Search This Blog
August Reviews Link-Up
September Reviews Link-Up
October Reviews Link-Up
November Reviews Link-Up
December Reviews Link-Up
2024 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska
- Arizona (1)
- Arkansas
- California (5)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware (1)
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii (1)
- Idaho (2)
- Illinois (2)
- Indiana (4)
- Iowa (1)
- Kansas (1)
- Kentucky (1)
- Louisiana (1)
- Maine (1)
- Maryland
- Massachusetts (2)
- Michigan (1)
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska (1)
- Nevada (1)
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey (1)
- New Mexico (1)
- New York (5)
- North Carolina (4)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (1)
- Oklahoma (1)
- Oregon (2)
- Pennsylvania (2)
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina (1)
- South Dakota
- Tennessee (1)
- Texas (3)
- Utah (1)
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia (2)
- Washington (2)
- West Virginia (1)
- Wisconsin (1)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.* (1)
International:
- Australia (2)
- Canada (2)
- England (12)
- France (1)
- Indonesia (1)
- Ireland (4)
- Italy (1)
- Scotland (2)
- The Netherlands (1)
2024 Build Your Library Reading Challenge
Tuesday, January 05, 2016
Despite Intriguing Setting, Bayou Mystery Fizzles Pretty Fast For Me
7:45 PM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Everyone in little Cooper's Bayou, Florida, knows the story of Raylene Atchinson. Twenty-five years ago, the young mother was raped and strangled, her dead body left on the banks of the bayou. Raylene's 4-year-old daughter Aurora was found safe, but alone, at the local mini-mart. Suspected of the murder, Aurora's father, disappeared, never to be heard from again.
Now a 29-year-old nurse working in New York City, Aurora returns to Cooper's Bayou to settle the estate of her recently deceased grandfather. Having been raised away from Florida, she's disconcerted by her new surroundings. Bordered by gator-inhabited swampland, the house she inherits spooks her even more, especially since it seems so incongruous with the grandfather she knew. Nevertheless, Aurora stays in town, using her time to find out what really happened to her mother.
Aurora's joined by Josh Hudson, a 30-year-old police detective whose punishment for a poor decision made on the job is helping out in a dusty warehouse full of old evidence. Haunted by his younger brother's mysterious death, Josh has his own demons to battle. Helping Aurora on her quest helps keep them at bay. At least temporarily.
Combing the Evidence Room for clues about Raylene's murder, the pair stumble across some surprising finds. The closer they get to finding out what really happened, the more dangerous their lives become. Can they solve the mystery before they become murder victims themselves? In a terrifying race for their lives, Aurora and Josh will do anything to stay alive long enough to find the answers they seek.
All it takes is a glance at the plot summary for The Evidence Room, a debut novel by Cameron Harvey, to see that it doesn't offer much in the way of an original premise. The setting, however, drew me to the book. Although the bayou backdrop could have been more vividly painted, I did enjoy it. It wasn't enough, however, to distract me from The Evidence Room's flaws—flat characters, a predictable plot, and a disjointed mystery. I'm not sure why I bothered finishing the novel, as it fizzled pretty quickly for me. Bummer.
(Readalikes: Reminded me of lots of other novels about people going home to solve family mysteries)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language, violence, and sexual innuendo
To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find
Subscribe to:
Posts
(Atom)
Reading
Listening
Followin' with Bloglovin'
-
Bookish Quote of the Day!!!3 hours ago
-
-
-
Planning for the August 2024 Readathin10 hours ago
-
Conclave by Robert Harris11 hours ago
-
-
Love at First Sip16 hours ago
-
Verghese, Abraham "The Covenant of Water"16 hours ago
-
-
First Lines Fridays: July 26, 202420 hours ago
-
Daily Prompt, do you have a nickname?23 hours ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
Under the Shadows by Tony Mcfadden2 days ago
-
Review: Where the Crawdads Sing2 days ago
-
Lost Man's Lane by Scoot Carson3 days ago
-
Girl Plus Books: On Hiatus3 days ago
-
-
-
Sunday Post4 days ago
-
Operation: Happy5 days ago
-
Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth5 days ago
-
57. Beezus and Ramona6 days ago
-
-
I have been reading...1 week ago
-
-
-
What to read after ACOTAR2 weeks ago
-
-
-
July TBR??4 weeks ago
-
Reading Recap May 20241 month ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
What Happened to Summer?9 months ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
Are you looking for Pretty Books?1 year ago
-
-
-
-
-
Grab my Button!
Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ► 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ▼ 2016 (157)
- ► 2015 (188)
- ► 2014 (133)
- ► 2013 (183)
- ► 2012 (193)
- ► 2011 (232)
- ► 2010 (257)
- ► 2009 (211)
- ► 2008 (192)