to be persuaded of TJ's innocence. Quinn is not about to let a guilty party go free, but he is not entirely convinced that TJ, as problematic as she has been, committed the murder.
In THE HEATHENS, readers are given just a bit more information than the principals, so a great deal of suspense comes from whether TJ and her little band of desperados will be caught on their interstate flight and who will nab them. Virgil is no wallflower, but the actual killers are a pair of memorable characters and are capable of murdering again if it suits their needs. Things sort themselves out in one of Atkins’ best final vignettes, followed by what amounts to an intriguing prelude of what is to be expected in the next installment of the Colson saga.
THE HEATHENS may put one in the mind of THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER in all of the best ways, especially with its “innocents on the run” who are being pursued by both sides of the law. Atkins continues to pepper his narrative and dialogue with homespun and regional colloquialisms from a seemingly and hopefully bottomless well. They are worth the price of admission all by themselves, though Atkins’ straightforward plotting and well-turned prose will keep you in your seat reading, which is as it should be.
Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
May 30, 2021
The Heathens by Ace Atkins is number eleven in the Quinn Colson series based in Tibbehah County, Tennessee.
Colson, a previous US Army Ranger, remains the sheriff of Tibbehah County and is mostly recovered from his injuries from a previous novel. In The Heathens, Atkins brings back familiar characters, while introducing new characters, including a bizarre and deadly father-son duo named Dusty and Flem Nix. The pair is as amusing as they are dangerous, possessing drives nearing psychopathy. Johnny Stagg also re-emerges, this time claiming to be a reformed community member. Stagg is with plans to open a family-oriented entertainment complex rather than being a provider of multi-county vice and adult entertainment, leaving readers to wonder if Stagg really has changed or if he is still a criminal chameleon.
(One question I would love to ask Ace Atkins is if his Johnny Stagg character is based upon actor Harry Dean Stanton).
The main story opens with the disappearance of a party-girl mother to troubled juvenile TJ Byrd, leaving TJ to care for her younger brother. Soon, due to TJ’s well-earned delinquency-filled reputation and because of accusations of misdeeds by her mother’s boyfriend, TJ soon becomes the suspect of a horrific crime involving her mother. TJ, her brother, best friend, and boyfriend Ladarius McCade, flee the county to escape being arrested for offenses she claims they did not commit. The four then go on a multi-state journey with each mile only adding to the troubles they are fleeing. Soon, the four meet a spoiled and troubled well-off young woman who turns TJ into a viral social media star that has falsely been accused of a depraved crime.
With law enforcement officials in pursuit, including US Marshal Lillie Virgil, the Nix brothers soon join the chase, with Sheriff Colson being the only one around skeptical of TJ being the one responsible for the crimes she has been accused of and with hopes of bringing her home without further bloodshed.
Of the eleven novels in the Quinn Colson series, Ace Atkins has yet to write a weak or off-the-mark installment and allows his characters and stories to evolve without becoming stale or redundant.
Netgalley provided an advanced reader copy for the promise of a fair review.
This review was originally published at MysteryandSuspense.com
July 20, 2021
Ace Atkins spent the first ten books of his Quinn Colson series meticulously building up a Walking Tall-like story, parsing out a mythos of fictional Tibbehah County and developing the characters. He dialed it up to a boil in book ten, with big payoffs. Although the stakes are still high for this one, it feels like the beginning of a denouement.
Yeah there’s still some background as a player from the past comes back to haunt things in the troubled corner of northern Mississippi. But beyond that, this is more of a Case of the Week kind of tale, meaning to bide time while Atkins figures out what he wants to do with the rest of Quinn’s narrative. It’s fun, if overly familiar, apparently based on a true story that Atkins covered while a reporter with the Tampa Tribune. You know the beats by now if you’ve kept up with it but it’s still enjoyable.
The real question when you’re done with it all is: what is Atkins going to do now? He’s trying to reset his Big Bad but that just feels like a rerun of earlier novels. He doesn’t have any other place for Quinn to go, save fatherhood. He’s written about how he wants to do more with Lillie but I think he misses his chance to expand her arc here. He can keep churning these out for the next decade and I’ll be fine. They’re fun and gripping. But I’d like to see him take them to the next level sooner or later, or to a different place altogether.
