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Crime Beat Girl
Geri Dreiling, Author
A girl is dead. A boy is locked up. Can Debbie Bradley discover the truth before more lives are lost…maybe even her own?
A series of deadly shootings. An outbreak of stolen cars. When journalist Debbie Bradley returns home to St. Louis, the summer crime wave has started. And she’s in the center: A witness, a reporter, a target.
Debbie’s reasons for leaving behind her promising career in Washington D.C. were complicated. Her mother, a prominent lawyer, was diagnosed with cancer. Her engagement was cooling. When she got offered a job in St. Louis that she hadn’t been looking for, Debbie recognized an opportunity. Or an escape.
But she didn’t expect to come home and see a girl die. Debbie never planned to investigate a boy behind bars. And she didn’t anticipate colliding with hostile cops and wary politicians.
As her work gains attention, Debbie gathers enemies. Will her assignment to cover the St. Louis crime beat be her last?
Plot/Idea: 8 out of 10
Originality: 8 out of 10
Prose: 8 out of 10
Character/Execution: 8 out of 10
Overall: 8.00 out of 10
Assessment:
Plot: Eminently readable, and largely unpredictable, this alluring, character-driven mystery solidly entertains readers.
Prose/Style: The author crafts evenly flowing prose. Like the protagonist, Dreiling displays a penchant for clarity and succinctness of style.
Originality: The unconventional casting of a reporter protagonist rather than a detective or P.I. is refreshing.
Character Development: The book’s heroine is exceptionally appealing, compassionate, and gratifyingly independent. Detective D. Flannery is also a well-rounded character with convincing struggles and honest depth.
Date Submitted: June 11, 2020
