Regulated for Murder: A Michael Stoddard American Revolution Thriller [Kindle Edition]

Suzanne Adair (Author)

Book Description

Book #1 of Suzanne Adair's Michael Stoddard American Revolution Thrillers Series.

For ten years, an execution hid murder. Then Michael Stoddard came to town.

Bearing a dispatch from his commander in coastal Wilmington, North Carolina, redcoat Lieutenant Michael Stoddard arrives in Hillsborough in February 1781 in civilian garb. He expects to hand a letter to a courier working for Lord Cornwallis, then ride back to Wilmington the next day. Instead, Michael is greeted by the courier's freshly murdered corpse, a chilling trail of clues leading back to an execution ten years earlier, and a sheriff with a fondness for framing innocents--and plans to deliver Michael up to his nemesis, a psychopathic British officer.

Praise for Regulated for Murder, a Suspense Magazine "Best of 2011:"

"Driven by a desire to see justice done, no matter what guise it must take, [Michael Stoddard] is both sympathetic and interesting." -- Motherlode

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Award-winning novelist Suzanne Adair is a Florida native who lives in a two hundred-year-old city at the edge of the North Carolina Piedmont, named for an English explorer who was beheaded. Her suspense and thrillers transport readers to the Southern theater of the Revolutionary War, where she brings historic towns, battles, and people to life. She fuels her creativity with Revolutionary War reenacting and visits to historic sites. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking, dancing, hiking, and spending time with her family.

Product Details

• File Size: 559 KB
• Print Length: 238 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005V334M2
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #310,553 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars First rate historical fiction and a heck of a good murder mystery March 14, 2012

By J. Chambers TOP 50 REVIEWER

Format:Kindle Edition

Overall: 5 stars

Plot/Storyline: 5 stars

Regulated for Murder is historical fiction, taking place in North Carolina during the last months of the American Revolution. It was also a suspenseful action-filled murder mystery. Author Suzanne Adair has written a superb story set against a realistic backdrop of revolution and the complexities of wavering colonial loyalties.

The book's title is based on the Regulator Movement, which was a North Carolina uprising, lasting from approximately 1765 to 1771, in which citizens took up arms against corrupt colonial officials. Although the last battle in the uprising had taken place ten years before this story, the fallout was still being felt in the colony.

When Lieutenant Michael Stoddard was sent with a message to Lord Cornwallis, he hardly expected to find his Loyalist contact Ezra Griggs murdered, even less to find himself suspected of the murder. Instead of a quick return to the comforts of garrison life in Wilmington, he found himself investigating the murder. There were plenty of possible suspects, but his time was running out, and if the locals learned that he was from the British army, he would be executed as a spy.

Regulated for Murder had all the elements of a marvelous historical drama, and the author wove the fictional elements into the historical background perfectly.

Characters: 5 stars

The story was filled with memorable characters. British officer Michael Stoddard was a decent man dedicated to investigating civil crimes and bringing the perpetrators to justice. He admired the saucy widow Kate Duncan, but she feigned disinterest until their paths crossed in a most unexpected way.... Would she keep his secret and save his life, or would she turn him over to the rebels?

There was no shortage of bad guys. The sheriff and deputy of Hillsborough, where most of the story took place, were as evil as they came. When a murder took place in his town, the sheriff was far more interested in using it to his own advantage than he was in bringing the killer to justice.

Two of the most influential characters, Aaron White and Violet Griggs, were never seen or heard, but their stories had a profound influence on the story.

The British redcoats were, I believe, represented in an historically accurate way. Some were brutal warriors who gave no quarter, while others were decent types just trying to do their duty while maintaining their honor.

Writing style: 5 stars

The writing was professional quality. Dialogues were realistic. The book impressed me as being a finely-crafted story by an author who cared about her work very much. The story obviously required quite a bit of research about the American Revolution and what life was like for colonials in that era.

At the end of the book were an historical afterword, which gave some helpful background information on some of the events and places mentioned in the story; and a selected bibliography.

