Favors for Friends Can Be Dangerous
I’m getting close to the end of Liz Milliron’s Laurel Highlands Mysteries, and I’m sad about it. There are nine books in the series, and Saving the Guilty is book seven. And it’s another page turner.
The series is set in Pennsylvania, and features defense attorney Sally Castle and State Trooper Jim Duncan. At this point, Sally has opened her own practice and Jim has started working as a detective. And yes, they are dating. In fact, they are working on moving Sally into Jim’s house.
As this book opens, Sally has just accepted a new client from a friend. All Sally has to do is present the appeal, and it’s a pretty easy appeal. It’s a case of a man who is accused of killing his wife. But Sally can’t help herself, and she starts digging into the case. Can she find the truth?
Meanwhile, Jim has a new case as well. The victim was killed in the home he was renting, but things take a turn when he learns the name the man was living under doesn’t exist. Can Jim learn who the victim was and find the killer?
Okay, so I saw the first big twist of the book coming fairly early, but the book didn’t take longer than it needed to getting there. And once it did, we were off to the races. I couldn’t wait to get back to the book when I had to put it down to find out just what was going to happen next. I might have even gasped a time or two. Yet, when I reached the climax, everything made perfect sense.
Jim and Sally are the stars of this series. They take turns being the third person view-point characters, and I always appreciate how that helps move the story forward. They are very real characters, and I loved seeing how they and their relationship grown have. The suspects were all strong and easy to keep straight. There are a couple of strong supporting players in this book, and I loved spending more time with them. But we don’t spend much time with the others we’ve met along the way. I missed them, but it was a minor complaint.
On the other hand, fans of Annette Dashofy’s Zoe Chambers series will enjoy some fun appearances here. For those who don’t know, Annette and Liz are good friends and critique partners. Jim showed up in a couple of books in Annette’s series, so it’s fun to see the opposite happen.
My typical disclaimer comes into play here: these books aren’t the light cozy mysteries I often read. However, it never goes any further than it needs to for the story, which I appreciate.
If you enjoy a solid mystery, you’ll be glad you gave the Laurel Highlands Mysteries a chance. Just be sure to allow plenty of time when you sit down to read Saving the Guilty because you won’t want to stop reading.
Enjoy the rest of the Laurel Highlands Mysteries.
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