Deadly Stakes (Ali Reynolds)
Former reporter turned media consultant for the Yavapai County, Arizona, police, Ali Reynolds angers her law-enforcement colleagues when she agrees to help Lynn Martinson and her boyfriend, Chip Ralston, both accused of murdering Chip’s gold-digging ex-wife, Gemma. Gemma’s body, with Lynn’s cell phone lying near it, was found in the desert by teen A. J. Sanders. After a second body is found in the same area, A. J. becomes a suspect, and Ali becomes involved sorting out his troubles, too. Are the two cases connected? When Ali gets close to finding the real killer, she is kidnapped, and her boyfriend and his colleague must race to find her by illegally hacking into phone records. Fast pacing, multiple plotlines, a fascinating look at online research, and sympathetic characters all provide appeal in Jance’s suspenseful story. The eighth in the series. --Sue OBrien--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.