Customer Reviews

Burned: A Tragic Mystery

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I admit that I was flattered when asked to review this book, especially as I have yet to plunge into that coveted list of top 1,000 reviewers. The author has a good sense of humor, noting from my profile page, that I love to read while cuddling with my cat and sipping tea. He wished me happy reading and urged me to "get the tea brewing and find a cat to cuddle with." That I did. This book is a page-turner: once you start it, you want to know what happens and how it will all be resolved.

At first glance, I thought that this book might be taking on too much: a baby left badly burned through her father's negligence, the mother leaving the dad, the mother starting a new life and career, AND the mother's new career involving a company embezzlement cover-up. It seemed that any one of the above issues could stand alone as the plot line for a 200+ page novel. Fortunately, I was proven wrong. Nevling deftly interweaves the past and present in this book, and the winding plot is suspenseful without seeming overladen.

Possible spoilers
You can sympathize simultaneously with Sharon, the angry and distraught mother, and Jim, the abandoned father whose mistake of negligence couldn't have been more unintentional. Sharon needed her space to work through her reaction to the accident, so her "impulsive decision" to separate from Jim wasn't such a bad idea in hindsight. It's what she needed to do to process the accident and reevaluate what's important to her. Her job as an accountant at Prescott Inc. helped to distract her from her recovering baby and separated husband. Yet Sharon cannot reconcile some extravagant travel expenses posted by her supervisor. That overcharging seems like child's play compared to the millions of dollars being diverted from the company's account. Sharon and a pair of detectives try to figure out what's going on, especially after a company car runs Sharon off the road, resulting in what could have been a fatality. Another strange occurence: Sharon tests positive for drugs. Yet Sharon swears she has never taken illicit drugs.

The loose-ends are tied up in a satisfying conclusion, and we are advised along with Jim and Sharon to leave the TV behind (a football game had distracted Jim's attention, leading up to the house fire). Jim and Sharon's reconciliation was wonderfully written and believable; I'd have to say that that was one of my favorite parts of the book. Sharon knew that Jim had suffered as much as she had, and that he was tortured by his mistake. Sharon remarked to her friend Katie that it seemed like no time had passed between her and Jim, and that they were able to pick up where they left off, reestablishing their intimacy.

I guessed the identity of an accomplice (who technically hadn't broken any law), thinking this person the main culprit. I certainly didn't guess whodunnit or why.

How many times have you sat in bed with the pillows propped up behind your back, the clock showing that it's well past midnight, and thought, "I'll just read one more chapter before turning out the light!" Then, four chapters later, you still are compelled to continue through your chosen novel because you are so captivated by the characters and their stories. This is the experience I had while reading the new book Burned by first-time author J.A. Nevling. He develops men and women whose passions and weaknesses will be understood by the readers. I certainly found myself connecting with the main character Sharon Nagol, who cherishes her life as a young wife and mother to a beautiful little girl. The other personalities who are revealed throughout the pages, from unhappy spouses to devoted best friends to conniving bosses, will likely have parallels to the people we all have in our lives. So, when Nevling takes his characters and places them in unimaginable situations, the readers will be completely caught up in the ride.

The book opens with a tragic house fire that initially leaves the reader not knowing the fate of Sharon Nagol's husband and child. Devastated by this upheaval in her ideal life, Sharon moves to a new city and begins work with a large firm as an accountant. What she uncovers through secret books that are not part of the company's standard financial disclosures lands her in the middle of a violent chain of events. The author reveals just enough in each chapter to keep the reader guessing about the motives of the main characters and to keep the pages turning to reveal the next detail. Through it all, Nevling creates unexpected twists and heartbreaking discoveries that had me jumping out of my chair (that was a sight at the coffee shop!) and invested my emotions in the outcome of the protagonists in this adventure.

One of the most effective ways that Nevling draws his readers into the development of the story is through a wonderful narrative that alternates between current and past events. Some books are not able to execute this stylistic effort with fluidity, and readers are forced to reread segments or flip back to previous pages in an attempt to determine the time frame for a particular conversation. Not so with the weaving of the plot lines in Burned. Nevling always chooses just the right moment in the development of the plot to take his readers back to an earlier event. This technique serves both the purpose of keeping the reader in suspense at pivotal points and filling in the background of the people we come to know as we proceed through the pages. I liked learning about the characters a little at a time, with each new piece of history or revealed struggle adding dimension to the people involved in this drama.

