Attorney Sabre O. Brown receives a text with an image of a dead man, a social worker she recently opposed in juvenile court. Did he fall, or was he pushed? As she and JP, her private investigator, search court cases for the suspected killer, the texts become more frightening and personal. Soon packages with dire warnings threaten Sabre and her loved ones. Their frantic search uncovers disturbing … disturbing revelations, putting Sabre in the crosshairs of a clock-ticking threat. With her life on the line, will she discover the stalker in time—or become a victim of the Advocate’s Killer?
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Teresa Burrell does a wonderful job with her new book, The Advocate’s Killer. As is usual in this author’s books, this book was tightly plotted, moved quickly, and kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to find out who was behind the harassing photos/texts being sent to Sabre.
I truly enjoy a well done mystery and this series is filled with well done mysteries. Usually I think I know who the villain is and I’m usually wrong. *sigh*…someday I’ll be correct!
One big thing for me is that Ms. Burrell has the main characters grow and evolve from book to book rather than them being the same person in the same situation from the early books. Nothing better than to read a book and note the changes in the recurring characters and their relationships with others. It’s almost like they become friends and you can see their lives changing.
If you’re looking for a great who done it, every one of the books by Ms. Burrell fits the ticket. Pick one up and I think you’ll be hooked.
Thank you to the author for approving my request for an ARC. Thoughts in this review are my own and freely given.
This review is for the audio book.
I really enjoyed this book. With so much going on and with so many different cases I am really surprised I didn’t get totally confused. I think this is down to the talents of the author and the fact that at the start of each chapter you get a two or three line brief of which case the person was involved in. This worked really well and meant the listener kept on top of all the cases. This is book eleven in the advocates series and is a very good reason why the series is still going strong and readers such as myself can’t get enough. There is plenty of intrigue and suspense that it keeps you listening to the story long after you should and with great characters it is a must for any listener.
When Sabre Brown receives a photo of a dead man that she recognises it has her scrambling over her cases in the hunt for the killer. She had a number of dealings with the social worker and with the help of private investigator JP she must work out if it is an old or new case that has sparked a killer to become obsessed with her. As the frequency of the photos and text message increases so does the concerns for Sabre and her loved ones safety.
The narrator has a very deep voice but I think it works quite well for the story and adds mystery to the story as you try to work out just what is behind the death and the stalking.
Loved this book. Will read more from this author. Very enjoyable and the story moved along at a great pace.
A great story for a great series!
I have read every story in THE ADVOCATE SERIES by Teresa Burrell. She is one of my favorite authors to follow. I can always count on her stories to keep me glued to the story until the final word of the book. I am fascinated by the stories that she creates and the wonderful cast of characters she has assembled and developed throughout the series. Each story is a stand-alone; however, reading in order will prevent spoilers.
This story hits close to home, J.P.’s home in particular. Outside of the main story surrounding J.P., Sabre is juggling multi-cases as usual. Then there is this psycho stalker who is making Sabre, and everyone who loves her, frantic with worry for her safety (with good cause).
Ms. Burrell is a master storyteller. This story is well-written, entertaining, romantic mystery. I enjoyed it thoroughly from start until finish. I highly recommend this book.
Was really excited to read the latest in The Advocate series, and this one didn’t disappoint. As an attorney advocating for children, Sabre has come across a lot of “interesting” characters in her career, inside and out of the court room. So when she starts getting threatening messages after a court room colleague turns up dead, she and JP really struggle to narrow down the list of suspects.
I love to see the character dynamic in the series and the slowly developing relationship and love shared with JP and Sabre, and now adding in JP’s niece and nephew, there are some added elements to the storyline that will continue on to the next books in the series. This was definitely a story that kept me guessing though, I definitely didn’t see that ending coming. This was a great entertaining read and I already can’t wait for the next one!
If you read any of Teresa Burrell’s books in The Advocate series, I think you’ll be drawn in to pick up the rest of the series books, and this is only the latest. Although each stands on its own, this one is an excellent place to begin reading them and well worth your time.
Sabre Brown is a Juvenile Court Attorney representing and advocating for children brought to the Court’s attention because of physical, mental, sexual abuse, drugs or alcohol addiction, or other danger in their living environment that affects their well-being. Sabre delves into their cases and recommends to the Court whether a child should be removed from their home. Since she represents only minors, she isn’t normally subject to random threats of violence. However, this story takes off when she receives an unidentified text on her cell – the photo of a bloody and battered person lying spread-eagle on the pavement, with no accompanying message.
Sabre shows the text to her best friend and colleague, Bob Clark, an attorney who revels in chaotic cases. He suggests that the body looks like it could be that of a social worker. Jim Nicholson, with whom she’d recently interacted on a case and who had a reputation for ineptness. When Sabre looks at the photo more closely, she agrees with Bob, but they think it might be a sick joke perpetrated by a prankster attorney they both know. However if it isn’t a joke, Sabre and Bob can’t understand why it was sent to her.
On his own, Bob quietly queries others around the courthouse, asking what they might know about Nicholson. He’s rightfully alarmed when another social worker says that she knows the man, and he’d missed a meeting that morning.
Then just as Bob and Sabre head out for lunch, she receives another unexplainable text that says, “I’m sure that pic made you happy. LHO.” Neither one of them can account for the weird texts. So, Sabre calls her boyfriend and private investigator, JP Torn, and invites him to join them for lunch. When he shows up, JP asks Sabre why she sounded so mysterious. Then they discover their favorite Vietnamese restaurant is unexpectedly closed; consequently, Sabre and JP go to the office to make calls to determine if the photo is legitimate. After Sabre talks to a supervisor at DSHS and learns that Nicholson hadn’t shown up for work that morning, JP contacts Detective Curt Marlow of the San Diego PD. Sabre tries to explain the texts to Det. Marlow, and he confirms that Nicholson’s body was found earlier that day. He informs them that at first glance it appears Nicholson committed suicide by jumping from his third-story apartment window. Sabre forwards the texts, with the originating cell number, to Det. Marlow. Subsequently, Sabre and JP go to the police station where a tech copies her phone’s contents in an effort to determine the texts’ source.
