Black Delta Night: A Rachel Porter Mystery (Mass Market Paperback)

by Jessica Speart (Author) "My daddy says this picture is worth a hundred thousand dollars!..." (more)
Key Phrases: paddlefish eggs, paddlefish roe, delta night, Billy Paw, Mavis Newcomb, Velvet Kitty (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Jessica Speart is a revitalizing gust..in a stuffy room." -- --Nevada Barr

Product Description
It's called Delta Gold -- caviar from the endangered Mississippi River paddlefish that rivals the world-renowned beluga. And now that greed has all but decimated a billion dollar Caspian Sea industry, the Russian mafia is casting its lethal line into the land of Elvis

Tennessee is the purgatory where the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has consigned Rachel Porter for making trouble. Now, posing as a dirty agent on the take, she's diving into a shark pool of hungry predators drawn by the scent of big money. But there's more roiling these waters than a thriving trade in the illegal poaching of paddlefish for their roe -- as Rachel's investigation reveals even scarier secrets...and murder. In guarding the golden egg, Rachel has gotten in way too deep over her head. And now she's in grave danger of learning the meaning of "extinct" firsthand.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Avon (May 29, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380810417
• ISBN-13: 978-0380810413
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #721,672 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #7 in

  Books > Mystery & Thrillers > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Speart, Jessica

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A colorful regional mystery, June 5, 2001

By	Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews (#1 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

She is committed to her work for the US Fish and Wildlife Bureau, but her superiors feel she is a maverick who always seems to land in trouble. As a punishment for her attitude, her superiors transfer Rachel Porter to a place where nobody served in over a decade. She now works along the area of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi, deep in redneck country.

Rachel stumbles into a poaching operation involving paddlefish, a caviar-like delicacy with a high demand that happens to be an endangered species. Going her own way as usual, she soon learns that the Russian Mafia is involved in the paddlefish operation and the head crook takes a special liking to Rachel. Under strict orders, Rachel must still use her wiles to trap the dangerous Russian Mafia.

BLACK DELTA NIGHT shows a side of the south rarely presented by travel excursions. The Delta is described as a beautiful place that contains many illegal happenings. This novel is character-driven with plenty of action. Jessica Speart adds atmosphere to her strong cast and picturesque locale that turns this work into a chilling mystery.

Harriet Klausner

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Black Delta Night--Delightful!, August 3, 2001

By	Kent Braithwaite (Palm Desert, CA) - See all my reviews

As the author of a mystery novel in its initial release, I find the works of Jessica Speart most enjoyable. In this fresh Rachel Porter mystery, Ms. Speart has her lovely and wild protagonist transferred to Elvis Country, where her superiors expect her to stay out of trouble because no trouble ever happens along this Tennessee/Kentucky portion of the Delta. Oops, that transfer proves to be a mistake. Rachel discovers a poaching operation backed by the Russian Mafia. Her discovery leads to murder, and we all know who plans to solve the murder. In BLACK DELTA NIGHT, Rachel is in top form, as is Jessica Speart's writing. We have a terrific book here.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars But It Can't End Like That!, August 12, 2003

By	Pc Rossanderson "tigz" (sacramento, ca United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have read all of these books in order. I was lucky enough to discover Jessica Speart when the first book first came out. I have seen the growth of this person and almost feel like I know her. Some people feel that her character is unrealistic... I for one do not because it is has so many things that my own life does.
Her friends are an eclectic collection of misfits much like my own. Rachel Porter is gutsy and gritty but also very real. I feel this is one of the best books in the series because it takes us to a greater depth of the side characters. I must say though, without giving anything away, the end caused me some remorse