Yeah there’s still some background as a player from the past comes back to haunt things in the troubled corner of northern Mississippi. But beyond that, this is more of a Case of the Week kind of tale, meaning to bide time while Atkins figures out what he wants to do with the rest of Quinn’s narrative. It’s fun, if overly familiar, apparently based on a true story that Atkins covered while a reporter with the Tampa Tribune. You know the beats by now if you’ve kept up with it but it’s still enjoyable.
The real question when you’re done with it all is: what is Atkins going to do now? He’s trying to reset his Big Bad but that just feels like a rerun of earlier novels. He doesn’t have any other place for Quinn to go, save fatherhood. He’s written about how he wants to do more with Lillie but I think he misses his chance to expand her arc here. He can keep churning these out for the next decade and I’ll be fine. They’re fun and gripping. But I’d like to see him take them to the next level sooner or later, or to a different place altogether.
June 12, 2021
I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley to read and review.
THE HEATHENS by Ace Atkins is the 11th novel in the “Quinn Colson” series which follows the life of Quinn, a ex-Army Ranger who returned to his home town in Mississippi and took over as Sheriff of Tibbehah County in the wake of the death of his uncle Hamp, who was somewhat of a legend in his time, and here in this novel as in previous ones Quinn has to go toe-to-toe with the criminal elements in the area that includes the attempted return to power of his most hated enemy who has been incarcerated as a result of Quinn’s efforts to put him behind bars.
Quinn is happily married with another child added to the family that includes his wife Maggie’s son from her previous marriage, although he’s still recovering from the extensive and life threatening injuries suffered previously, and is hopeful for a chance for a lull in the excitement ever present in his profession that always has been a constant in the past with effects on his friends and family being a burden he carries always.. but as known to those who are familiar with the happenings in and around the Tibbehah county area from past novels there is fat chance of that happening, and so the story begins.
Several characteristics Quinn possesses have made him strong and successful in his profession, not the least of which is his ability to value information provided by some who are overlooked and ignored by others, and this causes him to take on an investigation where he and he alone believes the troubled young woman who comes to him to request that he investigate the murder of her mother along with statements that bring suspicion of her mother’s boyfriend’s involvement in the crime.
Solid action takes place as Quinn not only has to investigate the murder, but locate the young woman that has disappeared who came to him to investigate the murder, and has become the most likely suspect in the eyes of the law and everyone else in the community.
Can Quinn once again prevail, or will the reappearance of his longtime nemesis Johnny Stagg create a situation that would re-establish his criminal enterprise and connections - in addition to the possible failure of Quinn in locating the murderer of the woman of his investigation?
Ace Atkins again produces another chapter in this series that draws the reader into Quinn’s difficult battle against the criminals who’s activities are ever present in his community, and the people on the fringes who’s lives are affected by the success or failure of Quinn to protect them when only he and those most loyal to assist him face off against the opposition when required to do so.
5 stars.
THE HEATHENS by Ace Atkins is the 11th novel in the “Quinn Colson” series which follows the life of Quinn, a ex-Army Ranger who returned to his home town in Mississippi and took over as Sheriff of Tibbehah County in the wake of the death of his uncle Hamp, who was somewhat of a legend in his time, and here in this novel as in previous ones Quinn has to go toe-to-toe with the criminal elements in the area that includes the attempted return to power of his most hated enemy who has been incarcerated as a result of Quinn’s efforts to put him behind bars.
Quinn is happily married with another child added to the family that includes his wife Maggie’s son from her previous marriage, although he’s still recovering from the extensive and life threatening injuries suffered previously, and is hopeful for a chance for a lull in the excitement ever present in his profession that always has been a constant in the past with effects on his friends and family being a burden he carries always.. but as known to those who are familiar with the happenings in and around the Tibbehah county area from past novels there is fat chance of that happening, and so the story begins.
Several characteristics Quinn possesses have made him strong and successful in his profession, not the least of which is his ability to value information provided by some who are overlooked and ignored by others, and this causes him to take on an investigation where he and he alone believes the troubled young woman who comes to him to request that he investigate the murder of her mother along with statements that bring suspicion of her mother’s boyfriend’s involvement in the crime.
Solid action takes place as Quinn not only has to investigate the murder, but locate the young woman that has disappeared who came to him to investigate the murder, and has become the most likely suspect in the eyes of the law and everyone else in the community.
