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No Stone Unturned
Changing the course of one’s life doesn’t usually result in danger, mystery, and intrigue. Twenty-eight-year-old Linda Davenport certainly didn’t anticipate such an outcome when she decided to leave her stable and predictable life as a teacher to travel cross country for new beginnings, but unexpected events dictated otherwise. Flying from her hometown of Detroit to Los Angeles, she has a chance encounter with Carol Alder, a lovely woman and probation officer by profession. Their initial meeting promises to blossom into a close friendship.
Settling in at the beautiful home of Edith Carter, who rents Linda a room more for companionship than income, she manages to spend a day with Carol before starting her new job as copy editor at a publishing company. In a few short days Linda’s world is turned upside down when her job fails to materialize due to a sudden reorganization, and Carol is killed in an auto accident under mysterious circumstances.
Jobless but determined to remain in California, Linda is thrown into further turmoil when Carol’s brother Gregory is convinced her death was no accident and believes someone in the probation/court system was responsible. Only he can’t fathom why. Linda’s job hunting eventually takes her into the probation system where she begins to uncover disturbing information that leads her to agree with Gregory.
Unable to trust anyone, Linda never reveals to her co-workers that she knew Carol, and as she learns more about the system through her initial training and subsequent assignment as an investigator, she puts together more pieces of the puzzle.
Along the way she reconnects with David Wyndham, a former college love who is now overseeing the establishment of a local drug program, the success of which is crucial to his future. He becomes her ally in her quest to learn why Carol died, but when she uncovers what may be the truth, it threatens not only his future but possibly their future together.
Conflicted by her sense of duty and her love for David, Linda nevertheless follows her conscience, with a resolution both logical and surprising.
“No Stone Unturned” blends an engrossing story line with the inner workings of Probation, a fascinating branch of law enforcement rarely explored by other writers. The author’s 26 year career in this field ensures that the reader will get a true glimpse into this world, will be thoroughly entertained, and will keep turning pages until the stunning ending.
Settling in at the beautiful home of Edith Carter, who rents Linda a room more for companionship than income, she manages to spend a day with Carol before starting her new job as copy editor at a publishing company. In a few short days Linda’s world is turned upside down when her job fails to materialize due to a sudden reorganization, and Carol is killed in an auto accident under mysterious circumstances.
Jobless but determined to remain in California, Linda is thrown into further turmoil when Carol’s brother Gregory is convinced her death was no accident and believes someone in the probation/court system was responsible. Only he can’t fathom why. Linda’s job hunting eventually takes her into the probation system where she begins to uncover disturbing information that leads her to agree with Gregory.
Unable to trust anyone, Linda never reveals to her co-workers that she knew Carol, and as she learns more about the system through her initial training and subsequent assignment as an investigator, she puts together more pieces of the puzzle.
Along the way she reconnects with David Wyndham, a former college love who is now overseeing the establishment of a local drug program, the success of which is crucial to his future. He becomes her ally in her quest to learn why Carol died, but when she uncovers what may be the truth, it threatens not only his future but possibly their future together.
Conflicted by her sense of duty and her love for David, Linda nevertheless follows her conscience, with a resolution both logical and surprising.
“No Stone Unturned” blends an engrossing story line with the inner workings of Probation, a fascinating branch of law enforcement rarely explored by other writers. The author’s 26 year career in this field ensures that the reader will get a true glimpse into this world, will be thoroughly entertained, and will keep turning pages until the stunning ending.
