Air pumps into the dark night sky.The blade of the shovel digs deeper and deeper.And the cries from below are slowly devoured by the howl of a coyote.Willow Ball and Cooper Chain are tied at the hip — on some days that’s a fantasy, other days a curse. But there’s one thing they agree on: if they hope to outsmart a ruthless crime boss, luck will have to fall their way.But that’s only part of … boss, luck will have to fall their way.
But that’s only part of their perilous imbroglio. Life slips off the rails in a hurry . . . and the implications could be deadly.
A shallow grave is uncovered… and it’s the unthinkable. With little evidence, authorities have no suspects. But could this be connected to a similar killing more than two decades earlier?
When another girl goes missing, their world stops down. How is Cooper’s daughter caught up in the web?
Every path seems blocked, because every person wants something buried. Does that include what Willow and Cooper feel for each other?
Cops are gunned down, friends are framed and murdered — how can Willow and Cooper make sense of it all to finally end the mayhem?
But when one more person goes missing, it shreds Cooper’s heart.
What will Cooper and Willow sacrifice to save his daughter?
Get BURY now!
You will devour this book if you’re a fan of the Fox & O’Hare novels by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg, Michael Connelly’s Ballard and Bosch, David Baldacci’s King and Maxwell, Tess Gerritsen’s Rizzoli and Isles, or the TV show “Castle.”
The Ball & Chain Thrillers:
MERCY (Book 1)
FEAR (Book 2)
BURY (Book 3)
LURE (Book 4)more
He’s done it again. John Mefford has produced another very, very good thriller. For me it marks the point where this series becomes as good as his epic ‘redemption’ series.
There are a lot of things to like about this book: there is the complex plot, intertwined with fascinating sub-plots; there are the characters, a really wide range of types, but all written convincingly and each character behaves in a consistent manner throughout; finally there is the humour, which could be very inappropriate in a thriller, but instead it is woven naturally into the story, I especially like Cooper Chain’s sarcasm and wit.
One thing that you can expect from this author is original and unpleasant types of torture or murder, and in this case it is fourteen year old girls being buried alive, this gets very personal for Cooper when his daughter disappears and may be in the killer’s sights.
I am fortunate to be on the author’s launch team, so was provided with an advance copy of the book, but I have voluntarily written this honest review.
Good read kept me up late reading.
John Mefford, in the last year or two, has become my favorite author. I’m always looking forward to reading the next in his series. I will never understand his mind and where in the world he comes up with the scenarios for his books. The new series, The Ball & Chain Thrillers, are as good as his others. The two main characters, Willow Ball and Cooper Chain, have a much more fun side of them even as they are playing detectives. The also seem to run into more problems or do problems just follow them. Anyway, this book follows up from the other two which you can read as stand alones but you’ll enjoy the series so much you should just start from the beginning.
In this book, Ball and Chain are once again dealing with two thugs, a crime boss and some interesting tension between the two of them. They end up involved with the police department solve the crime of young girls missing. Cooper Chain is also trying to get his writing career back. They end up running into a lot of trouble during the story but the worse is when his daughter, Lauren, ends up missing. They will do anything for her but it certainly won’t be an easy task. The story is good, the characters are amusing and there is plenty of mystery and thrills. Once again, Mefford is on a roll. I can’t wait to see what else he has in mind in this series.
Bury by John W. Mefford is the third book in the Ball & Chain Thriller series. Once again, I had the privilege to join Willow and Cooper on their adventure, which was filled with danger, mystery and intrigue.
The story began on an interesting note and I geared up myself for an exciting and intense mystery. Someone was murdering 14-year-old girls by burying them alive. However, there were several subplots, which led to that aspect of the story ended up being buried between these threads. Eventually, the mystery surrounding the live burials came into focus and figuring out the identity of the perpetrator became the focal point of the story.
There were some connection between the murders and one subplot, which I never expected. Talk about jaw dropping. As I write this review, I am still trying to decipher that particular thread. The story intensified at this point and it had me on edge of my seat. Questions raised because of the other elements within the story were unanswered, however I suspect there will be further developments in the next installment.
