Axel Blackwell

My actual rating for this book is 3 ½ stars. I’m rounding up my Goodreads rating to 4 because it hit me on so many levels. I’ve lived a bit north of Port St. Joe all my life, so I know these places and people quite well. Even more, my dad is a retired cop from this area, so, oh man, do I know these people well. (He was a little disturbed by this book, since he knows several of the characters’ IRL counterparts, lol.)

It was by turns fun and difficult to read 'Dead Reckoning', since I started it just after the one year anniversary of Hurricane Michael, which severely damaged or even destroyed many of the places in the book. I laughed, I cried. #850Strong

You don’t have to know the area so intimately to get a pretty good sense of the place, however. The authors did a great job ‘translating’ the Panhandle. (It would be a good idea to use Google Maps, though. There is no other way to wrap your head around the geography.)

I loved the humor, which popped up in the most random places and was very… law enforcement. The descriptions of N FL weather were also hilariously accurate: “The sun was right overhead and Evan felt his hair melting before he’d made it halfway across the lot.” True story.

From the viewpoint of a semi-insider, the interaction in the LE community was very well done, as was the investigation itself. I’m really fascinated by Evan Caldwell. The ending, however, wasn’t 100% convincing. Not the resolution, sometimes that just happens. The ending itself was too abrupt and a little too easy. Once an investigation rolls, it rolls fast. But that was more “Law & Order” than most real cases.

If you’re from N FL, this is a must-read. If you’re not from N FL, read it anyway, because it’s really good.
… (altro)