Practicing Buddhist and retired forensic pathologist Bodhi King seeks peace. Unfortunately, death keeps finding him.After solving a series of unexplained deaths and exposing a sordid political scandal, Bodhi retreated from the limelight. But he’s called out of early retirement to help investigate a death cluster on a private island in the Florida Keys.Healthy residents of a ritzy assisted living … Keys.
Healthy residents of a ritzy assisted living facility are dying in the middle of the night … their faces frozen in terror.
Bodhi arrives on Golden Island to find a community gripped by fear. And beneath the surface, conflict simmers, threatening to boil over. The charismatic leader of the Golden Island Church, the dying Cuban-Americans, and the local Catholic priest all have secrets to protect.
It’s up to Bodhi to bring the truth to light … before another resident dies.
Dark Path is the first book in an intriguing, engrossing new forensic thriller series by USA Today bestseller Melissa F. Miller. Lonely Path (Book 2), Hidden Path (Book 3), and Twisted Path (Book 4) are available now!
What Readers Are Saying:
“[A] very enjoyable read–a forensic thriller crossed with cozy mystery, with a cast of entertaining characters confined in a remote location. … [I]n Miller’s books there are always interesting themes alongside the thrill of a fast-paced plot, and ‘Dark Path’ is no exception.”
“I fervently enjoyed the twists and turns as one by one, the clues to the puzzle are discovered.”
“[A]n excellent, tightly woven tale that hooked me quickly and kept me reading until the conclusion.”
“Melissa Miller’s writing is strong, with good character development, lots of action and a mystery that keeps you guessing until the end.”
Other Thriller/Mystery Series by Melissa F. Miller:
The Sasha McCandless Legal Thriller Series
The Aroostine Higgins Thriller Series
The We Sisters Three Mystery Series
more
i really liked the characters and the process of thought involved. Excellent reading as always in a Melissa F. Miller book.
Great book
Shows the greed and devious nature of those who should be setting example for the world.
Delightful.
Interesting concept of literally “scared to death.”
I liked the verses that started the chapters. There were a lot of words I did not know how to pronounce which made reading it a bit difficult. The autopsy description was too much for me. However it was a good story with interesting characters.
“Dark Path” is a book I could not put down. Readers first meet Pastor Bryce Scott, the pastor of the “Spread the Word Ministry” in the Golden Island Church, who teaches his flock that if you love God, you will get material rewards like beautiful homes, cars and maybe even boats. He speaks to his hand-picked audience and tells them that they can buy their own lay ministries if they give him a certain amount of money, sign a contract with him and attend his inaugural classes. He will teach them how to do the same thing he is doing but with their own flocks. Pastor Scott also has similar services on television. When he is done with his chosen flock, he approaches Arthur, a congregant who does not have the money to buy into the inaugural classes since he only earns forty-nine thousand dollars a year as a technology specialist. Pastor Scott tells Arthur that he does not honor God by acting poor and can get financing by getting a loan and being put on a repayment plan from someone who is part of the ministry. Arthur replies that the interest on that plan is too high but he will be able to get the money. Next, readers meet Detective Felicia Williams, the only Cuban American female detective on her police squad and learn that she is tasked with finding out what is causing the deaths of four elderly people, in four weeks, who had lived in an assisted care facility owned by Pastor Scott on his private island in the Florida Keys. The people who have died did so in their sleep and had looks of horror, a grimace with lips pulled back and brows furrowed, a rictus grin, on their faces. None of them were members of Pastor Scott’s church. Although the coroner, Dr Joel Ashland, has put “death from unexplained causes” on their death certificates, he is very upset that he cannot determine the real causes of death because all of their organs are normal for people of their ages and ailments. Dr. Ashland contacts the County Coroner who in turn asks Bodhi King, a retired Budhist coroner who had solved a similar death cluster when five healthy young women had died from drinking a particular sports drink. Because the case gained so much publicity and was even featured on a popular police drama, Bodhi retired from his job and finally found peace. Bodhi reluctantly takes the case because he is told that his inaction would cause more deaths. Arthur’s grandmother lives in the facility, is not a member of Scott’s ministry and is very frightened. Like the people who have just died, she is a member of Father Rafael’s Roman Catholic Church. A fifth person, Arthur’s grandmother’s best friend, is then found dead with the same rictus grin on her face. Bodhi works with Detective Williams and Dr. Ashland to try to find out why the assisted living facility residents are dying. In addition to enjoying the quest to solve the murders, readers will learn what could cause the death masks of horror, rictus grins, and how some religious Cuban Americans Catholics also practice the religion of Santeria, a religion in which people worship the same saints but sometimes have to give them offerings like chickens. I look forward to reading other books featuring Bodhi King and am sure others will too.
Enjoyed the Buddist character Bodhi and learning about Cuban ritual practices.
This was an enjoyable read. I look forward to reading another in the series.
very good read, not hard to go in and out of
O M G this book is so goooodd. read in one sitting. love it.
Elementary writing full of tired cliches. Entirely too predictable.
Kept my interest.
Really liked the main character. Easy to read.
I love this author. Great stories and never smutty.
Good story but the characters were way more interesting than the plot details. Also, what motivated the killer? Lots of loose ends.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It’s the beginning of the Bohdi King books and is fascinating. There are a cluster of unexplained deaths in a nursing home and Bohdi King is invited to the island in order to help solve the mystery surrounding these deaths. The book is very informative as well as being entertaining and just plain good.
Couldn’t put it down, now I have to get the rest of the series.
Good example of corruption of religion for personal gain.
interesting material, subject matter/ plot. unpredictable and thought provoking. enjoyed the read tremendously’