Justice Denied (J. P. Beaumont Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

J. A. Jance (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 2008 | Series: J. P. Beaumont Mysteries

The murder of an ex-drug dealer ex-con—gunned down on his mother's doorstep—seems just another turf war fatality. Why then has Seattle homicide investigator J.P. Beaumont been instructed to keep this assignment hush-hush? Meanwhile, Beau's lover and fellow cop, Mel Soames, is involved in her own confidential investigation. Registered sex offenders from all over Washington State are dying at an alarming rate—and not all due to natural causes.

A metropolis the size of Seattle holds its fair share of brutal crime, corruption, and dirty little secrets. But when the separate trails they're following begin to shockingly intertwine, Beau and Mel realize that they have stumbled onto something bigger and more frightening than they anticipated—a deadly conspiracy that's leading them to lofty places they should not enter . . . and may not be allowed to leave alive.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In bestseller Jance's complex, overlong 18th J.P. Beaumont novel (after Long Time Gone), the Seattle special homicide investigator works three cases simultaneously. The first involves the murder of a wrongly imprisoned ex-con, the second the disappearance of a whistle-blowing electronics engineer who vanished the day Mount Saint Helen's erupted in 1980, the third the deaths of several former felons. Meanwhile, Mel Soames, Beau's female colleague and lover, looks into the unexplained deaths of recently released sex crimes perpetrators as well as the disappearance of a childhood friend's abusive father. Unbelievably, all Beaumont's and Mel's assignments meld into one, except for the case of the missing engineer. The detectives are helped by the delightful Todd Hatcher, a young forensic economist and statistical analyst, but the exceptionally busy plot, host of characters, incredible coincidences, ignored clues and red herrings add up to a less than stellar effort from the usually reliable Jance. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

It's been a couple of years since we last saw him (Long Time Gone, 2005), but Seattle cop J. P. Beaumont hasn't changed much. He has the same job, working with the city's Special Homicide Investigation Team; the same girlfriend, fellow investigator Mel Soames; the same straight-shooting, stick-to-it, never-say-quit attitude. Jance's success, not to mention the longevity of the Beaumont series (more than 20 years and still going strong), lies in the strength of her characters and the craftiness of her stories. This one, involving the death of an ex-con, has plenty of twists and more than enough hard-boiled banter to keep fans reading. Pitt, David --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Harper; Reprint edition (June 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060540931
• ISBN-13: 978-0060540937
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #446,579 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

J.A. Jance is the top 10 New York Times bestselling author of the Joanna Brady series; the J. P. Beaumont series; three interrelated thrillers featuring the Walker family; and Edge of Evil, the first in a series featuring Ali Reynolds. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tucson, Arizona.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth the wait, August 21, 2007

By 

Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Justice Denied: A J. P. Beaumont Novel (J. P. Beaumont Mysteries) (Hardcover)

It seems that there is more time between installments of the J.P. Beaumont series than there used to be but, as usual, this book is worth the wait. J.P. is given a top-secret special assignment by his boss which involves the murder of an ex-con who had been released from jail when DNA evidence exonerated him. Meanwhile his live-in girlfriend, Mel, has been given her own assignment in investigating released prisoners who have died under suspicious circumstances. Things get tense when J.P. is forced to keep his case a secret from Mel and their relationship goes through its ups and downs in this book. J.A. Jance is a master at constructing plots and she also excels at tying up all the loose ends at the climax of her novels. It also amazes me how a female author gets into the mind of her male lead character and makes him so believable. Hopefully, this long-running series will continue for many more years.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Justive Denied, August 27, 2007

By 

Ginger L Hobbs (Universal City, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Justice Denied: A J. P. Beaumont Novel (J. P. Beaumont Mysteries) (Hardcover)

My favorite of all of Jance's books are the Beaumont series, but this was not very entertaining. It read like the end of the career of J P Beaumont. There was a lot of back history of the family and not very much action. I had the feeling that the author was trying to put an end to this series.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Justice is Served, September 3, 2007

By 

Barbara Kay (Farmville, N.C. USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Justice Denied: A J. P. Beaumont Novel (J. P. Beaumont Mysteries) (Hardcover)

First of all I want to say that I have met J A Jance in the author/reader book signing and reading events. I had the opportunity to speak with her at length at a Walden Books store when she was autographing her poetry book. She is a real person and it was a pleasure to talk with her and perhaps one of the reasons I am a #1 fan of all Jance's novels. Having lived in Seattle (1970-2002) I read the books and visualize the area, the restaurants from the Doghouse to the El Gaucho and fisherman's terminal, and the freeways and the commutes. I can tell you that inside knowledge adds to the charm of the novels but it is not necessary to get caught up in the motion, the characters, the developments of the story line. I am so tickled that Beau and Mel have finally made it official and I cheered that they got married in Vegas and Mel's wedding gift brings tears to the eyes. The story lines in this one are quite intricate and there are many threads that come together in a believable way. I was totally hooked from the beginning and I was very satisfied in the way it all came together. This was a very satisfying novel and I give it a very definite 5 stars. J A Jance has done it again. Thank you.