Remains Of Innocence has
J. A. Jance once again writing a great storyline. Before starting
this book readers might want to download the novella, The
Old Blue Line, that offers a backstory on Joanna Brady’s
husband, Butch Dixon. Both involve murder mysteries full of
page-turning suspense.
The Old Blue Line has
Butch as a person of interest when his ex-wife is found murdered.
It also explains how the relationship between Joanna and Butch
began. What makes the story even more interesting is Jance’s
incorporation of technology into the plot. She shows the positives,
helping the police find a killer, and the negatives, showing
how computers are basically open books for anyone who cares
to find out information about someone. This novella is also
a shout out to seniors since many of the characters are retirees
or at least have their AARP card.
Jance stated, “I have written three now. This one is the
second to be published. Someone asked me if I could write about
knocking off someone’s ex, so I did it. Writing Novellas
are like going on vacation. You don’t have to worry about
bringing in a lot of information. It’s writing 15,000
words as opposed to writing 100,000 words. I gave a shout out
to seniors because this country cannot afford to neglect the
brainpower of older people. I would say and actually did say
there is age discrimination in this country. A lot of seniors
read my books. Although my novels appeal to all age demographics
I think the seniors like my stories because they don’t
have a lot of violence, bad language, sex, and definitely not
unprotected sex.”
Remains Of Innocence
also continues with the senior character theme, showing the
importance that age group contributes to society. The plot has
two stories going at once, which in many ways are only slightly
connected. Arizona Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady is working
on two perplexing cases. The first case is a mentally disabled
man found dead at the bottom of a glory hole along with a puppy
and kitten that were brutally mutilated. Brady struggles to
come to terms with a serial killer in the small town of Bisbee,
Arizona since it appears someone is going on a killing spree
of animals and humans.
The other case involves the murder of the county’s medical
examiner. Brady ties that into a case that takes place clear
across the US. An old woman, a hoarder, has died in Great Barrington,
Massachusetts. After her daughter, Liza Machett, discovers a
fortune in hundred dollar bills hidden in the tall stacks of
books and magazines, she is threatened, and her friends are
killed. Trying to escape her pursuers, she travels to Bisbee,
Arizona with the help of an abused woman’s underground
railroad. Although each case takes a turn of its own, these
two sub-plots are compelling and gripping throughout the book.
Jance commented, “In real life police don’t follow
one case to the very end without anything else impinging. I
thought that having Brady handle more than one case at a time
is more realistic and more fun for me to write. The idea that
these two cases had to cross over would be more coincidence
than I could stand to write. I have received feedback from many
in law enforcement, such as a retired woman police chief who
came up to me and told me ‘thank you for how you portray
women in law enforcement.’ That makes me feel good.”
She also noted, “I was speaking at a luncheon and found
out the most dangerous times for women of domestic violence
are when they decide to leave the abuser. They cannot go on
public transportation because there will be a paper trail and
could be found. I thought that creating the Underground Railroad
was an inspirational way to get my character out of town without
anyone being able to follow her. I based it on the real Underground
Railroad of the 1850s, which is why I called it ‘Underground
Railroad 2.0.’”
As in all Jance books, besides a riveting plot she includes
issues that the reader can learn about. This book discusses
training a deaf dog to recognize hand signals and the dangers
abused women must endure. In all Brady books there is a slight
reference to how professional women must operate in a predominately
male fields.
Remains of Innocence has a realistic
plot, wonderful relatable characters, and believable scenes
It is a first rate murder mystery that also delves into the
family life of its characters.
Reviews
of other titles in this series
Paradise Lost #1 [review
1] [review
2]
Tombstone
Courage #2
Dead
to Rights #3
Exit
Wounds #11
Dead
Wrong #12
Damage
Control #13
Fire
and Ice #14 [JP Beaumont series #19]
Remains of Innocence #16 [review
1] [review
2]
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