Note: Although certain characters in Regulated for Murder have appeared in other stories by the author, the book can be read as a standalone volume. Read more ›

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Putting the "story" back into "history" December 24, 2011

By Rhonda Lane

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a rollicking good yarn. Still, Adair's history is impeccable and provides a window into colonial life that our school history books zip over. The British Army in the colonies provided law enforcement and protected citizens, even those rebelling against the Crown. Lt. Michael Stoddard may be a soldier, but he's also a cop, sworn to protect and serve, whether it's the King and his interests or the folks in town. Even better, if Michael were a real man living today, he and his cohorts Nick and Kate would fit in just fine at your Super Bowl party. Adair manages a deft balance between period voice and showing us that people living in the colonies weren't that different from us. Plus, she spices the stew with plenty of excitement and peril.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Impeccable descriptions, tight plotting, a cast of rebels & redcoats and constant tension keeps page turning December 22, 2011

By Helena

Format:Kindle Edition

Novels set during the American Revolutionary period are rare to find any more so finding a great one is a challenge. Thank goodness for writers like Suzanne Adair who not only keep that era alive, but accurate and intriguing thanks to skillful story-telling, period detail, clever plotting and well-drawn characters.
In Regulated for Murder, Adair provides another great read (her 4th), this time in the form of a murder mystery that reintroduces the well-liked Lt. Michael Stoddard from her first novel, award-winning Paper Woman, on a mission to deliver a message to Lord Cornwallis via courier Ezra Griggs.
This historical thriller picks up the thread of Stoddard now stationed in Wilmington, North Carolina. Bearing a dispatch from his commander, redcoat Stoddard arrives in Hillsborough in February 1781 expecting to deliver his message to Griggs. Instead, he arrives at the scene of Grigg's murder and is impressed to investigate it in an effort to clear himself under Sheriff Schmidt whose penchant for framing innocents and protecting those with a purse has allowed a murderer to go free.
Having crossed paths with the cunning and devious Lt. Dunstan Fairfax in Adair's previous novel, tension builds as his hideous handiwork casts a shadow over Stoddard's assignment turned murder investigation.
A complex series of clues surrounding Grigg's murder that has origins more than a decade before with land agents pitted against regulators (business men/land owners) is deftly woven throughout this compactly mapped story that is populated with a wonderful array of characters each with their own tale that brings the revolutionary period to life and contributes to the web of the story....
Adair ratchets up suspense, intrigue and sexual tension in a story that takes place over 48 hours during a pivotal period in the American Revolution. Readers feel the hard days riding through North Carolina back country, the simplicity of colonial life interspersed with the hardships of war and the struggles of women and the physically impaired. Stoddard is ably assisted in his search for clues by the artistically gifted Noah Carroll whose sketches put a face to the deviant criminal stalking Stoddard, his new found friends and the town of Hillsborough. While boarding with lady interest Kate Duncan and her aunt Rachel White, Stoddard, with the help of Kate and fellow townspeople, pieces together the mystery of a young couple believed to have eloped, reveals the town's `sheriff' and deputy as deserters and frees a falsely accused dandy. But not before he is ensnared in a gruesome scenario with Fairfax that illustrates the brutality of war and unguarded frontier.
Anxious to catch land agent and suspected murderer Horatio Bowater now believed to have committed several heinous acts, Stoddard strikes an unholy bargain with Fairfax setting up a future confrontation between the two that readers hope to see resolved in a new installment of Adair's work.
Impeccable descriptions, tight plotting, a fascinating cast of rebels and redcoats and constant tension will keep readers turning the pages of Regulated for Murder and cheering on the intrepid Stoddard and his assistant, Spry. Read more ›

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Fun History Lesson September 5, 2012

By GG Byron

Format:Paperback

Suzanne Adair's Revolutionary War mystery/thriller "Regulated for Murder" is a non-stop delightful read. The true-to-life story was meticulously fabricated after more research than I will ever do, no matter how many books I write (one to date...). The historical details are presented naturally without a hint of didactic interruption. Simply a great story, beautifully told.
Suzanne's characters walk right off her pages. She lives and breathes details of the period by participating in reenactments of Revolutionary War battles. Clearly, time-travel is the best way to research.
As a recently-arrived Yankee in North Carolina, this story, set in my new home state is now a part of my appreciation for it.
I applaud Suzanne for her professional story-telling! Michael Stoddard, her intelligence-officer protagonist, had me watching over his shoulder all the way. Highly recommended!

More About the Author

Award-winning novelist Suzanne Adair is a Florida native who lives in a two hundred-year-old city at the edge of the North Carolina Piedmont, named for an English explorer who was beheaded. Her suspense and thrillers transport readers to the Southern theater of the Revolutionary War, where she brings historic towns, battles, and people to life. She fuels her creativity with Revolutionary War reenacting and visits to historic sites. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking, dancing, hiking, and spending time with her family.