Customer Reviews

Night Laws

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Introducing Lieutenant Bryson Coventry, a Denver, Colorado police detective. Just your regular working class stiff who loves his job and the many women he encounters along the way in NIGHT LAWS, author Jim Hansen's first thriller novel in the Laws series (there are currently three in the works).

With excellent dialogue and a creepy villain who loves to make women "live out" their darkest death-fears, Bryson has a tough week ahead of him. A local Denver attorney is somehow involved in the murders and our detective is quickly wrapped up in the case. When Coventry uncovers a supposed phony kidnaping and possible murder, weird clues rear their ugly heads. Psychology college students are vanishing. Hair samples are found in legal files. Harley bikers' bodies turn-up in the desert. But with Denver's premier detective on the trail of the killer, the pieces slowly come together and a climactic encounter draws near.
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Having had the opportunity to have read SHADOW LAWS, Mr. Hansen's second in the Laws series, I may be a bit spoiled. I read Shadow Laws first, then went on to this novel, Night Laws (reverse order). I must say that I enjoyed Shadow Laws quite a bit more, mainly because I felt the pacing to be much snappier. There were times in Night Laws where the action dragged for several pages before returning to that bang! bang! pace I'd grown accustomed to from this able author.

But that's not to say that Night Laws wasn't worth my reading time. It was! I'm guessing that Mr. Hansen has grown as a writer as he continues this great series - which is why I enjoyed the second novel more than this first one.

I will be reading the third Laws novel in this series. And I have a feeling it'll be even better than the first two.

You'll be glad to know that Bryson Coventry is at it again, only this time he has two bodies to contend with. This maniac doesn't just kill; he tortures and brutally murders them. As usual, Coventry gets involved with one of the suspects, Tianca. Bless his heart, he just can't help it.
One of the victims is a close friend of Haley Wilde, a lawyer with the ink still wet on her diploma but she's determined to find the killer and almost gets killed in the process. The solution is totally unexpected and that's just what you get when you read one of Hansen's books.

Beware following Bryson Coventry into places where he will be questioning witnesses and suspects about murders that occur in his jurisdiction. You'll follow him right into danger.

A riveting tale of murder and mahem that will have you staying up late to see how the murder of a young woman leads to other murders and kidnappings. You'll just have to know what the secret is that lawyer Kelly Parks withheld from Coventry when questioned about a strange phone call made to her number on the phone of the victim after she was murdered.

What involvement does Kelly's boss have in this investigation of a serial killer who is using horrible methods to kill young women. Will Coventry be in time to save the latest victim? Do the victims have a common factor that marks them for the killer? These are some of the questions you'll just have to know the answers to.

Highly recommended as a book you won't be able to put down. A delightfully macabre tale by talented Jim Michael Hanson with well-drawn, lifelike characters who move the plot along. Lots of action, lots of suspense. Enjoy. I sure did.

Bryson Coventry is a Denver homicide detective hot on the trail of a maniacal serial killer. Kelly Parks is an attorney who received an anonymous telephone call following the vicious murder of a woman. Parks had only one contact with her a year earlier--at a dark and isolated gas station.

Coventry is determined to find the murderer and to find the connection between Parks and the victim. Parks is determined to keep her connection from Coventry because it could end her legal career and bring down her mentor and the large, prestigious law firm she works for.

Now, another woman, connected to the isolated gas station, is missing. Coventry's quest to save her and solve other disappearances is complicated by his interest in Parks. Parks is determined to find answers to save her career and perhaps her own life. She only hopes she didn't unwittingly participate in a murder.

Hansen has written a fast-paced and compelling novel that is packed with twists and turns, keeping the reader on the 'edge of their seat.' His ability to bring together what appear to be two stories is a treat.

Armchair Interviews says: This scintillating novel is highly recommended.

I bought this book because I was looking for a new author and the reviewers seemed to be impressed. I must say that I was disappointed. The plot is full of some fairly serious holes, there was way too much discussion of coffee, and the correct spelling of "losing" is with one "o." Seriously, the story was OK but I hope Shadow Laws will be better. I'm only into the first 50 pages but it seems like more of the same.

NIGHT LAWS by Jim Michael Hansen. Kelly Parks is an attorney at Denver's largest law firm where she is warned by a vicious killer tht she is his next target.It is up to Denver homicide detective Bryson Coventry to find out why Parks is a target and exactly what secrets her firm is concealing. Parks realizes she must learn the truth to save her life and to satisfy herself about her possible unwitting participation in a murder. Action in some ways is reminiscent of Grisham's The Firm, i.e., powerful law firm above the law. Talk about a Rocky Mountain high.

I'm really impressed with the first book in the series and I'll be reading more of them. This book is on par with the best authors in this category.

Night Laws is the first book in the Laws series featuring Denver homicide detective Bryson Coventry. All the books in the Laws series are stand-alone thrillers and can be read in any order. Bryson Coventry and his African American partner, Shalifa Netherwood, return in every book to a new and exciting adventure. The series includes Night Laws, Shadow Laws, Fatal Laws, Deadly Laws, Bangkok Laws and Immortal Laws.

A few plot pot holes here and there and little too much mindless casual sex throughout by the good guys. Since it all began in a psych class, why didn't the investigation go there?..it was barely mentioned after the detectives decided it was the key. The action got a little frenetic at times with too many characters in trouble at the same time, but over all a good fast read. It's not exceptional or great but good.

Kelly Parks is an up-and-coming attorney in one of Denver's largest law firms. She is both beautiful and smart. Her life was going along just fine until the day Homicide Detective Bryson Coventry walked in.

Coventry is investigating a murder where the perpetrator used the victim's cell phone to warn Kelly that she was on his murder list. With every question she is asked, Kelly realizes that Coventry's murder is tied to a not so legal situation she had participated in for the firm; a situation where Kelly might have actually participated in a murder herself. Needing to know, Kelly begins her own investigation into the particulars of that incident from her past.

As the two dig deeper into their respective inquiries, unbeknownst to them, they are on a circular path leading back to a place where no one is safe.

This is a gritty crime novel that grabs your attention in the first few pages, like a fire-fight in a movie. Jim Hansen has created characters and details that are three-dimensional and vibrant.

Every page is filled with details that give you more and more insight into the characters. But these same details keep you constantly off-guard. You may think you are closer to solving the crime than Coventry is, but read one more page, and you come to find you are actually way off the mark.

This reviewer says to turn off your crime thrillers on television and tune-in to this book.

Kathy Martin
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