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I have been reading Chris Patchell for some time now and am always eager to get my hands on another one of her books. Deception Bay is another mystery that had me wondering what was buried beneath the waves and hooked from the beginning.
MY REVIEW
I know some people don’t like a prologue, but I love to be teased and it hooked from the opening pages, and Chris did that very well.
It didn’t take me long to figure out some of the mystery from the prologue. I’m still working on the whys,and I don’t have any idea of the who, so the mystery is still very much alive.
Austin’s heading home, to Whidbury Island to see about his mom, who has been in an accident. He has a panic attack on the ferry and meets Ellie.
The cat…he named it CAT, after Inspector Clouseau’s valet. I have always loved the Pink Panther series and the bumbling Inspector Clouseau. CAT does sneak attack him when he comes into the house, freaking him out, and it makes me laugh every time I think about it.
From Wikipedia
If he wasn’t a writer, I might mistake him for Rockford, from the Rockford files. He’s constantly getting beat on.
But who would want to hurt his mother? His mother had issues before she was hurt, so I have a feeling he came to visit but may never leave.
He is forced to face his past and the inner demons that he can’t seem to get past. He grows, changes, forgives and solves a couple of mysteries too.
Three deaths, past and present.
Well, all in all, a wonderful tale of romance, murder and mystery, and love, forgiveness and laughter.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Deception Bay by Chris Patchell.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
She’s armed. He’s dangerous. Together, can they stop a killer from tearing a small island community apart?
When wise-cracking cozy mystery author, Austin Martell, left his hometown on Whidbey Island for the bright lights of New York, he vowed he would never go back. But some promises are impossible to keep, and when Austin discovers that his mother has suffered a serious accident, he has no choice but to return. Austin soon learns that her accident may be no accident at all, and secrets that were laid to rest after his brother’s tragic death off the coast of Deception Bay, have now begun to surface.
Austin finds himself in the center of a real-life murder mystery, when Police Chief Ellie Sharpe uncovers a curious connection between the author and the death of a local businessman. Born and raised on Whidbey and trained as a New York cop, Ellie is smart, and tough, and determined to solve the mystery behind the killing before more people die. Sparks fly as the two pair up to figure out who is responsible for the murder. The closer they come to discovering truth, the more desperate someone is to keep the sins of the past from coming to light.
Someone close to Austin harbors a deadly truth. Can Ellie unmask a killer before Austin becomes one more secret buried beneath the waves of Deception Bay?
ABOUT CHRIS PATCHELL
Chris Patchell is the bestselling author of In the Dark and the Indie Reader Discovery Award winning novel Deadly Lies. Having recently left her long-time career in tech to pursue her passion for writing full-time, Chris pens gritty suspense novels set in the Pacific Northwest, where she lives with her family and two neurotic dogs.