Will Jim and Sally’s Relationship Survive This Case?
While I know I won’t catch up completely on Liz Milliron’s Laurel Highlands Mysteries this year, I’m hoping to make significant progress toward that goal. So, I picked up Broken Trust, the third in the series. As expected, I enjoyed it.
The series follows Pennsylvania State Trooper Jim Duncan and Fayette County Assistant Public Defender Sally Castle. Despite the fact that they might be on opposite sides of the aisle in the court room, they’ve formed a friendship that is inching toward something more. You can follow their personal story just fine if you jump in here, but it’s always more fun to start from the beginning.
This book finds Jim called to the scene of a murder in the office of a local mining company. The victim is Lonnie Butler, a friend of his – in fact he and Sally helped Lonnie get the job just a few months ago. Despite the fact that Jim’s sister and her two kids are coming for a visit, Jim can’t help but keep investigating. Unfortunately, one of Sally’s current clients has come up as a suspect in the case. She doesn’t feel she can share what she knows without crossing ethical lines, so she starts trying to figure out what really happened to Lonnie. Will the case come between them? Will they still be able to find Lonnie’s killer?
Since this book is a police procedural, it does contain a bit more than the cozies I often read. But there isn’t too much. In fact, some of that is written around, which I appreciated. As long as you expect that when you pick up this book, you’ll be fine.
The mystery was solid. While I started to suspect where things were going, the red herrings did a good job of keeping me distracted. And there was plenty else there to keep me engaged. The characters introduced here, aka the suspects, were memorable. Everything came together for a logical and satisfying climax.
Equally important here was what the case was doing to Jim and Sally’s relationship. I will say, a couple of things that impacted their relationship felt a little immature to me, but they weren’t issues for too long. However, the main issue of their relationship was wonderfully done. I appreciated that we could see the issue from both of their perspectives and neither was completely right or completely wrong. Their friends kept calling them both out on their behavior, too. I’m sure it helps that this book alternates from their points of view. In lesser hands, I could see this storyline favoring either side, but this really took the more mature, and realistic, approach.
I do want to be clear that the mystery got more time than the relationship, but the relationship issues were a strong subplot. For me, they worked well together to hook me and make it hard to put the book down.
I also appreciated that Sally got a new friend here. I hadn’t realized how much we needed that to help round out her character until we got it. Meanwhile, Jim’s sister visiting showed us a different side of his character.
I’m glad I’m working on catching up on this series. I’m looking forward to seeing where Jim and Sally’s relationship goes. If you haven’t read Broken Trust yet, you are in for a treat. Trust me.
Enjoy the rest of the Laurel Highlands Mysteries.
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