DECEMBER 2016 - AudioFile
Joel Richards falls short in his spirited narration of this installment in the popular Billy Able series. He delivers a clear presentation, he uses pace and pitch to convey drama and keep the text moving, and his conversational tone for the main character pulls the listener into the action. But his attempts at accents and voices for differentiation are insufficient, given the large cast filled with Southern stereotypes. Listeners will also be challenged by a plot featuring convoluted relationships and incidents into which the author tries to weave an ambitious array of social and cultural topics. Lisa Turner’s fans, and mystery fans in general, may have a better experience with the print version. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
07/25/2016
The murder of 29-year-old Caroline Lee, an attorney from a prominent Mississippi family who was shot dead in her 1968 Camaro Z28, kick-starts Edgar-finalist Turner’s engaging third novel featuring homicide detective Billy Able of the Memphis PD (after 2014’s The Gone Dead Train). Billy and his partner, Frankie Malone, are especially motivated to catch Caroline’s killer—Frankie because she’s ambitious and wants a promotion, and Billy because he’s loved Caroline since they were teenagers. Caroline ended her engagement to domineering neurosurgeon Raj Sharma five weeks earlier, making Raj a prime suspect, but if Caroline was single, why was she wearing a wedding dress when she died? A missing cousin, a greedy brother, and shady dealings at the Lee family law firm further complicate the case. The old South looms large over this sultry, melodramatic tale. Turner’s characters lack nuance, but a shifting narrative, a keen sense of place, and a steady stream of suspects and red herrings propel the mystery to a satisfying conclusion. Agent: Robert Gottlieb, Trident Media Group. (Sept.)
RT BOOKReviews
Drawing on the history of some of America’s most troubled times, Turner’s gripping account is thought provoking.
Memphis Magazine.com
Turner has an eye for detail and moves her story along with a new question, a new clue, and a new suspect in every chapter.
LA Review of Books
[Detective Billy Able’s] outlook is what gives this series its fresh perspective. Untangling his disdain for privilege from his lingering feelings from the woman he once loved, his quest for justice must overcome his empathy for those whose lives have been warped by the insular world of Southern aristocracy.
Eric Rickstad
A murdered bride, old money, betrayal, and lost love fuel this superb Southern Gothic mystery. DEVIL SENT THE RAIN is Turner’s best novel to date. I can’t wait to read her next.
Booklist
A good Southern police procedural and should appeal to Caroline Haine or Margaret Maron readers.
Booklist
A good Southern police procedural and should appeal to Caroline Haine or Margaret Maron readers.
Mallory Heart Reviews on The Gone Dead Train
I was so impressed that halfway through this advanced reader copy (the second book in the series), I bought the first of the series.
Suspense Magazine
Lisa Turner has skillfully interwoven Memphis ambience, bizarre murders, Santeria practices, civil rights history, relatable characters, civil rights icons, and twists and turns that will keep readers on the edge of their seats . . . Suspense continues to build until the stunning and completely unexpected climax is reached.
The Reading Room
You know the great satisfaction you feel after eating a gourmet meal served with great service? When I finished this book I felt the same way.
NightOwlReviews.com Top Pick
This is only the second installment of this new series but already Billy Able has collected quite a group of appreciative fans.
CurledUp.com
Turner takes her protagonists on a wild and dangerous ride where the boundaries are unclear and the good guys are hard to tell from the bad.
Memphis Magazine on A Little Death in Dixie
Memphis, the Mississippi River, and the underbelly of human nature they’re all exposed in the dark brew of this fast-paced Southern Gothic suspense. Page-turning and atmospheric, this tightly-plotted novel turns the screws and sends readers racing to its surprise conclusion.
RT Book Reviews on The Gone Dead Train
Santeria voodoo, the civil rights movement and unexpected treachery propel Turner’s story of new and old Memphis to a surprising conclusion.
Kirkus Reviews
2016-06-30
A police officer’s past relationship with a wealthy family poses problems for a murder case.Billy Able, the most successful detective in the Memphis PD, responds with his partner, Frankie Malone, to the scene of a crime in a buffalo pasture at Shelby Farm. The dead woman was found by a very likely suspect, an ex-con who was about to make off with her cash when help arrived. But Billy (The Gone Dead Train, 2014, etc.) quickly discovers that the crime won’t be so easy to solve. He’s shocked to identify the dead woman, who’s wearing a handmade lace wedding dress and driving a muscle car whose vanity plates say SPARROW, as Caroline Lee, an old friend. Billy’s known the wealthy Lee family, which owns a large plantation, a bank, and a law firm, from the time he lived with his uncle and helped him run a diner near their home. The Lees considered Billy’s father white trash, but his mother was a member of a Southern society family, and Billy had a high school romance with Caroline before she went off to college and became a lawyer. Because he'd had almost no contact with her for years, he’s allowed to work the case, though he soon finds that his past with her family may be more hindrance than help in plumbing their many secrets. Caroline had recently broken off her engagement to a high-powered doctor from a wealthy Indian family who had been trying furiously to get her to return to him. So who was she on her way to marry the night she was shot? Billy must take a painful in-depth look at the Lee family’s past, and his own. A well-wrought procedural that takes a hard look at the old South’s influence on the new.
