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In Their Blood
by Sharon Potts
Jeremy
Stroeb doesn't take the demands of college very seriously. Loving
freedom more than responsibility, he drops out and takes off
backpacking across Europe. When his parents are brutally
murdered, his former life comes crashing to an end. As he returns to
Miami Beach to take guardianship of his sister Elise, Jeremy also sets
out to discover the identity of his parents murderer. When the
police don't seem to be coming up with any answers, Jeremy takes a job
at the accounting firm where his mother was a star CPA. Could the
answer to the crime be found there or maybe his father's controversial
politics concerning Cuba sparked some kind of battle behind the
scenes? Even his uncle's eager willingness to take over the role
of guardianship seems suspect. Or did the threat come from
another secretive area of his parents' life? How well did he
truly know his parents? Forced to take on the responsibilities he
once spurned, will Jeremy be able to see the case through or will his
youth lead him into a clever trap set by the unknown villain?
In her powerful debut thriller IN
THEIR BLOOD, Sharon Potts creates an intriguing main character
in Jeremy Stroeb. Not only is he a refreshing change from the
run-of-the-mill thriller sleuths, but his flaws and momentary
difficulties make him human. Sharon Potts does an excellent job
at interweaving emotion with suspense as Jeremy and his sister deal
with the trauma and grief of their parents' murder. Indeed, the
tone of grief that drives the first part gives this thriller its
distinctive style, drawing the reader into the story and the main
characters, making the family itself not just secondary faceless
victims but active participants in this thriller. Jeremy and his
sister grow throughout the story as they are faced with the horror of
their parents' murder and the absence of their parents from their
lives. Elise, the daughter adds emotional and
psychological suspense to
the story as she seeks to stand up for herself and come face to face
with her fears. Several twists and quick but forboding
details ramp up the suspense when one least expects it.
Despite the emotional depth of this thriller, the fast-paced plot and
fluidity of the writing style make IN
THEIR BLOOD a fast-paced read. Just when one thinks s/he
might be able to go to sleep for the night and return to the book the
next day, a new scene or wrinkle to the case drives the reader deeper
into the story. Perhaps, the ending could have been drawn out or
focused on more details of the scene to heighten the suspense and
spine-tingling drama as the danger mounts. Perhaps a few of the
suspects could have been more finely developed or the suspense threads
more finely interwoven but nevertheless, IN THEIR BLOOD demonstrates the
author's ability to add a new perspective to the thriller genre.
Although this novel lacks the polished seamless interweaving of the
suspense web throughout, this reader felt compelled by the story itself
and the emotional landscape of the characters even more than other more
polished interwoven suspense novels. I simply could not put the
book down until the last page and still, upon finishing it, find it
haunting. This reader thoroughly enjoyed the story for its
emotional depth and how IN THEIR
BLOOD distinguishes itself from the typical expectations of the
thriller genre by adding emotion and character growth to suspense
rather than an intricate search for minute crime details. A very
nice change of pace!
IN THEIR BLOOD is
highly recommended for suspense lovers looking for a unique voice and a
thriller with a distinctiveness all its own. IN THEIR BLOOD may not have the
pre-fab style of the more formulaic thrillers out there, but rather it
is best read by those wanting to discover something new and
different. Sharon Potts is clearly a talented author with her
compelling debut novel marking her as an author for suspense lovers to
watch. As both thriller and coming-of-age story, IN THEIR BLOOD is a powerful genre
blend that takes the reader into the heart of crime as it affects those
left behind.
Publisher: Oceanview Publishing (September
2009)
Author website
Reviewed by Merrimon,
Merrimon Book Reviews
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