Nevling seems to draw upon a knowledge of the psychological dynamics that exist between individuals when developing the relationships between his characters. I was compelled to reflect on how I would feel if I discovered my husband's negligence had caused a horrific fire that forever changed the lives of my family members. There are other issues of the human psyche that are addressed as well. Why do people in unhappy marriages continue to present a public facade of a partnership in order to maintain wealth or power? In what ways do the tight bonds that exist in female friendships provide both security and an increased chance for deception? How do our first impressions of people affect the relationship we are willing to develop with them, or simply determine the level of kindness we will choose to extend? The author uses a dramatic plot of money, sex and power to address these issues in an environment of heightened emotion and consequence, but they are still relevant to readers in even the most ordinary of circumstances.

J. A. Nevling has written a remarkable book, especially considering that this is first venture into the world of book writing and publishing. Burned: A Tragic Mystery combines elements of a terrific detective or suspense novel with the intensely personal and human emotions of betrayal, grief, lust, and greed. Whether or not Nevling intended so upon its writing, or has allowed the possibility to pass through his mind since publication, Burned is one of those novels that could easily transfer to the movie screen or the stage. I assert this suggestion without any insinuation that the storytelling does not excel in its current format. But, this book does form a story that I hope will generate mass appeal in the written form, and could easily do the same in a visual format. I highly recommend the new book Burned by J. A. Nevling and I look forward to future novels that this author may choose to publish in the future.

This book is wonderful. Edge of your chair reading. A Very moving and compelling story that you cannot finish it until you have read the whole thing in one sitting.

Sharon Nagol Says yes to a surprise lunch invitation with her best friend, leaving husband Jim home to babysit their infant daughter. While Sharon's away, a firebreaks out, severely burning both Jim and the baby. When Sharon find out that it was Jim's negligence that caused the fire, she separates from him, and rents her own apartment. She finds a job as an accountant at Prescott Incorporated. There the mystery begins. Dark secrets, embezzlement and a rotten skirt chasing boos leads you on an exciting ride.

Best book I have read in a long while.

Being burned is a very tragic event, especially when it is a baby who is badly burned, even through the efforts to keep this to a minimum by her father who is also burned. A tragedy which could so easily happen through a brain focusing on the wrong thing at the wrong time. An overtired brain, a stressed brain, or in this case, a distracted brain.

The big game is on TV and Jim, the father, is baby-sitting his nine month old daughter, Anna, who is currently sleeping, to give his wife, Sharon, some time out with her friend Katie. When he hears Anna fussing, he does all the right things, cleaning her, changing her, and putting her bottle on to warm. What he doesn't realize is going to change all their lives in the next several minutes. A gas explosion is going to set the house on fire, not a small fire but a raging fire. Jim's efforts to get the baby out of her crib are next to impossible. The crib is burning and as he tries to bring her out avoiding the worst of the flames surrounding her, she falls through the side of the fiery crib. He does the right thing to try to protect her, stumbles outside and passes out.

Disclaimer: I was given this book.

When Sharon arrives at the hospital she learns both that her husband will survive, but Anna has been so badly burned it will mean a long recovery at best, but they don't know at this point if she will survive. Though the doctor does not want Sharon to see her at this time, she absolutely insists, and this action will clinch the effects that soon will engulf the whole family. Sharon will soon turn her back on her husband and they will be separated. The stage is now set for the mystery part of the book.

J.A. Nevling certainly knows how to write emotion. He also knows how to write a sequence of awful proportions in a way that the reader knows what is going on, but is not horrified to the extent that he/she will find the book so upsetting it will be impossible to read further. The reader instead will stay focused on the story as it unfolds and will have trouble putting it down. This book is meant to be read. It will be emotional by its nature, but there is so much more than the fire and its results. Once Sharon has moved away, Anna is going through her various treatments, and Jim is dealing with his feelings of guilt, remorse, and the loss of Sharon, the mystery portion of the book begins to unfold.

Sharon has found a small apartment and a good job at Prescott Industries, a new life she can not quite separate from the old. When a marriage is based on real love, it doesn't separate easily. Yet soon it becomes apparent that a transition has happened in Sharon's personality. She can't understand it, she often sleeps too much and feels strangely different. She seems to lose time, her ability to focus has changed, and she has some memory lapses. When she is run off the road as a car rams her from behind, she begins to feel someone is out to kill her. The detectives she talks to have some doubts but decide they should look into it. This is a real mystery, and there are several suspects, but the ending is shocking, and at the same time satisfying. This book is a definite adventure in reading. It speaks to the fallibility of people, love in its truest form, runs the gamut of several emotions, and is well worth the read. I enjoyed the book, which seems strange in light of the difficulties involved, but that is how well-written it is.