Can Quinn once again prevail, or will the reappearance of his longtime nemesis Johnny Stagg create a situation that would re-establish his criminal enterprise and connections - in addition to the possible failure of Quinn in locating the murderer of the woman of his investigation?
Ace Atkins again produces another chapter in this series that draws the reader into Quinn’s difficult battle against the criminals who’s activities are ever present in his community, and the people on the fringes who’s lives are affected by the success or failure of Quinn to protect them when only he and those most loyal to assist him face off against the opposition when required to do so.
5 stars.
October 13, 2024
The eleventh book in the Quinn Colson series is more southern hijinks. The body of a woman is found stuffed in a drum and everyone except Quinn believe her 17 year old daughter is her killer.
The girl goes on the run with her boyfriend and 9 year old brother because no one believes her that she wasn't the killer. Lillie Virgil is the true star of this book and I really hope Atkins eventually writes a book featuring her.
This book was written in 2021 and hopefully the author plans on continuing the series.
The girl goes on the run with her boyfriend and 9 year old brother because no one believes her that she wasn't the killer. Lillie Virgil is the true star of this book and I really hope Atkins eventually writes a book featuring her.
This book was written in 2021 and hopefully the author plans on continuing the series.
July 20, 2021
Major disappointment for me. First misstep from Atkins in the series. 11 books in and it feels like he doesn't know where to go. Has a real been there done that feel. This installment does not further the series at all.
June 1, 2022
Rednecks meet social media, social media wins. This one has lots of our favorite evils; aside from social media, we get lots of that good ol' boy religion (at least they think they're religious) and as usual some far-right crazies who think the KKK had the right idea, but perhaps a bit too tame.
We've got our old friend Johnny Stagg in the middle of most of the trouble, usually either causing it or fanning the flames. I guess he'll always be around. There's a father-son team of semi-dwarf roofers that are about as low as any human can get and still be classified as human, so of course they end up working with Stagg.
Lillie Virgil, a colorful favorite, plays a big part even though she no longer officially works with Quinn. And lots of kids play a big part and are the main subjects of the story - good kids who learned from bad parents, and have no adults they can trust, so of course they get into big trouble.
The closer I got to the end, the harder it was to stop. The story was barrelling downhill faster and faster, and I felt caught up in it, until it seemed like we were all going to crash big.
We've got our old friend Johnny Stagg in the middle of most of the trouble, usually either causing it or fanning the flames. I guess he'll always be around. There's a father-son team of semi-dwarf roofers that are about as low as any human can get and still be classified as human, so of course they end up working with Stagg.
Lillie Virgil, a colorful favorite, plays a big part even though she no longer officially works with Quinn. And lots of kids play a big part and are the main subjects of the story - good kids who learned from bad parents, and have no adults they can trust, so of course they get into big trouble.
The closer I got to the end, the harder it was to stop. The story was barrelling downhill faster and faster, and I felt caught up in it, until it seemed like we were all going to crash big.
July 27, 2021
Quinn has one on his hands this time! Runaway kids, hired killers, Johnny Stagg,Chester Pratt. TJ Bryd and her Boyfriend Ladariuos are accused of killing TJ's mom Gina. The kicker is Gina gave Chester TJ's insurance settlement from a lawsuit . Now TJ and her boyfriend and TJ's little brother have skipped town. Quinn has to find them and get them back before more mayhem ensues. Must Read!!
July 20, 2021
A teenage Bonnie & Clyde on the run, chased by Quinn & Lillie! Let the good times roll!
"She's up in heaven, with Jesus and Dale Earnhardt." :) Best line ever!
"She's up in heaven, with Jesus and Dale Earnhardt." :) Best line ever!
June 21, 2021
Thanks to netgalley.com, Ace Atkins and Penguin Group Putnam for the advance ARC copy for my honest review. I'm going to crown this my favorite read of 2021, seriously doubt, other than the forth coming August 31st release of the next Leine Basso Thriller series release 'A Plague of Traitors' by D.V. Berkom will ever top this one.
With 'The Heathens', Ace Atkins puts you in the pages, with a storyline that could be ripped out of the headlines, creates a plausible tale, even with knowing they're innocent, felt I was riding along with TJ, her brother John Wesley, boyfriend Ladarius and best friend Holly and prayed that he wouldn't let anything bad happen to them.
What really made the story, was having Tibbehah County Sheriff Quinn Colson and U.S. Marshall Lillie Virgie are on opposite sides, regarding being innocent or guilty, you get your typical helping of the criminal element in the county, a father and son team that will leave you puzzled, as too how they weren't caught sooner, an old nemesis's of Colson's is back, another wonderful hustler who appears in this series from time to time finally gets in trouble, then you got a neighboring Sheriff involved and you don't want it too end.
Plus what you wish would have happened to serial killer Robert Ben Rhoades, the first-time he picked up a female hitchhiker while driving his truck.
How can you not like the Quinn Colson character? He's blue collar, digs old Country and Western music, not the candy ass shit they play these days, he's tough as nails, an ex-Ranger who makes Reacher look like a wimp, protecting troubled Tibbehah County as it's Sheriff, family oriented, thinks of nothing to help friends and Atkins just makes him larger than life with his words.
His wife Maggie, new daughter Halley, adds a nice touch the chemistry they have, his mom Jean, best friend Boom and his loyal deputy Reggie all add to the storyline
Atkins should be in every reader's book case, he's that good of an author and just feel he deserves more recognition than he gets.
Author Bob Mayer refers to the big known publishing house authors as Airport Authors. Well Ace Atkins would be my favorite airport author, he can out write James Patterson and has a legend smilin' down on him.
With 'The Heathens', Ace Atkins puts you in the pages, with a storyline that could be ripped out of the headlines, creates a plausible tale, even with knowing they're innocent, felt I was riding along with TJ, her brother John Wesley, boyfriend Ladarius and best friend Holly and prayed that he wouldn't let anything bad happen to them.
What really made the story, was having Tibbehah County Sheriff Quinn Colson and U.S. Marshall Lillie Virgie are on opposite sides, regarding being innocent or guilty, you get your typical helping of the criminal element in the county, a father and son team that will leave you puzzled, as too how they weren't caught sooner, an old nemesis's of Colson's is back, another wonderful hustler who appears in this series from time to time finally gets in trouble, then you got a neighboring Sheriff involved and you don't want it too end.
Plus what you wish would have happened to serial killer Robert Ben Rhoades, the first-time he picked up a female hitchhiker while driving his truck.
How can you not like the Quinn Colson character? He's blue collar, digs old Country and Western music, not the candy ass shit they play these days, he's tough as nails, an ex-Ranger who makes Reacher look like a wimp, protecting troubled Tibbehah County as it's Sheriff, family oriented, thinks of nothing to help friends and Atkins just makes him larger than life with his words.
His wife Maggie, new daughter Halley, adds a nice touch the chemistry they have, his mom Jean, best friend Boom and his loyal deputy Reggie all add to the storyline
Atkins should be in every reader's book case, he's that good of an author and just feel he deserves more recognition than he gets.
Author Bob Mayer refers to the big known publishing house authors as Airport Authors. Well Ace Atkins would be my favorite airport author, he can out write James Patterson and has a legend smilin' down on him.
February 11, 2024
I have now read books 6-11 of The Quinn Colson series. The Heathens being the last book so far written in 2021. Once you start the series there is no stopping. One book leads to the other keeping you glued to your seat.
A fantastic real batch of characters you grow to love or hate. Quinn is a great sheriff with experience of being a Ranger in the Army based in Afghanistan etc. He has a best friend that was also in the military. There is a Deputy/Sheriff/US Marshall Lillie who also helps Quinn. There are some shady bad guys and some crazy family members. It’s all here and there is plenty of action along the way.
(Now I start with book one The Ranger.)
A fantastic real batch of characters you grow to love or hate. Quinn is a great sheriff with experience of being a Ranger in the Army based in Afghanistan etc. He has a best friend that was also in the military. There is a Deputy/Sheriff/US Marshall Lillie who also helps Quinn. There are some shady bad guys and some crazy family members. It’s all here and there is plenty of action along the way.
(Now I start with book one The Ranger.)
March 6, 2022
I have never read this author before, but he is writing the Spencer books now under the Robert Parker name, and there are at least ten books in this series, starring Quinn Colson as a small Mississippi town cop who is tasked with finding out who killed a woman who left two kids behind.
January 22, 2025
Misfit juvenile delinquents go on the run, when the mother of one of them is murdered. Quinn Colson has to get to the bottom of things. Seems almost quaint, even though it's a modern book.
September 28, 2021
This is the 11th book in Ace Atkins' series about ex-Ranger turned Mississippi sheriff Quinn Colson and it is one wiiiiiild ride. A lot of people in this book run out of gas, but Ace's creative powers still know how to hit the accelerator and drive.
Here's the set-up: Bad mom Gina Byrd has disappeared and her wildcat daughter T.J., son John Wesley and T.J.'s boyfriend Ladarious have vanished as well -- hitting the road when Gina's boyfriend, liquor store owner Chester Pratt, files a missing person's report accusing T.J. of doing her mama some harm.
Soon it turns out someone DID do Gina harm -- and left quite a mess behind, including some clues pointing directly to T.J. and Ladarious as the culprits. Quinn's ex-deputy, U.S. Marshal Lilly Virgil, gets herself assigned to the task force tracking the fugitives even as Quinn tries to put all the pieces together about what really happeed. Meanwhile he's dealing with his old nemesis Johnny Stagg, now out of prison, and the crooked sheriff from the next county over, Bruce Lovemaiden.
Part of the book is all about the road trip that T.J., Ladarius, John Wesley and T.J.'s best friend Holly go on, and how they hook up with a spoiled rich girl named Chastity who turns them into Internet celebs (Johnny Stagg even starts selling "Free Byrd" T-shirts) -- even as Lily and her partner close in. The other part is about Quinn's slow but steady investigation into Gina Byrd's grisly murder.
Atkins has outdone himself with this tale -- the characters just about jump off the page, the action scenes (especially the climax) are riveting and the setting is clearly one he's lived in. There's a scene involving a rainy truck stop that makes you feel like you're actually there getting soaked. The humor and dialogue are equally rich -- and funny. There's a scene involving Sheriff Lovemaiden and Quinn's best friend Boom that had me on the floor. And any time Lily opens her mouth, you know she's going to say something both X-rated and hilarious.
The one problem is that the author felt the need to include so much backstory about the continuing characters that it pushed the total length to 400 pages, which felt just a tad long. I wish he could have cut maybe 25 pages. But I am eager to read the next one, in which it is clear that Quinn will be going up against a crooked preacher. After "The Heathens" maybe No. 12 will be "The Angels."
Here's the set-up: Bad mom Gina Byrd has disappeared and her wildcat daughter T.J., son John Wesley and T.J.'s boyfriend Ladarious have vanished as well -- hitting the road when Gina's boyfriend, liquor store owner Chester Pratt, files a missing person's report accusing T.J. of doing her mama some harm.
Soon it turns out someone DID do Gina harm -- and left quite a mess behind, including some clues pointing directly to T.J. and Ladarious as the culprits. Quinn's ex-deputy, U.S. Marshal Lilly Virgil, gets herself assigned to the task force tracking the fugitives even as Quinn tries to put all the pieces together about what really happeed. Meanwhile he's dealing with his old nemesis Johnny Stagg, now out of prison, and the crooked sheriff from the next county over, Bruce Lovemaiden.
Part of the book is all about the road trip that T.J., Ladarius, John Wesley and T.J.'s best friend Holly go on, and how they hook up with a spoiled rich girl named Chastity who turns them into Internet celebs (Johnny Stagg even starts selling "Free Byrd" T-shirts) -- even as Lily and her partner close in. The other part is about Quinn's slow but steady investigation into Gina Byrd's grisly murder.
Atkins has outdone himself with this tale -- the characters just about jump off the page, the action scenes (especially the climax) are riveting and the setting is clearly one he's lived in. There's a scene involving a rainy truck stop that makes you feel like you're actually there getting soaked. The humor and dialogue are equally rich -- and funny. There's a scene involving Sheriff Lovemaiden and Quinn's best friend Boom that had me on the floor. And any time Lily opens her mouth, you know she's going to say something both X-rated and hilarious.
The one problem is that the author felt the need to include so much backstory about the continuing characters that it pushed the total length to 400 pages, which felt just a tad long. I wish he could have cut maybe 25 pages. But I am eager to read the next one, in which it is clear that Quinn will be going up against a crooked preacher. After "The Heathens" maybe No. 12 will be "The Angels."
December 11, 2021
The Quinn Colson books are a deep, dark look at today's South as it continues to wrestle with the past and the present colliding. In this outing, a teenage girl and her younger brother go on the run after it appears she and her mother argued one time too many. But is she the reason her mother is missing?
July 20, 2021
A bit more "episodic" than The Shameless, but still my favorite series running!
Quinn Colson should be part of your summer traditions.
Quinn Colson should be part of your summer traditions.
July 20, 2021
Another fine book! I would love to see these books adapted to the tv screen!
July 25, 2021
Another great installment in the Quinn Colson series.
September 30, 2021
From the Goodreads blurb: Sheriff Quinn Colson and his former deputy Lillie Virgil find themselves on opposite sides of a case for the first time after a woman is found dead and three delinquent teens go on the run.m So when, woman's daughter, TJ Byrd, insists that she doesn't know who killed her mother--an unreliable addict who has disappeared--Quinn's inclined to believe her. But no one else does--not the town, not the sheriff in a neighboring county, not her mother's older boyfriend, and certainly not Quinn's friend and former deputy, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil.
It is a bit uncomfortable to have Lillie on the wrong side of the fence in this one. TJ and her friend, Ladarius, are good characters. The spoiled rich girl is a piece of work — but her role in the story is interesting. Some very nasty bad guys — even nastier than Johnny Stagg.
This was a Lutrecia Read-aloud (#23 for 2021) and book #42 on our 2021 Read-alouds List.
It is a bit uncomfortable to have Lillie on the wrong side of the fence in this one. TJ and her friend, Ladarius, are good characters. The spoiled rich girl is a piece of work — but her role in the story is interesting. Some very nasty bad guys — even nastier than Johnny Stagg.
This was a Lutrecia Read-aloud (#23 for 2021) and book #42 on our 2021 Read-alouds List.
July 27, 2021
I will write this from T.J point of view.
T.J life has always been rough!. Her mama is mostly on drugs, jumping from one man to another
T.J is left to take care of her younger brother. She is no saint but I understand her plight given the life she is living
Well, her mother is missing. T.J, her brother, her boyfriend and her best friend have to run because they feel the police will place her mother's death on her
She knew old man Chester Pratt have a hand in it but who is going to believe a girl like T.J
T.J life has always been rough!. Her mama is mostly on drugs, jumping from one man to another
T.J is left to take care of her younger brother. She is no saint but I understand her plight given the life she is living
Well, her mother is missing. T.J, her brother, her boyfriend and her best friend have to run because they feel the police will place her mother's death on her
She knew old man Chester Pratt have a hand in it but who is going to believe a girl like T.J
August 12, 2021
I'm a real Ace Atkins fan. I even wonder if he will take over the stylistic mantle of aging James Lee Burke [Dave Robicheaux] - a huge ask, for perhaps the best overall fiction writer of this genre of this century. But this number 11 in the Quinn Colson series is a little slow, although still a solid 4 stars. I rate most of the Colson novels [I've read all of them] as 5 stars. This is easily read as a stand-alone, as are all Atkins' books.
If you like Atkins and haven't read his older Nick Travers novels, you might want to give them a try. Adkin's writing is now more sophisticated than when he wrote the 4 book Travers series, but I actually liked the Travers character better than Sheriff Colson. And his Robert Parker "Spenser" novels are just about as good as anything Parker penned - all 4 stars in my opinion.
If you like Atkins and haven't read his older Nick Travers novels, you might want to give them a try. Adkin's writing is now more sophisticated than when he wrote the 4 book Travers series, but I actually liked the Travers character better than Sheriff Colson. And his Robert Parker "Spenser" novels are just about as good as anything Parker penned - all 4 stars in my opinion.
July 15, 2021
This one was sad in so many ways. I felt for TJ, she was someone who had a bad family situation and was young, reacted to things in the wrong way and things spun out of control for her. I wished that she would have trusted Quinn at the start. Instead TJ went on the run and did stupid thing after stupid thing. She might have been ok had she not run into the rich daddy's girl who had her own agenda. In the end, things ended about as good as you could hope.
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