Sacrificed Lives

by Beverley Brackett

In this fast-paced thriller, two old friends, Balt Monroe and Hollis Doc Halliday, investigate the thirty-year-old disappearance of twin girls. As their efforts bring them closer to the truth, they... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1919874216
• ISBN13: 9781919874210
• Release Date: November 2001
• Publisher: Covos Books
• Length: 233 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Entertaining

Overview: This book was surprisingly well-written for a first novel. While nothing in it is utterly original (but little really is, so that is hardly a fault, but more a reality), it combines multiple elements, such as the themes and emotions that it prompts into a compelling tale that is quite difficult to put down. The plot is simple, the characters develop only to a small extent and almost all of them are racist, but the story does have many interesting and amusing aspects. Unlike most books that I have ever read, the humor only grows toward the climax. Hopefully, the author will write another book someday. I would love to read one. A. Plot This story is centered in South Carolina, and focuses on a single question: What happened to Yvonne in 1966. The plot is well-developed, passing through a series of points that, while not exactly predictable, aren't revelatory either. The conflicts in the novel are realistic and compelling. The obvious racist tendencies by several of the characters highlights a recent trend to point out unresolved race issues in the United STates, perhaps in part due to President Obama's election. As such, it is a timely commentary, despite the fact that it was published seven years ago, and took place five years before that. The resolution of the climax is somewhat vague, which is disappointing, but understandable for a novice author. It is a bit difficult to know how to bring off a resolution to a conflict that has been built to in this fashion. As such, I don't really penalize her on it. B. Characters My biggest issue with the characters in the story is that the racists are uniformly poorly informed, bigoted, and stupid, with one exception. While there is certainly a striking correlation between ignorance and racism, not all racists are morons. In addition, the one exception that I mention is a man who is extremely racist, to the point of race blindness (he comments, amusingly, at one point in the story, "If it's white and it moves, I'm gonna shoot it."), is actually a black man mistrustful and hateful of whites. As such, the morality espoused, trite as it was ("Racism is bad, and racists are stupid.") ended up being hypocritical. This character, named Punch, who actually TRAINS his dogs to hate WHITE people, is eminently more educated and coherent and logical than his white counterparts. He still isn't a college professor, though. In fact, none of the white characters in the story are good people. Nor are any of them particularly intelligent. A slight animal cunning can be attributed to them, but no higher order intelligence. Which is a pity, because it reinforces the stereotypes that people in the South are not particularly smart. The black characters, on the other hand, are typically civil, good, upstanding, and intelligent. C. Setting The book is set in the South, which is completely appropriate, given the nature of the interpersonal conflicts outlined in the story. It could easily have taken place elsewher

Generational Dirty Laundry

Wow! This mesmerizing tale of South Carolina - flashing between 1966 and now is taut and disturbing and compelled me to make a new List: SLEEP? Who Needs SLEEP? Page turners - all night long.It's a "Who Dunnit" and a "Why Dunnit" and yet a well-crafted cousin to both "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "A Time to Kill." Don't waste any more time reading these reviews. Rush your little cursor right up there to that "Add to ShoppingCart" button and get it now, ya hear?! Reviewed by TundraVision

WOW!

I regularly blast through 3-4 mystery's a week [traveling salesman ; )] and most of them do what I ask of them: Keep me mildly entertained on the several flights I take a week. Once in a while tho I am pleasently surprised to find a book that isn't thoroughly predictable OR has wild, tortured plot resolutions OR carboard characters or some combination of the bunch. This is such a book. From the opening page you are drawn into a world that is credible and suspenseful. If you like a good mystery as much as I do you will love Sacrificed Lives. My only regret is that I have apparently discovered this author at the start of her career. How long til the next book Ms. Brackett!!??

An exciting read

I read Sacrificed Lives on a recent trip to England and was thrilled to find a new, fresh, mystery author. I am a serious mystery buff and so when someone new and good comes along it is always a great day. This is a well written book, with a solid plot, and a topical subject. If you like mysteries you will love Sacrificed Lives. Don't miss it!

Couldn't put it down--kept on reading until I was done

As a mystery buff I am always on the lookout for new writers. And every so often I find one that I just can't put down. This was the case with Sacrificed Lives. It is a gripping, beautifully written mystery, full of surprises. This is a book that is bound to keep you on the edge of your seat and, as it did with me,keep you up til the wee hours of the morning. The author is one that we are certainly going to hear from again. I for one, can't wait until her next book rolls off the presses. Don't miss Sacrificed Lives, it's a great read!