Jim and Sharon seemed to have the whole America dream going for them. They had a nice home and had a wonderful baby girl. But their dream turns into a nightmare in one instance as a horrible accident turns everything to ash.




Most of this book is told in the present with flash backs to the reason that Sharon and Jim are separated and living 100's of mile apart. Sharon has taken a job as an accountant at Prescott Inc. and is on the verge of starting an affair with her boss. He assigns her the task of checking the accounts when an audit is announced. While in the office here the files are kept she discovers a secret door and can swear that someone is spying on her. She discovers a secret that she feels could be the reason someone is trying to kill her.




I found this a very interesting mystery and I really had no Idea who was the culprit till the very end. I did find Sharon's character unlikable even though I really wanted to like her. That didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book though.

In Burned: A Tragic Mystery, first time author J.A. Nevling weaves an exciting tale of intrigue and suspense that kept me turning the pages long past the time when I should have been sound asleep.

Sharon and Jim Nagol are first time parents living in San Diego with their 9 month old daughter, Anna. While Sharon is out for the day with a friend, Jim is left to tend the baby and enjoy the football game on the big screen TV. Unfortunately, his first time alone with his daughter ends in tragedy when a fire breaks out and both are seriously hurt and possibly dying. As events continue to unfold in the aftermath of the accident, the author takes us a few months forward where we find Sharon living in an apartment, alone, in Los Angeles. She has a new job as an accountant at Prescott Incorporated, where she gets hit on by her boss and stumbles across some shady bookkeeping that may or may not, land her in a heap of trouble. After she is nearly killed in an accident that really isn't an accident, the wild ride really begins and the reader is left guessing until the very end.

The author writes the story in an alternating present/past format that adds to the mystery and tends to leave the reader on the edge of a cliff for a chapter or two. I think this was the best move for this story as it wouldn't have been interesting or exciting if written in chronological format.

I also liked the fact that the author didn't go on and on with flowery character descriptions and rarely used simile or metaphor to make his point. Sometimes all that needs to be said is "she has a perfect smile" instead of going on for a paragraph or two about how her smile is like a summer day. The simple writing style moved the story along and was refreshing after reading so many of the unnecessarily wordy stories that are out there today.

All in all, I would recommend this book to those who like a story that is well written, has interesting characters, and isn't afraid to get to the point with as few words as possible. I applaud J.A. Nevling for producing such an appealing and dramatic story that kept me, the person who always figures things out before the conclusion, in suspense until the very end.

The first time Jim Nagol is left in charge of his infant daughter, tragedy strikes and he and his daughter are both severely burned when he accidentally leaves a stove burner on with no flame. His daughter Anna's burns are so severe, doctors are not at all sure she'll make a recovery.

Now seven month's later Jim's wife, Sharon, has left her husband and is living alone in an apartment two hours away. Sharon cannot forgive Jim for the accident and is struggling to make ends meet by working for Prescott Incorporated as an accountant.

When two of the company's top executive both make unwanted passes at Sharon she knows that if she now reveals that she found some unexplained company expenses during a recent audit her findings would be seen as retaliation. She has no choice but to stay quiet and work on how best to reveal the embezzlement to the proper authorities.

But driving home one night she's forced off the road in a hit-and-run accident and when the police investigate there is more than one suspect including the two company executives and her husband Jim with whom she had an explosive argument with that same day.

Burned alternates from the present and Sharon's troubles and back to the time of the accident and the weeks following it. I like this approach because as soon as the story gets good it skips in time and you're left with a major cliff hanger for the next few chapters when you pick up again but get another cliff hanger with the second story line.

Nevling does a great job of keeping the suspense going and laying out the perfect mystery. My only disappointment with the book is the dialogue between most of the characters. There were more than a few times when I would think to myself, "Who talks like that?" Otherwise the book is a recommended read for all mystery and suspense readers.

When an accidental fire tears her family apart, Sharon Nagol moves to a new city and takes a job in the accounting department at Prescott International. She likes her job and has made some friends, but all is not well. She foolishly indulged in an intimate interlude with her boss that has put a strain on their relationship, and something is awry in the locked records room where she is conducting a company audit. When someone runs her off the road in a company car, Sharon knows her life is in danger. Then the detectives who interview her in the hospital tell her they found drugs in her bloodstream, and she begins to question everything in her life from her relationships with coworkers to her marriage. She hasn't been able to forgive her husband for starting the fire that burned their daughter, but now that the child is coming home after several months of surgery and physical therapy, she will have to deal with him, as well. Hopefully, whoever is out to get her won't kill her first.

This was a gripping mystery that had me guessing from the very start about what was going on, who was behind it, and why. By the time I reached the conclusion, I suspected just about everyone of wanting to do Sharon in for one reason or another. Though the dialogue was sometimes a bit stilted, it did not detract from the suspense that permeated the story from beginning to end. The book was also devoid of extreme violence or explicit sex scenes, which is a plus for many readers. While Sharon was often annoyingly passive, allowing the men in her life to push her around, she does rally and stick up for herself when it becomes important. The other characters were drawn just well enough to make me suspect their motives at every turn.

In all, I found this to be a gripping mystery that kept me turning the pages, guessing who the bad guy was and why, as well as truly caring about the fate of Sharon and her little family. I can comfortably recommend this book to any reader who enjoys a good, gripping suspense story.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that once things start going wrong, they can quickly spin out of control. That's what happens to Sharon and Jim Nagol. They have a comfortable new home, a charming nursery for their baby girl, good friends, and most important of all, a loving marriage. In a careless moment it all goes up in flames and Anna is dreadfully injured. Sharon blames Jim and leaves him, moving to the city and taking an accounting job. She's separated from her baby, who is undergoing treatment for her injuries, and from Jim who never stops wanting her back.

J.A. Nevling's debut novel Burned: A Tragic Mystery opens with the terrible accident in the Nagol's San Diego home. When we next see Sharon, her life is running out of control. She is being pursued by Cam Jeffries, second in command at Prescott International, and she can't seem to make good choices and protect herself. When the company owner also turns his attention to Sharon, it begins to be clear that she's a pawn in some game with strange, harsh rules. As the time draws closer for her baby to come home to her, will Sharon be able to keep herself and her baby safe? Will she allow her husband to become part of their lives again? Will she even survive long enough to have another chance?

Without spoiling the plot, I can say that the action is non-stop. Nevling introduces tenacious police detectives Nelson and Lewis, who become engaged in Sharon's plight and bring their long experience to the case. Danger reaches a crescendo in a confrontation that again threatens baby Anna. The detectives sift through the standard motives--jealousy, revenge, money. Which of them has the Nagols in its web? Or are they collateral damage?

Burned: A Tragic Mystery was a fast and absorbing read, with good dialogue and crisp plotting. The chapters are short, tempting the reader to read just a few more pages. I am taking one star off because the characters, while they have excellent outlines, could be filled in with a bit more detail. I'm confident that J.A. Nevling will deepen the characterizations in his next book. An excellent debut and a very stylish read.

Linda Bulger, 2009

Sharon and her husband, Jim, have a beautiful life. They are just starting off in the world of family, and have a delightful baby named, Anna. Tragedy however strikes when Jim is left with their baby while Anna takes a day off with her friend. A fire breaks out severely burning Jim and their child.

Sharon is unable to deal with the anger in her heart towards Jim for allowing this to happen and separates from him, moving to another town and securing a job. In the meantime, her child is undergoing extensive treatment for her burns. Unfortunately Sharon's woes have not ended but will be intensifying in the happenings of her new job, for in this company where Sharon works, things are not as they appear. Sharon finds evidence that something underhanded is happening, and there are those who will stop at nothing to silence her, now Sharon is running for her life.

The author takes you back and forth from the past to the present in this read, allowing you full details of what has and is happening so you will understand the characters actions and the decisions they are taking. Author, J.A. Nevling definitely brought to life the heated emotions that strangle couples when they are dealing with such tragic events as Sharon and Jim were. He puts into play the blame game, the struggle with the desire to continue to love, yet the torture of feeling guilty for loving still the person who you feel caused you and your child so much pain. Wrap that around a whole new set of circumstances in Sharon's life concerning the events unraveling at her work place and you are in for quite a ride, as our author takes two plots and carefully weaves them together to bring forth quite a tale.

This well written book, by J.A. Nevling, is one of sorrow and pain, relationships gone astray, forgiveness and greed, overcoming evil odds, mystery and adventure and true love finding its home once again. Now that is a big order to fill, but one that our author filled to satisfaction and brought forth a read that you will truly enjoy.