Into the Fire

Smoldering Lies by L.T. Ryan and C.R. Gray is Book 5 in A Maddie Castle Thriller Series. 

When Maddie accepts an arson case for a real estate developer (Brandon Adams), she knows immediately that he's an arrogant snob with a lot of enemies. Just how many and how significant they prove to be doesn't take long to discover. Someone is setting his properties on fire. His first suggestion for her is to check out his only child, an environmental attorney and activist. After speaking with her, Brandon's flawed character is partially filled out while providing another link to the potential arsonist. 

Within this story, Maddie and her former best friend (Harper) have repaired the damage to their friendship and are working side by side to bring justice to her case, one in which the FBI has a deep interest. Harper is still a detective with the police force and knows that Maddie can take certain liberties that she cannot while still providing information quickly that Maddie might not be able to access. Just as in the past when Maddie was a cop, they work well together, and they both realize how much the renewal of their friendship means to both of them. 

When Maddie winds up in the hospital due to one of the arsons, Brandon fires her with a hefty check he assumes is hush money because he realizes she has learned too much about him in her investigation. 

In the middle of all of this, Maddie is still trying to find Daisy, her boyfriend Bentley's young sister-in-law and aunt to his 14-year-old daughter Grace, who disappeared after going down a very destructive path. Clues have been showing up as to her whereabouts on an unexpected website, and what they're piecing together has them hopeful. In order to get even the slightest bit of information, Maddie insists on visiting Daisy's old boyfriend, a meth addict and runner who got Daisy addicted and into prostitution. In order to do that, she asks Simeon (a former classmate who's a wealthy and well-known drug kingpin) to go along when she visits with him. Nobody wants to run afoul of Simeon in the drug arena. Reluctantly, Simeon agrees to go insisting that Maddie owes him now. 

There's a lot of investigating going on in this story with all kinds of characters who have been victimized by Brandon Adams. Maddie's moral code is questioned but not maliciously, and her explanation is a practical one ascertained by what has happened in her life. Real justice is what she pursues.

Maddie is a hardcore character, brash and outspoken, with a tender heart and good instincts under all the protective layers. I gotta say it's hard not to like Simeon in spite of him. And Bentley is always trying to do his best but is challenged by the teenage drama his daughter provides. 

This one ends on a cliffhanger as they search for Daisy. Not fond of cliffhangers, but it is what it is. 

(Plenty of profanity.)

Father, you know everyone's hearts, minds, desires, and the talents and gifts you've provided for each one. May each one know from whom their talent comes. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  

Bastion (Posted 03/22/2012)

What comes to mind? A castle? A bunker? A fortress? A citadel?

Probably not the bastion of the mind. The place where we hide things we can't face. Or the place where we deposit painful experiences because we know the protection sustains those things not easily accessed.

Some are constructed hastily. In the moment. Others take years to build as we add onto the structure piece by hurtful piece. Containment. It's what we expect from our bastions. Protection from the life-thwarting daggers of certain episodes in life.

Who would've thought we'd need to erect a stronghold to keep us from ourselves? To deny us passage into the dark place we'd rather not admit exists.

Writing forces us to charge the barricade, to demand the drawbridge lowered, to storm into the chilling entance and stand transfixed by gaining entry. We look with wonder, our torches high and flaming, surveying what we've become and what we've failed to overcome. The story gushes forth like a frothy, foaming poison threatening to douse us in its liquid death, but since we seem planted – even paralyzed – by both its beauty and its horror, we stand still, and it comes right to us and infuses our nostrils with its hot danger but subsides before forcing us to breathe its annihilation.

We've trespassed our hidden limits. And survived. Recorded our innermost fears. Revealed our pungent emotions. Wondering who will be offended by our truths.

The bastions of writers: conquered. Again.

Father, we need you to reveal who we are at our core. You know us where we've hidden. We're desperate for you, Lord. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

PART ONE

Chapter 1

"What the hell?"

SEVERED

Now he wondered why he thought this would be a good idea as he stepped onto the first of five stairs that led up to the front door.

MONDAY

One 

It was hard to say what witnesses noticed first—the shrill piercing screams or the nearly naked young woman uttering them.

Father, thank you is never enough for the stories you given me. I ask that you would continue to keep me writing them to honor you above all. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band did some great songs. This is just one of them. 

Father, you're the only One who keeps us on track. Apart from you, we can do nothing of value. Thank you for all that you do seen and unseen. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

The 7 She Saw by Elle Gray is Book 1 in the Blake Wilder FBI Mystery Thriller Series. 

FBI Special Agent Blake Wilder has been known to butt heads with the authorities after some of the hostile city law enforcement receptions she's received, but they soon learn there's nothing they can do to keep her from doing her job. When she discovers that there's an incredible amount of unsolved murders in the smaller seaside city of Briar Glen, Washington, she asks if she can take a trip to investigate the abnormal number. Bringing her data to prove her point, she secures the trip from her Seattle FBI Field Office boss with the caveat to behave herself. 

