Kj Erickson

Themes: crime, father-son relationship, police work, relationships
Setting: Minnesota, present day

Special Detective Marshall Bahr of the Minneapolis police force is assigned to a new case. A pretty blond cheerleader type is found dead in a nasty part of town. Her family have no idea how or why she got down there. Bahr and his partner Nettie dive into all the secrets of the victim Mary Pat Fitzgerald and finds plenty of dirt to go around; however, none of it seems to lead to a suspect. Just when the case is almost cold, a surprisingly lead turns up a new line of investigation.

I liked this one. It was a good story, and I liked the main character. He is a good cop and a good dad with a passion for movies. And I liked that there were a few twists in the story. Thanks to cbl_tn for the recommendation… (meer)

I couldn't resist the lure of the description on the back cover: a murder that looks like suicide, with a motive apparently connected to the Battle of Gettysburg and a current controversy over a regimental flag. It sounded like the perfect book for an amateur genealogist like me. I was favorably impressed by the first book in this series when I read it a few weeks ago, and I was hoping for more of the same. Unfortunately the second book in the series didn't live up to the promise of the first one.

I admire the author's creativity in coming up with the concept for the murder and its historical anchor. I just wish it had been better executed. I couldn't get past the flaws in the research process the characters used to find vital statistics for 19th century individuals. In the book, a team of researchers sat in front of computers and used online databases to look up birth and death dates for men who fought at Gettysburg. If only it were that easy in real life! Most of the databases referred to in the book either don't exist or don't provide the kind of results the characters in the book found. Although more and more records are being digitized and made available online, many more are available only in historical archives, county record offices, church offices, or other places that must be visited in person. The author doesn't appear to have included archivists, professional librarians, or genealogists in her acknowledgments list, any one of whom could have helped the author to better understand sources of information for 19th century individuals and how to access them.… (meer)

This book was good, but not very memorable plot. As in the first book of the series, Mars Bahr and his son Chris have a wonderful relationship. The characters are very lovable and are in fact why I will continue with the series. However, The plot slow and somewhat predictable. This story was about a hanging suicide that has unanswered questions. Once it is investigated it turns out to be a murder that is linked to the civil war and a confederate flag that was captured by the first Minnesota volunteers. The flag connection was actually interesting. I think it's definitely worth the read, but not one I would read again.… (meer)