Customer Reviews

Secrets to Die For (Detective Wade Jackson Mysteries)

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was looking forward to reading Secrets to Die For because I'd read Sellers' first book, The Sex Club. Secrets was even better. I couldn't put it down.

It had such a real feel to it. Sellers certainly did her homework on police procedure and the details grounded the story and gave it grit and urgency.

Full of twists and turns, this was just a great thriller / mystery, and I love her detective, Wade Jackson. I'm eager for the next book, please!

I'd like to give a very honest review and opinion of this Author. She is an excellent writer. Very talented. Her stories are very enjoyable. They are well written, well put together, not predictable. Very fresh. I also like how she provides just enough of the gory details needed for the story, without going overboard and turning it in to a sickening gore-fest. She also does not have her characters cursing just for the sake of cursing. While there are some strong words in her books, they are always said at appropriate times, and are mostly far between. Again, just enough to make the story sound real. She really is an excellent mystery writer.

That said, as good as she is, she could be better. I am very glad I read these books out of order. I started with book 3 in the series. (It's the least offensive one) I can honestly tell you that had I started with book one or two, I wouldn't have read any more. You see, for all her talent and fresh ideas, she is very offensive in that she is using these books to push her personal views on politics and religion. When I read a book, I want to become absorbed in it! I want to let go of all of the things going on around me, and really just immerse myself in the story. I found that so hard to do because after awhile, I found myself being insulted and offended about every 4 pages. I am conservative, and I'm a Christian. And as a conservative Christian, I really felt like I was being beat up in these books. Her views on conservative Christians are not at all a good representation of how most conservatives or Christians feel or act. These books had excellent story lines, so it seems like such a shame she had to offend half her readers. I really saw no reason for her to insult republicans, Christians, pro-lifers, and people with conservative family values. Once or twice, I could have easily overlooked, but it isn't once or twice. It is constantly. It is almost like you are being lectured to. I didn't like it, and it really ruined the books for me. As much as I enjoyed the stories, and feel she is a talented writer, I have to say that she would be a better writer if she would leave politics and religion out of it. It is a fiction mystery, and there is no reason to insult others for not sharing your same views. There was really no reason at all for about 80% of the statements she makes concerning her political/religious views. It was not a part of the story, and it added nothing to it.

In closing, she is an excellent writer. She is smart and funny, and can really hold your attention. BUT if you are conservative, Republican, pro-life, religious, and do not believe in supplying 13 year olds with free abortions, birth control, and STD treatments without their parents knowledge, or do not believe in gay marriage, are not ultra-green, and you support the military, then these books are probably not for you. Because like me, you will find yourself being insulted, not respected, for having a different view then this author.

The only advice I would ever give her is to please leave the politics and religion out of it. It's not a part of your story, and it is hurtful, and very insulting to the readers who paid for your books. If I want to read about politics and religion, I will, and often do. But I do not care to have it shoved down my throat when I am trying to unwind with a good fiction mystery.

I stumbled onto LJ Sellers e-books as a new user to Kindle. I became wrapped up in the Det. Jackson series immediately! As a retired homicide detective myself, I can't put these books down! I have read all 4 in her series of Jackson crime novels, and look forward to the next one! Sellers is one of the BEST authors I have read, and believe me, I read alot! She keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way to the end. I have moved her ahead of Baldacci, Connely, Patterson, Ludlum as far as interesting and accurate story writing.

I enjoyed this so much that I just bought a second book by this author and plan to buy the rest.

The story and characters were engaging and realistic. It's hard to say a lot without this becoming a spoiler so I'll just say it had lots of twists and turns. I hate when I can predict the ending of a book within the first few chapters and that was not the case here.

I'm of mixed feelings about "Secrets To Die For." On the one hand, it's a fast-paced police procedural, with lots of authenticity and plenty of crisp plotting. On the other hand, it feels like a triumph of craft over art, a perfunctory product of how-to-write-a-mystery exercises, workshops and how-to books.

