Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons!
Tami Hoag has written two of my favorite novels, 9th Girl and Cold Cold Heart. I have recommended both suspense novels to all of my readers, friends and family. There is a certain thrill that comes from a Tami Hoag novel. Once she draws you in with her dynamic narrative, she has a hold of you for many hours. I have lost sleep, forgot appointments, and ignored phone calls when reading her works. This time was no different.
Deeper Than the Dead is the first novel in Tami Hoag’s Oak Knoll trilogy. It is published by Penguin Random House under their Dutton Books imprint. The year is 1985: Members Only jackets, the Golden Girls, and leg warmers rule. Criminal investigations are aided by tape recorders, fingerprint dusting, and fax machines. The CSI-electronic age is years away and profiling is in its infancy. For the small sheriff's department of Oak Knoll, California most of what we see on television in 2018 would be science fiction to them. But under their leader, Sheriff Cal Dixon, Oak Knoll’s finest does their best to keep the peace. But it is Detective Tony Mendez that knows that the future of law enforcement is changing. His mentor, Vince Leone, is a profiler for the FBI, and uses techniques that seem foreign to the small town officers. Especially Frank Farman, a racist and chauvinistic officer who is happy staying in the past when it comes to crime-solving.
Life in Oak Knoll is quiet. Crime is minimal. And the small community enjoys their fair share of family-oriented events. In a place like Oak Knoll what could possibly go wrong? One day four fifth graders find out when they come upon the body of a dead woman buried in the park, her mouth and eyes glued shut.
The condition of the victim is similar to a victim in another case, and Tony places a call to Vince Leone. The veteran FBI agent agrees to come to Oak Knoll to help profile the case, and see if the dead woman is indeed the latest victim of a serial killer. Meanwhile school teacher Anne Navarre is busy trying to help her students cope with their discovery in the park. She knows that out of the four the worst to deal with is Dennis, son of Frank Farman. At eleven years old Dennis is a cold and angry child that is a vicious bully to his fellow classmates. She also worries about young Tommy Crane, who fell on the dead woman after being chased by Dennis. Tommy is the son of a narcissistic woman who likes to medicate him so that she does not have to deal with him. Anne is a loving and caring woman whose heart aches at the traumas that her students endure. But with parents like Janet Crane and Frank Farman, her job is an extra struggle.
It becomes clear to Leone and Mendez that this serial killer is cocky. He taunts the police and displays his victims. And he knows that he is so thorough that the authorities will never find the place where he tortures and murders his victims. He likes the game. And Vince is ready to play. As the case continues to unravel before the Oak Knoll lawmen, another woman is abducted, and she and the dead woman have a common link: the Thomas Center for Women. Is there a killer working at the center that is targeting their clients? Is Anne Navarre getting too close to the truth that she may be the next victim? And just what secrets do the citizens of Oak Knoll carry that lead to murder? Time will tell when the truth is buried Deeper Than the Dead.
Tami Hoag held my hand at the beginning of this book and led me into the idyllic life of an Oak Knoll citizen. She showed me beauty, fun, and family life in a community that I would have loved to live in. Then she let go of my hand, told me to go forward alone, and there I found the dark underbelly of this community; dark, twisted, and full of rancor. But I could not leave. I was hooked, and I had to go forward and see who the killer was. And when I reached the end of Deeper Than the Dead, I was ready for book two, Secrets to the Grave.
This novel was a fantastic blast of light, sound, and nostalgia with Hoag’s expert storytelling enlivening my senses. I was fully invested in her characters. And I rooted for the protagonists and booed the antagonists. Hoag twisted the path and surprised me many times. Her crafty way of storytelling presented many suspects and gleefully introduced slick elements that had me truly enjoying the mystery that unfolded. I loved Vince Leone and Anne Navarre. Their mutual attraction played out very well, and at times became steamy; reminding me that Hoag also writes romance novels very well.
I read this book in part with the narration of Kirsten Potter. I loved her work narrating Lisa Gardner novels, so when I heard she was the narrator for this series; I immediately acquired the audio books. Potter has a way of presenting a story that is very cinematic in scope. She plays the characters with depth and at times I feel that more than one person is reading when she is involved. I loved her reading of this novel. Excellent.
I gave Deeper Than the Dead five out of five stars. I left the book wanting more of her amazing characters. And I genuinely felt that my time reading this book was well spent. I highly recommend this thriller.
Have fun reading this week. Let me know in the comments below what you are reading.
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