November’s Past (A Larry Macklin Mystery – Book 1)The job of criminal investigator in a rural Florida county is never easy, but it’s even harder when your father is the sheriff.When Larry Macklin investigates the murder of a mutilated stranger, the search for the victim’s identity intersects with an arson investigation. The common thread is a small group of people who were in high school … people who were in high school together in the ’70s, including Larry’s own father. Before Larry can rule any of them out as the killer, one of them turns up dead.
Why is the murderer targeting this particular group? What past secrets could be worth killing for now? Larry is running out of time and suspects, and his search for the truth may make him the next victim.
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I enjoyed the book very much. It was a bit different from most mysteries I’ve read. For one thing the “hero” admits right up front he isn’t a good cop and, in fact, doesn’t even want to be a cop. He’s not the suave, sure-of-himself type when it comes to women (the dog practically had to ask for the first date), and he readily admitted his shortcomings in other areas. That made me identify with him as a real person instead of a stereotype. The mystery itself was somewhat challenging, although I did figure out who the murderer was before the end, but I still enjoyed the story as it enfolded, and at the very end the reader is left wondering how our hero is going to get out of his situation alive.