Customer Reviews

Dead Water

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Victoria Houston's Loon Lake Fishing Mystery Series has me hooked. The wait for the release of DEAD WATER has been worth every minute. Once again I'm drawn in, hook, line and sinker, into the lives of Doc Osborne, Lew Ferris and the unforgettable Ray Pradt. When you add murder, suspense, plenty of fishing and just the right touch of romance, this series is a keeper. DEAD WATER is definitely the must read of the summer.

I read Victoria Houston's first book because she was an area author and she hooked me! She pens the words my husband trys to express about his fishing passion. Doc, Lew and Ray were old friends by the third book and I can't wait for their next adventure. A just right mystery that I can stay up reading into the night, just a hint of sweet older romance.

Well, here we are in the third installment of the Loon Lake Fishing Mysteries series and I have to say I absolutely adore this series. These are relatively simple, fun books that make great afternoon reading at any time of the year! I love the characters and there was less repetition in this book than there was in the second. The author is settling into an initial pattern which brings all three of our main characters into the story and makes them all an integral part of the investigation of a double murder right in the middle prime muskie fishing season. In addition to our traditional three for this series (Ray, Chief Ferris, and Doc Osborn), we are introduced to slew of new secondary characters and one additional "main character" who I believe we will see more of down the line. Gina, a friend of one of the murder victims (and an investigative reporter to boot) plays an integral part in the solveing of this particular mystery. The only disappointing thing here foe me in this book is I figured out who done it VERY early on, less than halfway through the book, so I new who did it and the unfoldment was rather obvious, but it was still enjoyable to see how the characters puzzled it out on their own and worked together to solve the crime.

Overall, I am quite enjoying this series. Its nice light reading that still manages to be both interesting and keep me mostly on the edge of my seat (usually). I love that these are older characters than one usually finds in this type of book (over 50 for the most part), it's definitely nice to see people over 50 being the hero, instead of it always being some young, hot 25 year old...don't get me wrong, those are fun too...but you don't get middle aged all the way up to retired people in the murder-mystery/thriller genre too often anymore. Nice change of pace. I also like that these are REAL characters, they have flaws, faults and real life problems that they must also deal with while solveing the mystery...it really helps to cement that feeling that these aren't just characters, they're real people. Dead Water has good pacing, interesting details and is just plain fun to read, I give it an B+, it'd make a nice read for several afternoons curled up in a chair on the porch or the sofa with a nice cup of tea.

In the 3rd book in the Loon Lake fishing mystery series, dead bodies of women are showing up around town, and the chief of police, Lewellyn Ferris (aka Lew) once again enlists the help of her part time deputies, Doctor Paul Osborne and Ray Pradt with the baffling cases. Doc is thrilled to be working closely with Lew again, even though he dislikes the murderous circumstances that keep drawing them together. Both women were shot, and have bizarre teeth "marks" on each of their bodies. Beyond that, it is difficult for Lew and Doc to connect the two victims, until a close friend of one of them flies into town to assist on the case. Gina suspects a con-man that was romantically involved with her friend in Kansas City, and then skipped town one day, taking a large chunk of her money with him. Gina believes that her friend, Ashley, may have come to Loon Lake to meet the man, and works closely with Doc, Lew, and Ray to track down a vicious killer.

This series just gets better and better! There are three main characters that are in each of the books...Lew, Doc Osborne, and Ray, and they are such vivid characters that I feel I could visit Loon Lake and meet them. I love the way that they work together as a team, and the budding romance between Lew and Doc. In this installment, Ray finds out he may have a son, and brings him to live in Loon Lake for the summer, and I found the addition of this subplot to be very interesting. I also enjoyed the addition of Ray's potential love interest, Gina. Even though I figured out the identity of the killer very early on in this book, I loved the way the whole plot unfolded and how the main characters worked together to catch the killer. Even if you are not a fisherman, this is a great series for those that like cozy style mysteries.

The first book in the series is called "Dead Angler". Enjoy!

Even if fishing is not your thing, you will enjoy this latest by Victoria Houston. Retired dentist Paul Osborne doesn't really enjoy finding dead bodies in the water, but at least it keeps him in contact with the attractive, fiftyish Police Chief Lew Ferris. When the two bodies of young women show up with similiar bite marks on them, Lew asks Paul to help her as a temporary Medical Examiner. Paul is usually accompanied by his young friend Ray Pradt, a man-of-the-woods who this time is occupied by the sudden appearance of a son he knew nothing about.

The arrival of one of the dead woman's friends and the long-lost "goth" son bring a great mix to the small town of Big Creek characters. As Paul and Lew focus on a con man who may have targeted the dead women the two become suspicious of newcomers and find themselves not knowing who to trust.

This is a character driven series that will not fail to entertain and will introduce fish-phobes to the pleasures of fishing.

I very much enjoy all the VIctoria Houston books. It comforting to meet the same people in each book and share their experiences.

I am a native of Wisconsin, so I find the fact that I know the locations that she talks about in her books makes it even more interesting. Good read. I am not a fisherman, but still enjoy all the information. Her descriptions of the areas are great, you feel like you can see along with them. Doc and Ray are so typical of some of the North Woods People. I feel that I have met them in lots of other places. I am just starting on book # 7 . I haven't read this many books this fast in a long time. I heard Ms Houston on NPR and it was a pleasure.

"Dead Water" is so enjoyable because it is set (fictional) in the area in which I grew up and the names (fictional) remind me of life in a small town and the surrounding area. It is such an enjoyable read along with the other seven "Dead ...." books in the series written by Victoria Houston. I look forward to the next edition.