From this point, the puzzling texts get more convoluted every day. Those initial two texts were only the first of many, each implicating an unknown person’s desire to harm Sabre. The rest of this book focuses on Sabre and JP’s extensive research of the cases on which she and Nicholson had interacted. They thought their best chance to uncover the identity of the sender of the texts plaguing Sabre was to find a connection between Sabre, Nicholson, and the cases they shared. Later, cryptic riddles in the texts are surprisingly unscrambled by two young people who’re more savvy in social media language than Sabre or JP. The intensity steadily increases exponentially throughout the story before the enigma of the texts is unraveled, leading up to an unforeseen conclusion.
Teresa Burrell’s narrative of people, places and events has an authentic flavor that creatively connects her readers to the storylines and characters depicted in them. Although the situations she describes might be unique to Sabre Brown’s profession as a child advocate, I guarantee that you will leave this story personally vested in it. I believe, too, that if Teresa’s books are new to you, after you’ve read this one, you’ll want to read more. I know that I do (and have) because I’ve read nearly all of them, and I promise you will not be disappointed by any of them.
I read this book as a beta reader.
It’s always a pleasure to read one of Ms. Burrell’s books and as the series progresses, the characters become even more enjoyable. This book included great headers on the chapters that discussed cases so that we could even more easily follow the case files. And as usual, Sabre, JP, and the gang did not disappoint.
Balancing work, kids, and sometimes messy personal lives…oh yeah, and a dangerous stalker makes for an interesting life-and a great read! The love that Sabre has for her work and her “family” of friends is palpable and you can’t help but like them all as well. As the “K” book progresses, you also learn to love this group of people and have a vested interest in what happens.
Oh yeah…and as an avid mystery reader, this really kept me on the hook til almost the end, trying to figure out, “WHO DONE IT”!!! I highly recommend!
Attorney and child advocate Sabre O. Brown receives a text with picture of a dead guy who looks a lot like a social worker she recently opposed in juvenile court. She’s unnerved but doesn’t put too much energy into it until she keeps getting texts with pictures of people who look startlingly familiar. Then the threats become very personal and she ends up with her life on the line.
This series has everything I like – contemporary, realistic plots, recurring three-dimensional characters, sharp writing, good dialogue, and a beagle. I love the relationship Sabre has with her older boyfriend/investigator, JP – “His whole face smiled when he saw her. She loved the way he always made her feel—like she was the only one in the room.” JP also provides comic relief with the way he talks – “ … fair warning, you’d be better off sandpapering a bobcat’s ass in a phone booth than messing with me.” Those JPisms are always worth uncovering.
The long-term friendship Sabre has with her co-counsel, Bob, is special. Their relationship seems very real to me. I admire her dedication to the children she works for – they often have heartbreaking backstories, and she is frequently the one constant in their lives. Her whole focus is what is best for the children and, while she doesn’t take unnecessary risks, she puts her soul into her work. Kind of makes me wish I’d gone to law school like my mother wanted.
I have enjoyed each book in this series, and this one was as good as the previous 10. These can be read out of order (the author is skillful with weaving in bits of backstory so you can keep up and understand the interpersonal relationships of the characters and their motivations), but I prefer in order, I think it makes the reading more enjoyable. These are “clean” character-driven reads, in the sense the violence occurs off-screen and there’s no sex. I mean, you know the characters are having an adult relationship, but the author doesn’t beat you over the head with it.
This story held my interest all the way through, and I found myself thinking about the characters when I wasn’t reading. I was sad when the book ended because the story was so good. Sabre has come to feel like a friend after all this time and I enjoy spending time with her and the others. These are always a five-star read for me.
I absolutely love the book. It’s good to renew my acquaintance with Sabre and JP, Bob and Ron, and I like the progression of Sabre and JP’s relationship. Having his niece and nephew add depth and strength to their relationship and the story. I did suspect the person finally recognized as the one, who was threatening throughout the story, but it took Wags’ revelation to confirm my suspicion. As always, the pace and resolutions of the various story lines were perfect for me. Congratulations! Another success for The Advocate!
An unsurpassed adventure, like never before!! The best book so far!!!
The day starts as usual for Sabre O. Brown, the famous children’s advocate and friend until someone sends her a photo of the mangled body of a social worker with whom Sabre had an altercation while trying to protect the the girl from further abuse! From there, Sabre’s life takes a nasty turn as she keeps getting these horrific texts that convey threats to her life!
Sabre decides to involve her colleague and close friend Bob and JP, the private investigator who is also the love of her life! JP gets totally alarmed and makes sure that there is always someone who is protecting Sabre at all times and he involves family members such as Sabre’s brother and his own nephew! They are conducting a thorough investigation listing all the cases Sabre and the murdered person were involved! One cannot help but be impressed by the way all cases are so thoroughly cataloged and listed!
The investigation methodically rules out all the people listed as the likely suspects as the person sending all the alarming texts and pictures seems to be aware of all facets of Sabre’s life including the people who are close to her!
Events take a dangerous turn, Sabre is attacked by the culprit, left badly injured! Further developments are eerie, scary and keep the readers on the edge of their seats until the end! Not once can the reader guess at the identity of the criminal! This is on par for a book by Ms. Burrell who excels in life like characters and an effortless, polished and smooth narrative!
Thank you for involving me in this project, Ms. Burrell! It was truly amazing and fascinating!!!