Roses & Thorns

Roses & Thorns

Thursday, March 2, 2017

#Deception by Sue Myers #Suspense





The Plot:

Cook County forensic pathologist, Dr. Claire O’Shaunessy is an advocate for her patients, even if they are all dead. When the body of an unknown male discovered behind Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry is linked to the remains of her childhood friend recently discovered in a rural cemetery, Claire is driven to solve these two murders. Although the blood of her police family lineage runs deep, her involvement in this investigation soon places her in mortal danger as she begins to discover a plot where money and power override human life. Can her brother, Detective Patrick O’Shaunessy and his partner, Jack Miller, keep her safe or will Claire become the next victim of this ruthless killer’s deception?

About the Author:

Sue (Schreck) Myers was raised in Libertyville, Illinois, and lives in the next town over with her husband, Gene, their cats, and a backyard full of birds and squirrels. Her first encounter with a dead body was in third grade. Whenever a classmate lost a relative, the nuns would march them up to the funeral home to say prayers over the deceased. Sue would stare at them, daring them to wink. Lucky for her, none did.

In her twenties, Sue worked as an ER Tech in a Chicago hospital between Rush Street and the projects. Because of the ER’s interesting clientelle, she was exposed to a whole array of situations involving the 18th District Police. Years later, Sue became a registered nurse, but her experiences in the ER never left her. She spent her nursing career in Labor and Delivery, Neonatal ICU and infertility. Her career in the medical field fueled stories which begged to be told. When Sue isn’t writing, she can be found in her garden or quilting.

Review:

Ms. Meyers tells a good story, but she does so with stilted dialog and the occasional misused/misspelled word. In fact, I changed one in her plot summary at the top of this review.

However, Deception caught and held my interest. Claire O’Shaunessy is a strong, feisty character with blue blood running in her veins. I don’t mean the watered-down noble kind. I mean the kind of strong blood passed down by generations of cops, including her big brother, Detective Patrick O’Shaunessy who raised her and her older sisters after her mother died when she was quite young and her father was killed a few years later. So when a body shows up on her table and she believes the murder is linked to the death of her childhood best friend, she just has to investigate—even if that’s the last thing Patrick and his partner, Jack Miller, want her to do.

Again, the book was fast-paced and the characters compelling and familiar. As a Chicagoan, I could have grown up with Claire, Patrick, and some of the other characters. In fact, Patrick works at Area One Homicide, and I know a detective in that office. There’s humor, too, as Claire enlists the help of other childhood friends, who may have some…connections. But, that’s Chicago. The guy on my block with the best fireworks was a cop. Just sayin’. In the future, maybe loosen up your dialog and get a better editor, Ms. Meyers. Meanwhile, Deception’s still well worth reading.

Warnings:  Dead Bodies & Autopsies
Length:  240 Pages
Print:  $14.95
Digital:  $2.99

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