In the last installment, Fear, we see Cooper trying to handle several things in his life. The situation remains the same with one new addition, his fourteen-year-old daughter. Cooper’s relationship with his daughter proved challenging at first, but things turned around in the end.
His relationship with Willow appears to be taking a turn for the better. I think they make a great team and their chemistry is off the charts. I hope they finally get their act together and acknowledge their feelings.
Conclusion/Recommendation
Once again Mefford as weaved a tale filled with humour, twists and suspense that will keep you glued to the pages. Fans of mystery and suspense will love this series. I recommend that the books be read in order of release to gain a full understanding of the many events in the characters’ lives.
Mefford has another series winner!
Bury is the 3rd book of John Mefford’s new series. He definitely has another winner! In Bury everything gels together from the first two. This one was hard to put down once the action started. He does an excellent job in world building and character development. The characters come alive and you fear for them, and love or hate them. I love the way this series is going and can’t wait for the next one. Mefford is definitely at the top of his game!
Cooper and Willow are stumbling through being friends only. Now that Cooper’s daughter Lauren is living with him, things are even more awkward. With danger following Willow everywhere she goes, she has to stay with Cooper and Lauren, causing strife between Cooper and his new girlfriend. But when Lauren gets kidnapped by a demented serial killer, it’s time for everyone to do whatever it takes to find Lauren before it’s too late.
I love the characters for Willow and Cooper and how flawed they are. They continuously have tension hitting them at every angle. Now that Lauren is thrown in the mix, it makes it even better. I hope she’s here to stay.
Willow and Cooper prove to be a phenomenal pair in Mefford’s latest book, BURY. We get to learn more about Cooper because of the involvement of his teenage daughter, Lauren, and the connection to the (new) lady in his life – Detective Courtney Bouchard. This love triangle is a bit stereotypical as Willow has sworn off a relationship with Cooper beyond “friends”. Bouchard is your typical point in the triangle who wants more than Cooper is willing to offer. We know he’s hung up on Willow; but I would like to see that his character would cut Bouchard off before it developed into more that he was ready to deal with.
Teen girls are being buried alive and Bouchard places a connection between today’s events and those that happened to her sister more than two decades earlier. The three of them, together, decide to try and piece all of the information together to help save more young girls. Dr. V’s (and the Sack brothers) presence reminds us that Cooper still has a lot of debt and personal issues clouding his judgment and decisions. Mefford brings the suspense up another notch in BURY, making it impossible to stop reading until you put all of the pieces together.
I have volunteered to share my review and all the opinions are 100% my own.
Bury is the third book in the Ball and Chain Series by John W. Mefford. This book like the other two in this series are exciting page turners that will keep you on the edge of your seat. This series just keeps getting better and better. This book pulled me right in and did not let go. It is very well written with many twists and turns to keep you guessing. It is suspenseful and exciting with a little romance mixed in. This book is for Mystery and thriller book lovers. I can’t wait to see what John has in store for us next. Anxiously awaiting the next book.
In all honesty this one starts out slow and kind of confusing–but keep reading–it heats up fast and furious. There is so much going on! Cooper’s teenage daughter is dropped on his doorstep by his ex—Cooper and Willow are involved in a scam due to the fact that he owes a couple of favors to Dr. V.–a truly unscrupulous guy–Courtney–another female friend of Cooper who is a homicide detective just reveals to Cooper that her younger sister was kidnapped and then found dead in as shallow grave–
Pandemonium is a good word to describe this novel! Then Cooper’s teenage daughter goes missing————
Will the killer be stopped–what does it take? And how does Willow’s Father fit into all this?
In this reader’s opinion, the third installment of the Ball & Chain series, “Bury” is the best written one so far. John Medford has kept a continuous flow of highly intensive thrills page after page. As Cooper Chain has the opportunity that he has been waiting for to resurrect his writing career, will he take advantage or blow his big chance. Will his daughter’s appearance on the scene have an effect on his relationship with Willow?
This is a fast paced action adventure from start to finish with characters old and new making an impact on life in Texas. One of his best!
This story will have you drinking espresso late in the night jus to keep reading! Ball and Chain are trying to outsmart a crime boss. Then a shallow grave if found of a young girl. There are no clues other than it seems to be connected to a similar killing more than two decades earlier? Then another girl is taken and Ball and Chain’s world stops….how is Cooper’s daughter caught up in the web? The action is fast, the bullets are flying, the deceit is all too real. Can Willow and Cooper make sense of it all and find out what is really going on? You will need to read the book for the answers. I voluntarily reviewed a free ARC of this book.
Just like the previous two books in this series, the book was another page-turner that kept me on the edge of my seat. This series gets better and better. The characters are growing and developing and gaining depth.
Willow and Cooper find themselves in between a big time crime boss, a heroin ring and a serial murderer. Things are getting too close to home for Cooper . He finds himself worrying about how to keep his daughter safe. He and Willow must solve the murders and save his daughter. A great read. I can’t wait for the next installment. I received an advanced reader copy free and have voluntarily chosen to leave an honest review.
This series flows right along from the last book right on through this one .Cooper and Willow just can’t catch a break this one will definitely keep you reading trying to figure things out and waiting for the next ambush wondering who is after them and why Great read
BURY by John W Mefford was a page turner to me and a compelling read. Loved this book! Loved the love between the characters which is well depicted by Author John W Mefford. Having to watch my words to not do a spoiler. What a reader loves is action, compelling reading, compelling storyline, evoking emotions, and a thrilling beginning, and middle and ending, and BURY, as written by the hand of John W Mefford, brings all that and MORE. The Ball&Chain Series is turning out to be a great series, and I encourage readers to get on board with this series because as John W Mefford does SO WELL, series that he does are masterpieces. Evoked emotions and excitement in me for sure!! I love how the characters are developing in this series. As humans do, they grow, and the characters in the Ball&Chain Series do grow, and so do the storylines in each book. Can’t wait to read next book in series for sure!! HIGHLY recommend BURY by John W Mefford, if you want a really satisfying read. ENJOY!!
‘Bury’ is the third instalment in the ‘Ball and Chain’ series by John Mefford. I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Just like the previous two books in this series, the book was a complete page-turner that had me on the edge of my seat.
I have become completely obsessed with these two amateur detectives, and Mefford’s writing style is brilliant in building suspense and keeping you on your toes.
With each new book comes a thrilling mystery that you are dying to see unravel, and this book was no exception. When the bodies of young girls are being buried alive, suspicions are raised, adding a gruesome twist to the tale. But when Cooper’s daughter goes missing, the duo are embroiled in finding answers.
It is a book that opens up the romance that has been flowing between them, making them realise that perhaps the other means more to them than they’d like to believe.
I loved the personal element of involving Cooper’s daughter, and I totally bought into the investigation. It has drama, secrets, unexpected plot twists and is just all round a gripping read.
I’d recommend this book to all thriller and mystery lovers, people who typically enjoy reading crime books, and those looking for a well-written, keep you on your toes series.
Mefford you’ve totally delivered again!
I finally think that Mefford has found his groove with the Ball & Chain series after this instalment. I have felt something has been missing in the previous two books and just didn’t gel with the stories or the characters like I did in the redemption series. But now, I am finally there.
Willow Ball and Copper Chain are our unlikely sleuths, seriously they need to ditch their day jobs and open up as Private Investigators already (I do hope this is way Mefford is taking this unlikely duo in future books) Copper had finally scored a sports writing gig with online Newswire The Wire, and is finally getting into his journalist career. Though in digging up information on his subject he uncovers a lot more than he bargained for. Else where someone is stalking 14 year old girls and burying them alive, and when Coppers daughter comes clean about setting up a bully who ends being one of the missing girls Cooper and Willow begin to investigate along side detective Courtney Bouchard (who has a personal stake in this investigation – her 14 years old sister disappeared under similar circumstances, Could it be the same person who stole her sister? How is Copper’s interviewee involved if at all? So many questions!!
You will need to read this one to connect the dots! There are many twists and turn as is the norm, but this one keep me on my toes and had me much engaged with the characters. The next book cant come quick enough!!
I am lucky enough to have gotten a ARC copy of this book from the author. I am volunteering to leave this review. As usual Mr. Mefford has done it again. You think it is going one way and then at the end of the book, he takes you and throws you off a cliff in other direction. And at the end you just sit there going WOW.