472 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Jeanette A. Fratto
3 books8 followersJeanette Fratto has a B.A. in Psychology and an M.A. in Social Science from California State University, Fullerton. She enjoyed a 26-year career with the Orange County California Probation Department, where she learned that few outside the field knew the important role Probation plays in the criminal justice system. NO STONE UNTURNED changes that. Told through the adventures of probation officer Linda Davenport, the reader will be both educated and entertained, and keep turning pages to the stunning ending. The sequel, NO GOOD DEED, was published in September 2012. Jeanette lives in Laguna Niguel, California with her husband, Bernard.The adventure continues. The third book in the series, "NO DEADLIER DESTINY, has been published and is available in paperback, Kindle, and an e-book. Check my website for info:
www.outskirtspress.com/nodeadlierdestiny
Readers Favorite gave it a five-star review:
https://readersfavorite.com/book-revi...#
www.outskirtspress.com/nodeadlierdestiny
Readers Favorite gave it a five-star review:
https://readersfavorite.com/book-revi...#
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 27, 2011
This last week, I had the opportunity to read No Stone Unturned by Jeanette A. Fratto. It's a mystery, but it's not an edge-of-your-seat type of story - instead, it's almost a literary novel, which was a welcome surprise. The pace of the story is such that you really get into the characters' lives and thoughts and surroundings. Here is a synopsis:
Changing the course of one’s life doesn’t usually result in danger, mystery, and intrigue. Twenty-eight-year-old Linda Davenport certainly didn’t anticipate such an outcome when she decided to leave her stable and predictable life as a teacher to travel cross country for new beginnings, but unexpected events dictated otherwise. Flying from her hometown of Detroit to Los Angeles, she has a chance encounter with Carol Alder, a lovely woman and probation officer by profession. Their initial meeting promises to blossom into a close friendship.
Settling in at the beautiful home of Edith Carter, who rents Linda a room more for companionship than income, she manages to spend a day with Carol before starting her new job as copy editor at a publishing company. In a few short days Linda’s world is turned upside down when her job fails to materialize due to a sudden reorganization, and Carol is killed in an auto accident under mysterious circumstances.
Jobless but determined to remain in California, Linda is thrown into further turmoil when Carol’s brother Gregory is convinced her death was no accident and believes someone in the probation/court system was responsible. Only he can’t fathom why. Linda’s job hunting eventually takes her into the probation system where she begins to uncover disturbing information that leads her to agree with Gregory.
Unable to trust anyone, Linda never reveals to her co-workers that she knew Carol, and as she learns more about the system through her initial training and subsequent assignment as an investigator, she puts together more pieces of the puzzle.
Along the way she reconnects with David Wyndham, a former college love who is now overseeing the establishment of a local drug program, the success of which is crucial to his future. He becomes her ally in her quest to learn why Carol died, but when she uncovers what may be the truth, it threatens not only his future but possibly their future together.
Conflicted by her sense of duty and her love for David, Linda nevertheless follows her conscience, with a resolution both logical and surprising.
“No Stone Unturned” blends an engrossing story line with the inner workings of Probation, a fascinating branch of law enforcement rarely explored by other writers. The author’s 26-year career in this field ensures that the reader will get a true glimpse into this world, will be thoroughly entertained, and will keep turning pages until the stunning ending.
This novel was a very interesting read for me. It was the first time I've seen a mystery told in a more literary style, and to me, it was the kind of scenario that fit real life - when we discover something amiss and we go about setting it right. It was the kind of mystery that could happen to any one of us, minus the high-speed car chases and gun fights that so few of us (thankfully) experience in reality. I enjoyed tasting the atmosphere in the story and being able to really visualize the setting as I read.
The author worked in the field of probation for twenty-six years, and so when she writes about her character becoming a probation officer, she really knows what she's talking about. She explains the system well and helps the reader to understand the process of training to work in this field.
If I were to point out one thing about the book that I felt might have been tweaked, I would say that I might have liked to see the mystery brought to the forefront a little sooner. We did spend a lot of time discussing the character's training, etc, and it seemed as though the mystery was an afterthought, more of a side plot rather than the main theme. And there's nothing wrong with having the mystery be the subplot - it's just a bit of an unusual balance, that's all.
This novel was clean, not relying on crass language to put the story across. There were a couple of bed scenes, but each were alluded to, rather than described, and I never felt uncomfortable reading them. That's a major thing for me, and I appreciated the author's approach.
All in all, this was a very enjoyable read and one that I recommend.
