An Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestseller.Raised by a family of survivalists, FBI agent Mercy Kilpatrick can take on any challenge—even the hostile reception to her homecoming. But she’s not the only one causing chaos in the rural community of Eagle’s Nest, Oregon. At first believed to be teenage pranks, a series of fires takes a deadly turn with the murder of two sheriff’s deputies. … two sheriff’s deputies. Now, along with Police Chief Truman Daly, Mercy is on the hunt for an arsonist turned killer.
Still shunned by her family and members of the community, Mercy must keep her ear close to the ground to pick up any leads. And it’s not long before she hears rumors of the area’s growing antigovernment militia movement. If the arsonist is among their ranks, Mercy is determined to smoke the culprit out. But when her investigation uncovers a shocking secret, will this hunt for a madman turn into her own trial by fire?
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A MERCIFUL TRUTH (Mercy Kilpatrick #2) by Kendra Elliot is the newest book in this continuing romantic suspense/mystery/suspense series. I have been looking forward to reading more about Mercy!
FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick and her partner, Eddie have transferred to the Bend FBI field office. Eddie likes the wilderness of central Oregon over Portland and Mercy wants to be closer to Truman and her family. Mercy is getting closer to her sisters and mother, but her father and brother blame her for the violence and change in her family from book #1.
Eagle’s Nest Police Chief Truman Daly is investigating a series of small fires that he believes are being started by teenagers. When a barn is set on fire, everything changes when two county sheriffs are shot and killed when they respond. Arson has become murder. At the next fire the murdered body of an unidentified man is found at the scene. No one is talking and Mercy and Truman have no idea why these fires are being set or who is setting them.
As they investigate the unidentified dead man, Mercy’s niece is learning that the teenagers her new boyfriend is hanging out with are trouble and that her boyfriend is having second thoughts about working at his job on a large secluded ranch outside of town. There are rumors of many outside men coming to town and living on the ranch. Mercy’s brother is also somehow tied to the ranch and reciting a lot of anti-government hate rhetoric.
The closer Mercy and Truman get to the truth, long buried secrets are exposed and their personal danger escalates.
I loved Mercy in the first book and I am now hooked for good. Her character is so interesting. The balance between her life as an FBI agent and her hidden life as a prepper makes for very interesting reading. I love that Truman “gets” Mercy and her unique life and does not try to change her. Mercy’s family and all of the secondary characters are becoming more fleshed out and interesting. The plot builds in intensity and wraps everything up at the end. This book can be read as a standalone, but like so many other similar series, the relationships grow and change in each book as in real life, so I recommend reading them in order. This has become a must read series for me!
This series is really interesting. It has great characters and gives you just enough information on the lives of “preppers” to make it very interesting. These books really have to be read in order so you can understand the reason for the tension between family members. I find the “Mercy Kilpatrick” books so interesting that I easily can finish one a day. Forget the housework!! There’s nothing more important than a good book.
Not my favorite series but it was a pretty good book
I love it when an author gives as much attention to the setting of a thriller as she does the characters and the plot. A Merciful Truth is set in a rural community of Oregon where Mercy Kilpatrick was raised by a family of survivalists. Now an FBI agent, and a source of conflict to some members of her family, she is determined to reconnect with those very family members while working along side Police Chief Truman Daily to take down an arsonist turned killer.
I listened to the audio version of A Merciful Truth. It was fantastic!
This has changed my previous views of the character, FBI Agent Mercy Kilpatrick from the first read in this series. Mercy has recently moved back to her hometown, of Eagle’s Nest, after experiencing some events in the first book, A Merciful Death.
Mercy having come from a family of preppers, that kept her sane and balanced. Before her trip to Eagle’s Nest, she and Truman had been working to transfer some of the stores from his uncle’s old home. Though the relationship still brings some baggage, but they manage to get through them.
She and boyfriend, Police Chief Truman Daly team up to investigate fires that have been set around the area. In addition, Mercy is still trying to reconnect her relationships with her family. The story includes two local officers killed by a sniper while investigating the arson…Truman becoming the only survivor of the assault. The situation becomes hard for Mercy as she must use her instincts as an FBI agent in her investigations, her fears and love for Truman and a distrust for “the government”. Unfortunately, it doesn’t help Mercy when she finds out that her niece who has become her ward is tangled up with a young man that could be working for a militia in the community.
The enemy in the story is recognized right off but the plot does not diminish somehow in the story. I found myself holding my breath as I turned the pages to see what was going to happen to the characters involved as viewed by Mercy. One thing that popped out this story was Mercy’s sister Rose who I couldn’t get a grasp on in the first book. In this story she shows more strength as Mercy which I thought was a bit lacking in the first novel…my opinion.
When all that is said and done, I enjoyed this book over the first. There was more romance in this novel than the first. I thought the anti-government part was a bit scary and creepy. The plot was well written, and I liked the ending which leaves Mercy and Truman in a different place in their relationship.
Thrilled to report the 2nd in the series is also terrific!! Love it when I find a new author and love it more if they write a series!
Mercy is back, as is Truman, and they are trying to make their relationship work and continue investigating crimes. Mercy is still trying to mend fences with the family that disowned her years ago. She is very close to Rose, her blind sister, who is pregnant due to a rape. Mercy feels like she is making friends in the town but must remember that her own family and others regard cops, FBI, anyone with a badge as the enemy.
