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SUSPENSE
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1533 account of
the execution of a witch
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Burning of three
witches in Baden, Switzerland (1585), by Johann Jakob Wick
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Family tree
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BOOK
ILLUMINATIONS
From Merrimon Book Reviews
HOME
ROMANCE
FICTION SUSPENSE & THRILLERS
MYSTERY HORROR
AUTHORS REVIEWER
PROFILES
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Mary Jane's Grave
by Stacy Dittrich
Intelligent thrill-ride and refreshingly
multi-layered
When
Detective CeeCee Gallagher receives a call about a homicide at Mount
Olive Cemetery, naturally she must ask about Mary Jane's Grave.
Legend tells of witchcraft and her execution by hanging. Some
residents think her spirit haunts the grave to this day. The
location and the crime details of the young woman's murder bring an
urgency to this case. The eyewitness accounts all speak of eerie
phenomena, but CeeCee Gallagher doesn't believe in ghosts. She
knows she must hunt for the real culprit behind this crime. Her
investigation takes her deep into the hidden past of Mansfield, Ohio
and a past no one seems to want uncovered. The past leads her on
a journey across both time and space as she must look elsewhere to
uncover all the links to past crimes committed near Mary Jane's
grave. As all the pieces start falling into place, Detective
CeeCee Gallagher is in a race against time with her very life at stake
to solve the mystery and catch the killer in a case that might even
find her believing in ghosts.
In MARY JANE'S GRAVE, the
second CeeCee Gallagher thriller, Stacy Dittrich steps up her game
considerably. Every element of plot, characterization, and crime
detail work together to create an intelligent thrill-ride that keeps a
reader glued to the pages. A refreshingly multi-layered detective
and a complex, intriguing case to match create a gripping
combination. CeeCee is a tough investigator with professional
skills and a intuition that keeps her from ignoring the troubling
details of the crimes. When others around her may not see all the
links, she has the determination to consider all the connections.
Her personal life is a mess with as many fascinating twists and turns
as the murders she investigates. The cold case element adds
richness and complexity and depth, not only to the crime itself but to
CeeCee's personal life and choices. MARY JANE'S GRAVE joins elements of
the supernatural with archival research to uncover secrets that send
chills down the spine from the mind of the killer to the dynmics within
a town's history that hide unspeakable crimes.
MARY JANE'S GRAVE
can be read as a stand-alone. The author gives enough clues so
that a reader captures glimpses of the detective's life without bogging
down the story. The main difficulty with reading this as a
stand-alone is that the identity of the killer in her debut book THE DEVIL'S CLOSET is
revealed. I found MARY JANE'S
GRAVE so compelling that I am now reading her first book so that
I will know the characters' past better before the third book is
released in 2010 --- a book release I eagerly await. Personally,
it works for me reading the books in reverse order to see how much the
author's writing style has truly grown but if knowing the identity in
advance bothers you, you might want to start at the beginnning of the
CeeCee Gallagher books. In MARY
JANE'S GRAVE, Stacy Dittrich just seems to have gone from the
fascinating crime in her debut to truly finding a unique voice and
presentation. MARY JANE'S GRAVE
is a stunning work of suspense with a refreshingly original look into a
horrific crime. If you love engaging suspense, Stacy Dittrich is
definitely an amazing new talent in the genre!
Publisher: Dorchester - Leisure Fiction (April
2009)
Author web site
Reviewed by Merrimon,
Merrimon Book Reviews
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