Damage Control by J.A. Jance (2008, Hardcover)

What's not to love about a mystery where one of the bad guys is fencing stolen goods on eBay? I'm not saying that like it's a GOOD thing -- but I love a good eBay reference, don't you?

In this 13th edition of the series, Arizona county sheriff Joanna Brady juggles the demands of a newborn baby, a teenage daughter, a writer husband, and a difficult mother with her job as the head of law enforcement in Cochise County. To make matters worse, two challenging and complex cases strain the capacity of her small department.

In one, she must investigate the deaths of an elderly couple who presumably were consenting partners in a suicide pact. She also must track down the killer of a developmentally disabled woman who supposedly wandered away from a care facility with a suspicious track record.

There are plenty of good reasons why J.A. Jance is a New York Times bestselling author, and this book is no exception. Even the minor characters are well drawn and likeable -- except the bad guys, of course, who are suitably despicable -- yet there is enough moral complexity to keep it real, and the action rolls along briskly from the shocking start to a satisfying finish.

Jance hails from the "white hat, black hat" school of mystery writing, so you know that before the last page is turned, good will triumph and evil will be vanquished. The gore level is slightly above cozy, but not too high, and the plot twists are imminently enjoyable, with a realistic progression of clues and evidence plus a true-to-life portrayal of police procedures. Local color is well done, too…you can almost feel that desert heat.

If you like "Damage Control", then you've got 12 more treats in store when you discover the rest of the series. Best of all, however, your enjoyment of this book will not suffer from not having read the other ones first.

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