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MY REVIEW

The Right Wrong Thing is a great title and once you read the book, you will see how appropriate it is. Ellen Kirschman does a great job with this police procedural novel that tells Randy Spelling’s story, when she does The Right Wrong Thing.

The Kenilworth Police Department needed women officers and Randy Spelling fit the bill. She gets in deep from the getgo and I can see only bad things happening for her. The game of second guessing an officers actions and reactions has begun. Does it play a part in their future actions, causing them to hesitate or jump the gun?

Dr Dot Meyerhoff is a police psychologist for the department and must get involved whenever there has been an incident.

The childish and, what I consider to be, stupid pranks by the male officers towards the new police chief, Jacqueline Reagan only show their immaturity and chauvinism. I do believe a lot of this still goes on, in light of all the “rogue” incidents we have seen since cell phones and police car cameras.

My emotions let me know they were aIive and well. I was pissed at the disrespect the officers showed to the chief. It doesn’t matter if they are male or female, black or white…it is showing respect for the position and keeping a united front for the public. How confident will we be in their actions, if they play like children in a sandbox?

When the second incident with Randy Spelling happens, all hell breaks loose. It’s really bad and reads as if it really could have happened. The biggest question for Randy, can she live with it?

This review is hard to write because of my cynicism. I am hesitant to believe the victim’s family in a situation like this because I don’t trust their motives and the victim’s innocence. The family is looking for someone to blame.,

In this case…when the cop says STOP…STOP! Why don’t people listen? How many times do we see them run, stick their hands in their pockets, start walking toward the officer…Why do people do that?

As the circus begins, it’s hard to tell who is the slimiest, the media, the lawyers…It reads as if it is nonfiction. Ellen Kirschman’s descriptions of the people, the things they said, the progression of events makes me think I have seen it all before. If the book was longer and more in depth, I think my head would have spun like the girl in The Exorcist. lol

It is awful and tragic but Randy Spelling did nothing wrong. She may not have done everything exactly right, but that is what training, rules and experience are all about. It really surprises me that it doesn’t happen more often.

The Right Wrong Thing takes a twist that adds to the tale. It is a small book, but it contains a wealth of issues, information, and characters covering what happens when…

The Right Wrong Thing by Ellen Kirschman is a thought provoking novel that stayed with me long after the reading was done.

I received The Right Wrong Thing by Ellen Kirschman in return for an honest review.

  4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

Hesitate or Respond—Either Choice Can Lead to Disaster

Officer Randy Spelling had always wanted to be a police officer, to follow in the footsteps of her brothers and her father. Not long after joining the force, she mistakenly shoots and kills Lakeisha Gibbs, a pregnant teenager. The community is outraged; Lakeisha’s family is vocal and vicious in their attacks against Spelling. Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and filled with remorse, Randy is desperate to apologize to the girl’s family. Everyone, including the police chief, warns her against this, but the young police officer will not be dissuaded. Her attempt is catastrophic. Dr. Dot Meyerhoff, police psychologist, plunges herself into the investigation despite orders from the police chief to back off. Not only does the psychologist’s refusal to obey orders jeopardize her career, but her life as well, as she enlists unlikely allies and unconventional undercover work to expose the tangled net of Officer Spelling’s disastrous course.

Praise for Ellen Kirschman & the Dot Meyerhoff Mystery Series:

“Ellen Kirschmann’s Dot Meyerhoff is the most intriguing character in contemporary fiction. Her narrations remind me of a cabbie I had in Istanbul. He drove too fast, took me down dead ends and through dangerous neighborhoods. He yelled at pedestrians and cursed at dogs. And just when I finally decided he was hopelessly lost, he delivered me safe and sound to just they place I wanted to be and left me on the sidewalk, shaking and smiling.”

“Ellen Kirschman is a no-nonsense writer. She manages to set the scene smartly, populate it with sharply drawn personalities, and pour the story over us without wasting a word. Her confident wit, energetic prose, and special insight into the workings of the human mind make The Right Wrong Thing an outstanding read. In this timely novel of strained community relationships, where police department psychologist Dr. Dot Meyerhoff is held hostage in a way, there’s no relief from the suspense and the exciting journey into the motivations of people on both sides of the law. But even as Dot is pushed to the limit, she’s determined to do the next right thing, no matter the cost.

“[A] breathtaking first novel by an author with the writing skills of a seasoned veteran. . . . Burying Ben rings with authenticity, about real cops and a real cop therapist that everyone will enjoy.”

ABOUT ELLEN KIRSCHMAN

Ellen Kirschman, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist in independent practice. She is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Society for the Study of Police and Criminal Psychology, the American Psychological Association, and the International Association of
Women in Law Enforcement. She is the recipient of the California Psychological Association’s 2014 award for distinguished contribution to psychology as well as the American Psychological Association’s 2010 award for outstanding contribution to the actice of police and public safety psychology. Ellen is the author of the award-winning I Love a Cop: What Police Families Need to Know, I Love a Fire Fighter: What the Family Needs to Know, and lead author of Counseling Cops: What Clinicians Need to Know (2013). Her debut novel, Burying Ben: A Dot Meyerhoff Mystery (2013) is about police suicide told from the perspective of the psychologist. Ellen and her husband live in Redwood City, California.

Catch Up:

Please, note, in no way does Ms Kirschman condone unjustified brutality at the hands of police. She offers insight into the other side of a possible situation. The possible outcome is very moving, and thought provoking.

Tour Participants:

WOW! An Amazing Giveaway!:

 

This is a giveaway hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours for Ellen Kirschman & Oceanview Publishing. There will be 1 winner for this tour. The winner will receive 1 Oceanview Publishing Thriller each month for 1 year. This giveaway is for US residents only. The giveaway begins on November 1st, 2015 and runs through December 2nd, 2015.

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