There's no original writer's voice here, no dialogue or descriptions that make you say "Wow!" and no characters that developed well enough to inspire ongoing emotional connections for readers -- a strange disconnect given the lurid subject matter of the story. Especially disappointing is the failure to give develop Eugene, Oregon as an enticing setting -- given that the real Eugene is bursting with rich personality.

The book simply lacks flavor, in my opinion. I'd like to see the author, now that she's developed her craft, take a cue from the masters of her chosen genre and develop her ART by spicing up her characters, settings, dialogue and descriptions in risk-taking, original fashion. Ultimately, readers become loyal to series authors because they love the central and recurring characters -- but I really don't feel like I've been given any reason to feel invested in the flat, one-dimensional Wade Jackson and his colleagues.

I wish the author well, and will probably browse her next efforts -- but won't buy unless I perceive that subsequent books are necessary improvements on this one.

I bought this one after finishing the first book in the series (The Sex Club) and I have to say it only gets better.

This second book in the series provides a tighter and more compelling story as Detective Jackson works his way through a complex and frustrating case that challenges his own assumptions about society.

Nothing is as it seems in this case, where a young woman social worker has been brutally murdered and raped, following on from two possibly linked rapes. Sellers keeps the suspence running to the end.

If there is one thing that frustrated me it was that the backdrop story of the romance with Kera Kollmorgan is largely missing, with large chunks of her story skipped over in this book. I had looked forward to seeing more of her, after her strong part in the first book.

I like L.J. Sellers' Detective Jackson books mostly because I live in Eugene, the setting for the stories. However, even if I wasn't a hometown resident, I'd still enjoy the crispness and accuracy of these mysteries. So much for CSI! You're not getting that DNA match in thirty seconds.

It's good to read a mystery/crime book firmly based in the real world.

L.J. takes on controversial topics with sincerity and aplomb. I enjoyed The Sex Club, so picked up the second in the series. I'm ready to find out what happens between Wade and Kera, whether Katie can survive an addicted mom, and what more the crime scene of Eugene will throw at Detective Jackson.

Well done. I recommend it and the first book in the series to anybody who enjoys modern crime novels.

Detective Jackson is quickly becoming one of my favorites! This is the second book featuring the Eugene, Oregon homicide detective that I've read, and L.J. Sellers is one of those writers I'm going to keep following.

When a series of rapes in the city of Eugene suddenly turns to murder, Detective Wade Jackson and his team are on the case. But what they at first thought were crimes against women soon reveal themselves to be much darker hate crimes. Jackson begins to question himself in this book, asking how he feels about things and wondering if he's lost his edge when he doesn't clue into certain aspects of the case as quickly as he'd like. Then he suddenly finds himself racing against the clock to find the killer before he strikes again.

In the midst of all this he's dealing with his teenaged daughter, an ex-wife who seems to be up to some of her old tricks, and his girlfriend's ex-husband trying to muddy the waters of their relationship. It's a lot to deal with while you're trying to stop a dangerous criminal.

But rest assured, with Jackson on the case the bad guys don't stand a chance. This is a terrific mystery with twists, turns and questions flying every which way and it will keep you guessing the whole time. I had to shush my son from talking to me towards the end because I literally couldn't stop reading! I'm anxious to read the next one in the series, and hope Sellers and Jackson keep going for a long, long time!

One other thing ... when I finished the book I understood the title much better, and felt it was a poignant and touching title. It made me a little sad to think about, and I hope that no one ever has a secret to die for again.

After reading THE SEX CLUB, I was eagerly anticipating the release of the second book in the Detective Wade Jackson series by LJ Sellers. I can say I was not disappointed! In Secrets To Die For, Ms. Sellers once again puts a "hot Button" topic as the center of her detective's investigation. Never boring, always surprising, Secrets To Die For is looking like another best-seller for Sellers!

I bought this right after I finished Sex Club, cause I couldn't wait to read more about Detective Jackson and Kera Kollmorgan.
I hoped I would enjoy Secrets to Die For as much as I enjoyed Sex Club, but I was wrong.

I loved it MORE!

LJ Sellers is a fantastic author and in Detective Jackson she has created an astonishingly believable, flawed, likable character!
Can't wait to read more!