Changing the course of one’s life doesn’t usually result in danger, mystery, and intrigue. Twenty-eight-year-old Linda Davenport certainly didn’t anticipate such an outcome when she decided to leave her stable and predictable life as a teacher to travel cross country for new beginnings, but unexpected events dictated otherwise. Flying from her hometown of Detroit to Los Angeles, she has a chance encounter with Carol Alder, a lovely woman and probation officer by profession. Their initial meeting promises to blossom into a close friendship.
Settling in at the beautiful home of Edith Carter, who rents Linda a room more for companionship than income, she manages to spend a day with Carol before starting her new job as copy editor at a publishing company. In a few short days Linda’s world is turned upside down when her job fails to materialize due to a sudden reorganization, and Carol is killed in an auto accident under mysterious circumstances.
Jobless but determined to remain in California, Linda is thrown into further turmoil when Carol’s brother Gregory is convinced her death was no accident and believes someone in the probation/court system was responsible. Only he can’t fathom why. Linda’s job hunting eventually takes her into the probation system where she begins to uncover disturbing information that leads her to agree with Gregory.
Unable to trust anyone, Linda never reveals to her co-workers that she knew Carol, and as she learns more about the system through her initial training and subsequent assignment as an investigator, she puts together more pieces of the puzzle.
Along the way she reconnects with David Wyndham, a former college love who is now overseeing the establishment of a local drug program, the success of which is crucial to his future. He becomes her ally in her quest to learn why Carol died, but when she uncovers what may be the truth, it threatens not only his future but possibly their future together.
Conflicted by her sense of duty and her love for David, Linda nevertheless follows her conscience, with a resolution both logical and surprising.
“No Stone Unturned” blends an engrossing story line with the inner workings of Probation, a fascinating branch of law enforcement rarely explored by other writers. The author’s 26-year career in this field ensures that the reader will get a true glimpse into this world, will be thoroughly entertained, and will keep turning pages until the stunning ending.
This novel was a very interesting read for me. It was the first time I've seen a mystery told in a more literary style, and to me, it was the kind of scenario that fit real life - when we discover something amiss and we go about setting it right. It was the kind of mystery that could happen to any one of us, minus the high-speed car chases and gun fights that so few of us (thankfully) experience in reality. I enjoyed tasting the atmosphere in the story and being able to really visualize the setting as I read.
The author worked in the field of probation for twenty-six years, and so when she writes about her character becoming a probation officer, she really knows what she's talking about. She explains the system well and helps the reader to understand the process of training to work in this field.
If I were to point out one thing about the book that I felt might have been tweaked, I would say that I might have liked to see the mystery brought to the forefront a little sooner. We did spend a lot of time discussing the character's training, etc, and it seemed as though the mystery was an afterthought, more of a side plot rather than the main theme. And there's nothing wrong with having the mystery be the subplot - it's just a bit of an unusual balance, that's all.
This novel was clean, not relying on crass language to put the story across. There were a couple of bed scenes, but each were alluded to, rather than described, and I never felt uncomfortable reading them. That's a major thing for me, and I appreciated the author's approach.
All in all, this was a very enjoyable read and one that I recommend.
December 20, 2018
I enjoyed discovering a new author, Jeanette A. Fratto, recently to add to my "read them all" list. I prefer reading mysteries about law and order, like the TV show. No Stone Unturned fits right in, as the main character joins the Probation Department in Orange County, California.
Another reason to read all of this author's books, is I expect the novels to continue in the same general locations. The characters travel over parts of L.A., as well as the O.C., It's fun "visiting" areas I know while the story develops. The characters are interesting, well developed, and the author made me care about them.
Another reason to read all of this author's books, is I expect the novels to continue in the same general locations. The characters travel over parts of L.A., as well as the O.C., It's fun "visiting" areas I know while the story develops. The characters are interesting, well developed, and the author made me care about them.
January 31, 2014
I was recommended this book, that I would be able to know if I wanted to go into probation or not after reading this book as well as give scenarios of what could happen in real life. Takes place in Orange Country California,I feel the author gave an authentic view of what really happens.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews