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The Colby Tate Mysteries #3
Three Degrees of Death: A Colby Tate Mystery
Sheriff Colby Tate's Granny Durbin always said bad news comes in threes. When the wire mesh house of the town's eccentric squirrel whisperer, Fits Loony, is destroyed by zealots, Tate holds his breath, awaiting calamities Two and Three. But nothing can prepare him for how dramatically the other two disasters will change his life and the life of those in quiet Crayton, Missouri.
The attack on Fits' cage home, a wrongful death lawsuit, and the mysterious disappearance of two local teens during a school trip to Scotland draw Tate into the murky world of the dark web, secret erotic rituals, and deadly cults. And they bring answers to a mysterious prophecy by the Webber Sisters, the Old Women of the Mountain, who read the tea leaves in their backwoods retreat in the Ozarks hills.
Fans of the "Outlander" series will love "Three Degrees of Death," a suspenseful, page-turner that culminates in the rugged moors of the Scottish Highlands.
The attack on Fits' cage home, a wrongful death lawsuit, and the mysterious disappearance of two local teens during a school trip to Scotland draw Tate into the murky world of the dark web, secret erotic rituals, and deadly cults. And they bring answers to a mysterious prophecy by the Webber Sisters, the Old Women of the Mountain, who read the tea leaves in their backwoods retreat in the Ozarks hills.
Fans of the "Outlander" series will love "Three Degrees of Death," a suspenseful, page-turner that culminates in the rugged moors of the Scottish Highlands.
- GenresMystery
232 pages, Paperback
Published February 23, 2021
42 people are currently reading
39 people want to read
About the author
Allen Kent
24 books35 followersAllen Kent is the author of the popular “Unit 1” thriller series, the Whitlock Trilogy in historical fiction, and a number of other mysteries and action novels. His books are published in electronic form by Kindle Press and in paperback by AllenPearce Publishers. He lives and writes in rural southwest Missouri.
Kent is a former Air Force pilot and educator who spent four years of his early life living in Iran and England. He has traveled and worked extensively in Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia – experiences that are often reflected in his writing.
Writing as Kent Farnsworth, Kent has also published two works of non-fiction: “Grassroots School Reform” and “Leadership as Service.”
He and his wife Holly are avid travelers, gardeners, and conservationists, and live in an eco-friendly home near the community of Neosho.
See: https://www.amazon.com/Allen-Kent/e/B...
Kent is a former Air Force pilot and educator who spent four years of his early life living in Iran and England. He has traveled and worked extensively in Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia – experiences that are often reflected in his writing.
Writing as Kent Farnsworth, Kent has also published two works of non-fiction: “Grassroots School Reform” and “Leadership as Service.”
He and his wife Holly are avid travelers, gardeners, and conservationists, and live in an eco-friendly home near the community of Neosho.
See: https://www.amazon.com/Allen-Kent/e/B...
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 28, 2021
Colby Tate the sheriff the county that surrounds the town of Crayton. With beautiful mountains, hills and canyons a lot of the people he had sworn to protect live in places almost impossible to get to unless you know where you are going. Grace Torres is his second in command, she is also a very beautiful woman that Colby has a crush on but can't do anything about it as it's against the rules. Mara Joseph is a state patrol investigator that has helped Colby in the past, he had also dated her but is she the one he really wants? When destruction and fires start suspiciously at people's homes Colby must find out what is going on. That is not the only thing happening though, 2 teens have disappeared while on a school trip to Scotland. As if that isn't enough a case from the past comes back to haunt Colby and Mara. There are lots of other interesting characters in this series like Marti the receptionist/dispatcher/ mother to all the people in her department and half of the county! Fits, who is a little different, he lived with a bunch of squirrels in a house he built for them. We also have the town sister's that seem to be able to read tea leaves perfectly! This is an interesting little place that has a lot going on and it's up to Colby to fix everything that is happening. There are lots of interesting facts about the beauty of Scotland that I really enjoyed learning about and stuff about the series "OUTLANDER" that if what's in the book is true I have no interest in watching it,lol. Suspense ,and romance, action and laughs, what else do you want in a great book! I totally recommend reading any of Mr. Kent's books everything I have read of his had kept my interest from beginning to end.
I received a free download of this book from the publisher. This review is totally my own honest opinion of a book I thoroughly enjoyed!
I received a free download of this book from the publisher. This review is totally my own honest opinion of a book I thoroughly enjoyed!
February 14, 2021
Three Degree of Death intertwines two thrillers in one into a richly complex story. It is intimately written in the voice of county Sheriff Colby Tate, who brings to life a fascinating array of characters in Crayton, Missouri, a fictitious town on the western side of the Ozarks. While embroiled in a wrongful death lawsuit, Tate investigates a murder that turns out to be the first in a string of vengeful arsons, as well as the abduction of two teenagers who disappear without a trace during a school trip to Scotland.
The story opens with a suggestion that trouble always comes in threes. As part of local lore, Tate allows for reading the future in tea leaves. He is curious about superstition—but when faced with fringe cults who take it to deadly extremes, he knows that their crazed minds pose a threat to the people he loves. Will he be able to catch them redhanded and save their intended victims in time?
The descriptions sweep the reader into the local scene, be it to attend a ritual in the rugged moors of the Scottish Highlands or to fight a fire in an out of the way cabin. “Overhead, the roof was beginning to burn, tossing embers into the night sky in random bursts. I sucked in another breath and ducked through the flame into the cabin.”
Five stars.
Disclosure: I discovered Allen Kent’s work when both of us took part in a boxed set, Do No Harm. I also designed the cover for this book.
The story opens with a suggestion that trouble always comes in threes. As part of local lore, Tate allows for reading the future in tea leaves. He is curious about superstition—but when faced with fringe cults who take it to deadly extremes, he knows that their crazed minds pose a threat to the people he loves. Will he be able to catch them redhanded and save their intended victims in time?
The descriptions sweep the reader into the local scene, be it to attend a ritual in the rugged moors of the Scottish Highlands or to fight a fire in an out of the way cabin. “Overhead, the roof was beginning to burn, tossing embers into the night sky in random bursts. I sucked in another breath and ducked through the flame into the cabin.”
Five stars.
Disclosure: I discovered Allen Kent’s work when both of us took part in a boxed set, Do No Harm. I also designed the cover for this book.
February 18, 2021
Allen Kent's mastery of multiple genres amazes me. I've enjoyed his Unit One thrillers and his Whitlock Trilogy historical novels. Now he's given me hours of good mystery reading with his Colby Tate series. I downloaded Three Degrees of Death as soon as it was released, and it was as good as I hoped.
Tate is an odd hero. His down-home, sometimes naive sweetness sets him apart from the gritty, shoot-em-up heroes who usually come with Tate's background. Tate can be a dunce with women, and he lets them and his Barney Fife subordinates in the sheriff's office get away with too much manipulation, but it's been fun watching him flounder around between his two lovely female colleagues throughout the series while trying to solve crimes and keep the peace.
There are several well-developed plot threads in Three Degrees of Death. One leads Tate eventually to Scotland, in a twist that made me glad I happened to read the first several Outlander books last year. Another--well, I better not commit a spoiler felony. :D I'll just say, it's all 5-star entertainment. Looking forward to Tate #4.
Tate is an odd hero. His down-home, sometimes naive sweetness sets him apart from the gritty, shoot-em-up heroes who usually come with Tate's background. Tate can be a dunce with women, and he lets them and his Barney Fife subordinates in the sheriff's office get away with too much manipulation, but it's been fun watching him flounder around between his two lovely female colleagues throughout the series while trying to solve crimes and keep the peace.
There are several well-developed plot threads in Three Degrees of Death. One leads Tate eventually to Scotland, in a twist that made me glad I happened to read the first several Outlander books last year. Another--well, I better not commit a spoiler felony. :D I'll just say, it's all 5-star entertainment. Looking forward to Tate #4.
March 29, 2025
Kindle Unlimited The Colby Tate Mysteries 1-5
THREE DEGREES OF DEATH is #3 of the Colby Tate Mysteries, and Sheriff Tate and his crew are finding themselves in the depths of trouble. His old granny Durban always told him bad news comes in threes. Sure seems like it - and they are stretched very thin. The Squirrel Whisperer troubles begin it, but the disappearance of a couple of local teens - the daughter of a Serbian resident and Grace's little brother - on a school trip to Scotland takes Chief Deputy Grace Torres on her first trip out of state, wrongful death charges evolving from the Huckleberry Ridge troubles keep Tate and Mara close to home. Enter more Serbs looking for revenge on the local immigrant families, and it is sometimes more than the thin-on-the-ground crew at the Clayton cop shop can handle. Nobody can say they won't give it a try, though.
REVIEWED ON MARCH 28, 2025, AT Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available at B&N or Kobo. Also reviewed on The Colby Tate Mystereis 1-5 but not counted again.
THREE DEGREES OF DEATH is #3 of the Colby Tate Mysteries, and Sheriff Tate and his crew are finding themselves in the depths of trouble. His old granny Durban always told him bad news comes in threes. Sure seems like it - and they are stretched very thin. The Squirrel Whisperer troubles begin it, but the disappearance of a couple of local teens - the daughter of a Serbian resident and Grace's little brother - on a school trip to Scotland takes Chief Deputy Grace Torres on her first trip out of state, wrongful death charges evolving from the Huckleberry Ridge troubles keep Tate and Mara close to home. Enter more Serbs looking for revenge on the local immigrant families, and it is sometimes more than the thin-on-the-ground crew at the Clayton cop shop can handle. Nobody can say they won't give it a try, though.
REVIEWED ON MARCH 28, 2025, AT Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available at B&N or Kobo. Also reviewed on The Colby Tate Mystereis 1-5 but not counted again.
February 20, 2021
This story brings us back to the Ozarks following Sheriff Tate on the trail of trouble once more. As the saying goes, trouble comes in threes, and Tate is faced with three incidents in his county that force him into fast-paced dramas. Not only is the story engaging, but the Outlander connection becomes quite interesting. Kent weaves the story in a manner that kept me wanting to turn the page. I love the characters, and they are unique characters who are quite believable if you have ever spent any time in the rustic Ozarks. It's fun and sexy and altogether a good read.
March 1, 2021
In my humble opinion this third book in the Colby Tate series is the best one yet. Kent's characters are always good and this one is no exception. The atmosphere of the Ozarks as well as the geograpy of Scotland add to the characterizations and the triple plot in this one. It is a great stand alone novel, but if you've read the first two it will add to the enjoyment of this one. I am now looking forward to his continued character development in what will be, I hope, the fourth in this series.
May 1, 2021
Please Mr. Kent, write more of this series!!
I LOVE the characters! I've fallen in love with the love story!! You have to write more! Please!! Don't fail me now!!
Read the series!! Excellent books! Phenomenal author!! HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
(Go read them... NOW!!)
I LOVE the characters! I've fallen in love with the love story!! You have to write more! Please!! Don't fail me now!!
Read the series!! Excellent books! Phenomenal author!! HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
(Go read them... NOW!!)
July 6, 2021
1 cult is not enough?
Trouble comes in 3s. This tale prys Grace from under too-comfortable life into the international stage. She handles it better than she thought. And the biggest 'trouble' brings the town even closer.
Trouble comes in 3s. This tale prys Grace from under too-comfortable life into the international stage. She handles it better than she thought. And the biggest 'trouble' brings the town even closer.
Read
May 21, 2021Excellent!
What a great adventure! Excellently conceptualized. Excellently written. Excellently edited. An all round excellent read. What else can I say? Excellent!
What a great adventure! Excellently conceptualized. Excellently written. Excellently edited. An all round excellent read. What else can I say? Excellent!
August 16, 2021
One of the best series I have read in a long time. Set in a small town, the sheriff has to deal with various crimes along with a diverse group of characters.
April 3, 2022
Another Hit
I loved this book. It was full of action and adventure. This book will be another hit for Allen Kent.
I loved this book. It was full of action and adventure. This book will be another hit for Allen Kent.
February 2, 2023
Continues the tradition
Bit of a strange place for a rural MISSOURI sheriff to be operating, but the same good writing and intuitive police work drive the story
Bit of a strange place for a rural MISSOURI sheriff to be operating, but the same good writing and intuitive police work drive the story
January 8, 2025
I really disliked this book. It read like a drug induced bad dream. I gave it Two stars only because i finished it. I think I’m done with this author.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews