Customer Reviews

Jury of One

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

 

 

At this very moment where I live we are experiencing the wonders of mid-summer. The days are long, hot and sunny, and the evenings are warm and breezy (ok, you do have to dodge mosquitoes occasionally). I love to read, but summer reading is especially scrumptious. Fast, wonderful, interesting and maybe even intriguing and thrilling. And a new author, well, all the better.

That said, I picked up a debut novel recently. It's Jury of One by Laura Bradford. I read it in two sittings and didn't have a clue to the identity of the killer (though I tried to sleuth it out) because I really wanted to know "who done it."

I enjoyed reading a murder mystery where there was death-but I didn't have to experience the gruesomeness of it. The characters are interesting, likeable and fully developed. And the plot is compelling.

Elise Jenkins is a young new reporter with the Ocean Point Weekly and Mitch Burns is a police detective in Ocean Point, New Jersey. A series of murders are plaguing the beach community of Ocean Point and the inhabitants are terrified. The clues lead to Madame Mariah, a New Jersey boardwalk fortuneteller who has made some interesting predictions. Elise and Mitch had better be careful while tracking down the murderer. It could cost one of them their life...

I'm satisfied because I got my summer reading fix. If you want yours, Jury of One by Laura Bradford.

Laura Bradford's debut mystery is a winner! You'll feel you're right on the boardwalk smelling the breeze coming in over the ocean in a seaside resort town. Elise Jenkins, fresh from journalism school, expects to spend her first weeks on the job at the Ocean Point Weekly covering ordinary events. Instead, she's thrown into reporting a murder of one of the town's residents, and the murders rapidly multiply. Detective Mitch Burns is under great pressure to solve murders that not only have the locals experiencing shock and grief, but may drive away the tourists, too. Both Elise and Mitch get a chance to tell their side of the story, and it's fascinating to learn what each thinks of the other as the investigation (ahem, did I mention romance?) progresses. On top of that, Elise and Mitch are some of the nicest people around, people with whom you're definitely going to enjoy spending time. Bradford keeps you guessing until the end about the villain and the villain's motivation. One of the great things about Elise is the sensitivity she uses in her reporting, respecting both the victims' families and the investigation process. With characters as refreshing as an ocean breeze, a setting so vivid you're going to get a sudden urge for taffy, and a strong whodunit puzzle, the elements of this book come together in a satisfying way. I'm already looking for the next Elise Jenkins mystery!

Laura Bradford's likeable characters and interesting setting combine with an unusual motive to make a fun book that you'll gobble down faster than you can chug a Yahoo.Bradford's sense of place makes this book a memorable trip to the New Jersey coastline that anyone can squeeze into his/her schedule. Her honest, decent protagonists struggle with their suspicions and their professional goals, as well as a healthy attraction to each other.Perfectly titled, fast-moving, and with enough red herrings to keep you guessing, if you're a mystery fan, you'll be checking with your bookseller regularly to read the next book in this series.

This Jury of One says, "Well done."

Although I found the mystery intriguing and was unable to figure out the who the murderer was, the writing itself, as well as the almost "simple" leads, were so much less intriguing that I basically skimmed this book.

If anyone who has liked this book is interested in a truly wonderful book based at the Jersey shore, try Chris Grabenstein's "Tilt-a-Whirl" and "Whack A Mole"---great characterizations, mystery and laughs!!!

Jury of One is a real page-turner that kept me guessing throughout. I couldn't put it down until I knew who was behind it. I really liked the characters and can't wait for them to come back to life in a sequel. A great book to take to the beach.

I am perfectly aware that different folks like different kind of mysteries, but...
My preference for gritty police procedurals and Scotish noir doesn't prevent me from enjoying diverse authors like M.C. Beaton or Simon Brett.
But, this derivative little booklet is like a first draft of the small town writing circle. The inanity of the plot, the shear incompetence of everybody involved with the case is distracting. Ms. Bradford must be a romance writer in the making. I just hope she lives the mystery genre well alone.

Laura Bradford's debut novel, Jury of One is a quick read that keeps you guessing as to the killer's identity until the very end. Mitch Burns and Elise Jenkins are wonderfully crafted characters, who lead you through a cunning plot of deception. I recommend Jury of One for mystery lovers of all ages.

In the dead part of summer, August and the first part of September, as students wrap up leisure to start studying book again instead of bodies in bikinis, several dead bodies surface. On the beach and boardwalk in the Northeast, fun in the sun and, later, behind closed doors are noted for this peaceful, quiet town. That was before Mark M., a pedifile who's never measured up to grown women, uses and abuses (even to using a mallet to break down a door) Cindy at random as she lookied up at the star-filled night sky. She becomes his first victim. Every night he'd wander the neighborhood looking for prey.

Before long, there were other victims of this serial killer, but he always remembered Cindy as it all happened so easily from the back, the way he took his pleasure. He'd learned how to work it that way so as not to get caught with DNA, If a girl told, she could not prove anything. He gave a false name to each of them. He told Honey why he did things backward, and she immediately knew he was the killer, a jury of one.

In her mind, she had his convicted and executed for all the strife he had caused her, the only woman who truly loved him. It was not his body but his intellect she cared so much as to put herself in danger. As long as she faced him with innocense as she'd been able to do previously,she would be safe frtom his long knife. He thought he's covered all paths leading to him, that no one alive could point the finger of guilt at him, but he had misjudged Ms. Honey. She knew what he was capable of, what he couldn't do no matter how pretty the girl , but the revealing clothes always caught him off-kilter. At first, he'd just look, smile (chuckle a bit), then make plalns to take out his frustrations for being a damaged soul in a damaged body. He chose random victims, all of whom didn't know what hit them.

How could she expose him without letting others know her little secret? She had witnessed his multiple personalities, one a mean, vindictive (older than the others), hurtful monster. She knew he was the murderer so she had to run, or she could become his next victim.

This book introduces newspaper reporter Elise Jenkins and police detective Mitch Burns. As they begin their careers and their relationship with each other, they confront a serial killer. Elise and Mitch are likeable, although Elise both of them tend to blush and weep more than is truly practical for their occupations. The book provides a good story with good characters and a surprising solution.

This is the first in a great series of books. Excellent writing and a fast read. I was buying the newest one when I saw I had not reviewed this one. Could have sworn I did.
I have turned several people onto this series. The author is a wonderful warm woman who does book signings and has a great web-site. I recommend this book to all. You will NOT regret it and you will be hooked.
Buy at least the second one Forecast of Evil at the same time so you are not stuck waiting. The books get even better as they go along.
Andy