When The Dead Speak (Sam Casey Mystery) [Hardcover]

S.D. Tooley (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sam Casey Mystery | Publication Date: January 1, 1999

A body is discovered in a cement pillar. Clasped in his hand is a gold pin shaped like a lightning bolt. What secret did he carry to his grave and why is someone hell-bent on keeping that secret buried? Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey is more than just a cop. She is part Native American with a unique ability to hear the dead speak. They tell her secrets about their life and death. And sometimes what she learns can get her killed. The puzzle pieces pile up: The deceased is a U.S. soldier reported AWOL during the Korean War. A state representative owns a pin identical to the dead man's. And Sam discovers another pin in her father's jewelry box. Had her father known the deceased? What story had her father, an investigative reporter, been working on at the time of his own death years ago? This is a gripping story of racism, conspiracy, and cover-up, and one woman's willingness to risk everything to find out the truth.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey has a special gift inherited from her Native American forebears - she can sense things from the dead. What she senses from the man whose body was found in a cement pillar tells her that his murder was part of a larger puzzle. The dead man was an African-American soldier reported AWOL during the Korean War. He was found clutching a pin shaped like a lightning bolt ... a pin identical to one that Sam has seen in the possession of an unscrupulous politician. This is an excellent first novel, fast-paced with interesting characters and a complex mystery. The whodunit is known almost from the beginning, but finding out the what, the how, and the why remained intriguing. There is a strong touch of the supernatural, a bit of romance, and characters who are likeable and interesting enough to make me look forward to the second installment. -- Under the Covers Jan/99

Exciting and fast-paced from the very first pages, When the Dead Speak grabs hold of readers, thrusting them into a story filled with intrigue, plot twists, humor, a bit of romance, and Native American mysticism. Tooley's excellent debut novel of mystery and suspense, with its unforgettable characters and vivid story, shows the depth of research into not only police investigation, but Native American culture as well. A grand opening indeed to her Sam Casey series. Mystery and suspense buffs can look forward to more crime-solving in Book Two, Nothing Else Matters, due out in bookstores in January. -- ForeWord Magazine Feb/99

Nifty, X-Fileish without the alien tint, this novel slyly pulls you in and under, immersing you in an intricately woven plot. A dead body is found. Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey is called in. Sam is a bit different from your run of the mill cop; the dead speak to her, tell her secrets and little details of their lives. She got this gift from her mother, a Sioux medicine woman. Complications pile up and are more than they initially seem. Sam discovers a connection to her father and chaos ensues. All of the delightful intricacies of this book blend with Native American culture and form into a delicious romp of a juicy read. Taste it for yourselves. -- Buzz Review News Feb/99

The book opens with a bang, literally. The body that propels the mystery forward is found embedded in a cement column after a freeway accident. When our hero, Sergeant Samantha Casey, sees the body at the medical examiner's, she is able to gather details about the victim that are hidden to most mortals. Apparently, all Sam has to do is touch victims ... and she can detect all sorts of clues about their lives and deaths. Armed with Sergeant Casey's clues, detectives Frank Travis and Jake Mitchell begin their investigation of a crime that took place over twenty years ago ... In Sam Casey, Tooley creates a character who begs to be loved. She also sets up a life situation for Sam that will draw readers back for more. It looks like Tooley has a winner on her first novel and I look forward to her next, Nothing Else Matters. -- Mystery News Feb/Mar/99

This debut novel is the first in a projected series featuring Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey. Tooley, a former technical writer and riverboat blackjack dealer, brings an intense interest in Native American culture to the adventures of Sam Casey, a bright, beautiful heroine who is the daughter of a Sioux medicine woman. Sam has inherited enough of her mother's mystic power so that when the dead speak, they speak to her. The first to speak is a long-missing Korean vet whose body is found encased in a cement pillar. It is the beginning of a murderous political puzzle involving everyone from the president of the U.S. to Sam's late father. A promising first mystery of particular interest to readers of Native American mysteries. -- Booklist 1/15/99

When the Dead Speak by S.D. Tooley is a fine mystery, the first in a series of Sam Casey novels. The strongest point of this book is the artful portrayal of characters by S.D. Tooley. You get to know the characters and become attached to their realistic lives as you would a friend. The story is strong, suspenseful, and exciting. There is a lot of mystic in the way that Sam Casey feels the messages that the dead transmit to her. It is fun and credible without requiring the reader to be a believer of such things. -- Coyote Book Shop 12/4/98

From the Publisher

S.D. Tooley combines Native American mysticism with police procedure and political intrigue in her first Sam Casey mystery. She has a keen ear for dialogue and her years as a technical writer explains her acute attention to detail. She has crafted an entertaining mystery novel and brings together an intriguing blend of characters in her series.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Full Moon Publishing; First Edition edition (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966602102
• ISBN-13: 978-0966602104
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,087,874 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fast-Paced, Topsy-Turvy Ride, October 11, 2000

By 

Pamela Stone - See all my reviews

This review is from: When The Dead Speak (Sam Casey Mystery) (Hardcover)

It started with a wreck in Chasen Heights, a mainly blue collar town on the Southern border of Lake Michigan just fifteen miles north of Chicago. A corvette cuts off a semi on the expressway and causes the semi to hit the center medium and jack knive, exposing enough concrete all the way up to the cement pillar where it connected to the overpass. Enough concrete had broken away to expose mummified remains, perfectly preserved.

Jake Mitchell and his partner Frank Travis get the case, along with their new partner Detective Sergeant Sam Casey who is not the usual police officer. She has inherited a gift from her mother and grandmother. Sam's mom Abby is a Sioux medicine woman, and they both have the ability to speak to the dead. Sam knows facts that no one else knows.

The body that was encased in cement was that of a solider from the Korean War who was reported AWOL and in his hand was a lighting bolt pin, which when Sam touched, she saw dozens of lighting bolt shapes. She also saw body parts lying in a field. Sam felt a cold wave go up her body and the hair raise than the vision ended. Sam remembers that she saw another lighting bolt pin in a safe of State Representative Preston Hillard when she was under cover at his home. Hillard claims to know nothing about the pin and never knew the dead man. Sam finds out that her dad had one in his jewelry box. What do the solider and her father have to do with each other? Sam must uncover the facts even though her own boss Murphy has closed the case for good.

WHEN THE DEAD SPEAK is a fast-paced, topsy-turvy ride that mixed with humor and a little loving along the way will keep you enthralled all the way through the book. I really liked the fact that mixed into the pot is some Native American Culture, which made the book even more tantalizing. I can hardly wait for the next Sam Casey mystery to come out. Expect great things from this author.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointed. Expected more based on other reviews., December 10, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: When the Dead Speak (Sam Casey Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)

After reading the reviews, I had high expectations for this series. I found the author's style very disjointed and unpleasant to read. There were far too many characters and far too little character development. The book would have been better if the author had focused on a few of the characters and worked on polishing them more.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good!, June 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: When The Dead Speak (Sam Casey Mystery) (Hardcover)

Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey has a "gift" from her Native American heritage. She is able to speak with the dead. Not words, but images. When a man's body is found encased in a cement pillar in a burb of Chicago, she is called in. The dead man has a golden pin shaped like a lightning bolt clutched in his hand.

Sam, with a little help from Jake and Tim (a boy computer genius/hacker), she unravels a complex case which dates back to the Korean War. The case gets worse as it connects to the death of her own father years ago.

I did not think this one would be good. A detective that is able to speak with the dead? Never work! I was wrong! This was an interesting book from the first page. The case gets more complex than I let on. Very good reading here!***