Book Reviews

Book Blurb

It’s just one more body in one more destroyed house. In New Orleans, after Katrina, there are thousands of destroyed houses and hundreds of body yet to be found. Can one more matter? It does to Micky Knight as she takes on the search to find out who the woman was and why she might have died there. But is Micky searching for justice or just doing anything to avoid confronting the ways Katrina destroyed everything that had tied her to New Orleans?

Micky’s investigation leads to a tangle of greed and deceit that stretches back generations. Someone is using the destruction wrought by the flooding to finish what was started a hundred years ago. To stop them Micky will have to risk not just her life, but any chance to reconnect with Cordelia and rebuild the life she had before Katrina. But if she doesn’t stop them, a young teen whose only crime was wanting to help the destroyed city, will be the next body left in an abandoned house.

The sixth book in the Micky Knight mystery series.

 

Book Review

This sixth book in the Micky Knight series is still awash with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. So, there is palpable gloom hanging over folks. I really felt like I was right there in the trenches following the devastation and that was tough but an eye-opening experience. The complete enjoyment of this book is quite dependent on having read the previous installments. Since I have read them, this book was more than worth it!

Micky is still hurting from the betrayal by her lover and the subsequent separation from the love of her life. Work has been slim to none for Micky as so many folks have not or cannot return to New Orleans. True to form nevertheless, Micky gets involved in several escapades as she struggles with her feelings toward Cordelia. Two events set the tone and wheels whirring for Micky's primary activities. A church group from Wisconsin coming to assist in the Katrina ravaged New Orleans and a dead body clearly not a victim of Katrina at the house the Wisconsin group was assigned to work provide the underpinnings for Micky's primary escapades. Wonderfully detailed and incredibly intriguing!

Nathalie is one of the members from the church group and has her own mystery swirling around her. A weird turn of events initially leaves Nathalie in Micky's care, with no contact information at all. That is just the beginning of many odd scenarios that occur to Nathalie which continued to link Micky closer and closer to her, since there didn't seem anyone willing to stand up for her. In fact, Micky starts to have a truly protective concern for Nathalie during the ongoing struggle to get Nathalie safely re-connected plus a minor run-in with a medical team that turns into a major hullabaloo. The medical team were checking for infectious diseases, everybody in the vicinity of the dead body had to have blood work done, and Nathalie's blood work comes back with some disturbing results. Nathalie is caught between two intense forces and Micky keeps trying to do the best for her. Micky actually does a very fine job on Nathalie's behalf. I really liked Nathalie in addition to the fact that she brought out the best in Micky.

The whole question about Cordelia continually weaves through the book. I was constantly hoping some resolution would occur. Another member of the church group pops up in a rather disturbing manner in regard to the dead body that Micky initially investigates on her own and then is contracted to get to the bottom of things. This intertwining was delightfully maintained with an initial gentle escalation barreling into a dandy Micky heartthrobbing, death-defying classic conclusion. I so adore the super elevated thrill endings that are generally a part of this series. Number six in the collection is magnificent, but as I mentioned reading the previous books is a real plus to the complete enjoyment in this on going tour de force. Fantastic!

Oh, by the way, the title Water Mark comes directly from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and how in many locations the poignant height that the flood waters reached left a painful mark not only on the buildings but on the residents who would try to rebuild or left New Orleans permanently. 

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Bold Strokes Books for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 288 pages/99099 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	01-September-2010
Price	$9.99 ebook, $16.95 paperback
Buy Link	http://amzn.to/2bxrJET