After arriving at her less than fancy motel, she strips the bed sheets and unpacks her own bedding for her stay there before walking the streets to get a feel for the people and the attitude of the quaint little city. When she walks into the police station, she goes directly to the cop manning the reception desk and asks to meet with Sheriff Morris. She gets the usual cold shoulder after identifying herself but is directed to his office. 

Sheriff Morris pretends to welcome her as he eats his breakfast burrito, but as she explains why she's there in his office in his city, she accentuates the enormity of the circumstances which caused her to start an investigation – doing her best to remain calm and insert him into the case. At first, he gives her the typical attitude, but he warms out of it after listening to her explanation. It turns out to be a productive meeting. 

The next day he arrives at her room unexpectedly to pick her up to investigate the body of a female found on the beach. When they get there, the Medical Examiner (Dr. Carville) is there, making notes and taking pictures. The gruesome evidence of what's been done to this young woman is sickening. 

Thus begins the reinforcement of the reason Blake came to Briar Glen. It's good to have the sheriff onboard, wanting to find out exactly what's happening, but as the information stalls and suspicions and tempers flare, Blake calls for her partner's (FBI Special Agent Astra) assistance after okaying it with her boss. When Astra arrives, she's swept up into the files of the murders past and present, and between the two of them patterns become more visible. 

This is a fascinating mystery always adding a new hint about the culprits of these murders and the wicked delusions they embrace. Some interesting characters with peripheral roles enhance the story and lead readers to all kinds of speculation. 

Elle's good at creating strong female leads. Blake and Astra are two of a kind when it comes to investigations but are opposite personalities that complement each other well. Besides being partners, they're best friends. Again, this is a good first book in the series with a satisfying conclusion to the case but leaving the reader with a cliffhanger regarding Blake's personal history. 

Father, thank you for the talents and gifts you provide. Apart from you, we can do nothing. Again, I ask that you bless Elle with everything she needs to write the stories you have just for her to tell. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

     From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." 

Matthew 4:17 (NIV) 

Are Fridays special to you? I remember back in the school days waiting for Friday to arrive. From grade school to high school Fridays were greatly anticipated. Two days off from school!

Some jobs are set up for weekends off. I never had one of those. 

Are Fridays still important to you? 

Father, thank you for every day of my life. Thank you for waiting for me to see the Truth. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  

Ever felt small? Dust in the wind? A very long time ago . . . 

Father, you knew me then, but I had yet to meet your Son. Thank you for your patience. I was desperate for you and didn't even know it . . . yet. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Missing in the Falls by Elle Gray is Book 2 in A Sweetwater Falls Mystery Series.

A hermit in Sweetwater stops in at the Sweetwater Falls Sheriff's Office to speak with the new Sheriff Spenser Song about something he found unearthed in the forest by a large fallen tree. The man is clearly traumatized and can barely tell the Sheriff what he's seen. She's patient, but he's definitely trying hers. Finally, he reveals what he discovered and agrees to take her and her Deputy Young up there as long as he doesn't have to see it again. 

What is found requires more than they have with them, and in spite of the foul mess inside what the hermit saw, the two of them find a wallet with identification in it. The deputy is taken aback by the ID, having been aware of the missing girl for 15 years. 

The investigation that follows is troubling and hindered by the fact that the previous sheriff didn't do his job on the case and little effort was given to finding what happened to the 17-year-old girl. Rumors about her promiscuous lifestyle hampered a serious search, but Spenser wasn't about to assume the rumors were true. She started at the beginning of the girl's history by meeting the parents who were surprised at her sincerity and after a hostile introduction welcomed her into their home. 

Another thing that rankled Spenser is her "friend" Ryker, a coffee business owner and on whose property she lives in one of his cabins, didn't quite tell her his full knowledge of the victim. He and Spenser have established an interest in each other, keeping it "simple" because of their histories, but this discovery has added pressure to their relationship. He suffers from PTSD from his time in the military and has finally begun seeing a counselor. 

There are a few suspects but little concrete proof as the investigation continues. Deputy Young provides some help to add more insights into the victim and the interviews each of them conduct lead to one new possibility. 

Missing in the Falls is an intriguing mystery that takes the reader through the frustrations of trying to unlock the secrets of a 15-year-old murder. The perseverance required to keep digging when every door seems to slam shut is a testimony to trying to give the victim the justice and respect deserved. Elle Gray does a great job of capturing the personalities and reactions of her characters to the interviews and uses each one to add to the tension in finding the murderer. The Prologue does an excellent job of nailing the fear factor. 

Father, you know all of our hearts and minds from the inside out. Please bless Elle and all her efforts, providing what she needs to keep the stories flowing. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  

Truly a great band. I don't think they ever recorded a "bad" song. Love their music. 

Father, only you know hearts. May each one know from whom their amazing gifts and talents come. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.