Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award Finalist – Best MysteryAmerican Book Fest American Fiction Awards Finalist – Mystery/SuspenseDetective Roger Viceroy, divisional head of the Midwest Region Special Crimes Unit, awakes one morning to a bombing in a wealthy suburb of Milwaukee. As he and his team dive into the investigation, a mysterious clue launches a manhunt with scant other evidence to … other evidence to point them in the right direction.
Over the coming weeks, related murders unfold, each with a unique twist and the same clue left behind. Viceroy uncovers one other common thread–a seemingly random association with the small north woods town of Curwood, Wisconsin.
As the death toll mounts, Viceroy has to connect the dots and stop the carnage before it reaches the final target.
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304 pages
5 stars
A bomb has exploded on a posh golf course. It killed a woman who was a very popular golf pro and her caddy. Detective Roger “Preacher” Viceroy and his Sergeants Trevor “Silk” Moreland and Regina are assigned to the high profile case. Wisconsin Governor Kay Spurgeon is an uncompromising woman who gives Viceroy’s team carte blanche to capture the bomber before the highly touted music festival to be put on at the end of the month in the state capitol.
Viceroy and another team member Jerry King are waylaid on the way to the office by a man. He is Roy Spurgeon, the governor’s husband. He tells them they must look into another murder. Viceroy’s case has just taken a turn.
The story in interspersed with flashbacks to an earlier time. These vignettes are crucial to the story line.
As the murders continue, Viceroy suddenly gets hit by inspiration. The team must go to the small city of Curwood – right away. While there, they learn a great deal.
Meanwhile, Roy Spurgeon goes missing.
The connections are made, but the identity of the killer is not yet known.
What follows is a thrill ride. It is time for the governor’s festival. Roger and his team are sure she is a target for the killer.
While the identity of the killer and their “accomplice” (although the killer isn’t aware of it), do not come as a surprise, the reader is delighted to learn that they have surmised correctly.
This is a remarkable novel. It is well written and plotted. The chapters are short, so the reader cruises along quickly. I now understand the reason for the title of the book. Very good and well put. I was disappointed to see so little information about Silk and Regina’s backgrounds. Perhaps in future novels. I like to learn a little about main characters’ backgrounds. I appreciated the information about Debbie and Pastor Oxenhaus. They were interesting and welcome minor distractions.
I want to thank NetGalley and Suspense Publishing for forwarding to me a copy of this most excellent book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed here are my own.y
Steven C. Harms pulled no punches in Give Place to Wrath. Fast-paced prose, harrowing subject matter, and well-executed suspense kept the pages flying. My favorite aspect of this book was how Roger and his team worked together. Roger didn’t overshadow them. I thought that helped this story stand apart from many others in the genre. Most mystery thrillers I’ve read center around a single genius detective/investigator who sometimes has a bright partner. While I still enjoy such thrillers, it was nice that Give Place to Wrath broke from that trope.
The inclusion of Roger’s faith was interesting because it gave the work a distinct tone and, in my opinion, enhanced the plot. I liked that the author confronted racial and religious bigotry, drawing attention to those issues. I had my suspicions about where the investigation would lead, but the author kept me second-guessing myself until the end. Give Place to Wrath was a highly emotional, stunning debut novel by Steven C. Harms. I highly recommend it to anyone on the hunt for their next mystery thriller. This is one series I’m definitely going to keep my eye on.
(This is my honest and unbiased review based on a free review copy I received from the author. I posted this review voluntarily and all opinions within it are my own. I also posted this review on my review site: Kayla C. Reviews.)
Trigger Warning: This is an adult book that contains violence, including a scene of sexual assault, mild gore, and profanity.