Truman starts seeing fires and soon believes the arson might be escalating. Two policeman are killed and the action takes off involving him, Mercy and even Mercy’s niece. You see the preppers in town as regular people but prepared with food, meds, guns, batteries to deal if the government fell. But you also see the survivalists living separate from the town, forming a large community of their own and not waiting for failure but trying to take over the town by force. The ideas are scary as they are ideas people believe in now.
You have wonderful characters debating if Mercy will let Truman care about her and the fight over Truman seeing het at the hospital is so darn funny and true….the “man code”, the “I can take care of myself” and the sweetist part….trying to say out loud, “I love you” between these two adults….romantic as heck.
I will savor the 3rd book soon. If you love a mystery with a real town, people, ideals, love, hate and most of all heart…this is for you. Read the books in order to see the changes in Mercy or read them as stand alone books…just enjoy them.
Tight writing, excellent character development, impressive plot lines, taught suspense…these books have it all. I’m binging the whole series immediately!
THIS REVIEW IS FOR BOTH THE AUDIOBOOK AND EBOOK VERSIONS
Another great story from Kendra, very well written. Great action scenes and the perfect balance of emotions. The narration was very good, really pulling your interest into each character. I recommend this book.
A Merciful Truth is the second book in the Mercy Kilpatrick series, and I enjoyed this one a little more than the first. The characters have started to mesh comfortably and reach their stride. Mercy has relocated to Eagle’s Nest for good to raise her dead brother’s teenage daughter, Kaylie. Her relationship with Sheriff Truman Daly is going strong, maybe a little more for him than her. Mercy still needs to overcome her trust issues. Several fires are set around the county, and two policemen are killed, triggering Truman’s PTSD. They must work together to find out who is behind the killings and destruction. The excitement ramps up towards the end, and I held my breath, waiting to see what happened next. Audible narrator, Teri Schnaubelt, does an excellent job on the audiobook version. I gave this four stars.
I have read the whole series, can’t wait for her next one.
This is my newest audio binge series while packing my house for a move and I am hooked. FBI Special Agent is from the little two of Eagle Nest, Oregon, and was basically raised as a prepper but left home at 18 and was banished. Now she is back and working at the Bend office and raising her niece (see book one) and her boyfriend is the police chief of Eagle Nest (again see book one). Now the FBI is being called in to help investigate was was first thought to be kids pranks starting fires but then murders were added, including police officers. Lots more back story, lots of twists and turns, and lots of good story to keep me going. I am enjoying this series.
Love the series.
I loved this book so much ,I binge the whole series in 4 days!
Kendra Elliot does a phenomenal job on the second book in her Mercy Kilpatrick series. I had a hard time putting down A Merciful Truth due to all the twists and turns to find out who is behind sparking fires in Eagle’s Nest, Oregon. The police begin to investigate the fires but end up getting close to something else going on at Eagle’s Nest. Two deputies end up getting shot and killed at one of the fire scenes. It’s up to Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick and Police Chief Truman Daly to find out who killed the deputies and investigate what is happening in Eagle’s Nest.
I was happy to back with Mercy and Truman, especially since it’s been a while that I read the first book in the series. I thought I was going to be lost going into the second book, but I had no issues. I remembered what happened in the first book due to how Kendra made sure to bring up parts of what happened in the first book. There’s also the fact that Mercy’s family won’t let her live it down what happened. (At least some of the family members.)
I adore Mercy Kilpatrick because of her survivalist skills and know she’s one character that can take care of herself. Although she needs to let Truman in her life because he is in love with her. I know it’s difficult for her due to how her family has been treating her in this book. Truman is determined to prove himself to Mercy in this book. He even puts some of her family members in place the way they have been treating her. Not all of Mercy’s family treats her coldly, though.
There are several things I adore about Kendra Elliot’s books. She always has you on the edge of your seat with the characters trying to figure out who is behind everything that is happening. The characters are always placed in danger, but they can handle themselves. She makes her characters to be strong, but also vulnerable. Her characters feel real, and you can connect with them.
This book touches on survivalists like Mercy, but what happens when one group wants to go further with their skills. I don’t want to give anything away. Be prepared once you start reading this book, you’ll have a hard time putting it down. The ending will leave you in shock. I felt for Mercy at the end of the book after finding out who was really behind everything. I can’t wait to dive into the third book soon. Kendra Elliot is one of my favorite Romantic Suspense authors, and I highly recommend her books to anyone that loves the Romantic Suspense genre.
Depraved egomaniac of a anti-government cult leader meets the FBI as Bend burns. A Must-Read!!
Love this whole series.
Someone is starting fires. At first they seem minor until 2 deputies get shot, raising the stakes. Mercy is called in to help Truman figure out who is doing it. The investigation gets very close to Mercy’s family on more than one account. Another great suspense filled story. And looking forward to the next installment.
Another exceptional Mercy Kilpatrick suspense romance filled with what I loved about the first in the series. “Emotional, raw, complex, real and somewhat startling… original plot, keen writing skills… ” Book two is an equal and somewhat surpasses book one as we learn more and more about these indelible characters.
Another great Mercy Kilpatrick novel!
Oh do I Love Mercy Kilpatrick!
This is another exciting adventure filled with wackos and family. Some you want to hug and others you want to slap upside the head!