Dark Side of the Moon

Arizona Department of Public Safety detective Laura Cardinal goes to Grand Canyon gateway town Williams, Arizona to investigate the murder of two NAU students shot to death in their tent in a campground near town. J. Carson Black tops her first race out of the gate (Darkness on the Edge of Town) with this superthriller made visceral with a suberb story of love gone bad and a well-integrated subplot of ecoterrorists who hijack a government semi-truck carrying plutonium waste. The twists and turns in this subplot draw the reader into surmising the identity of the young couple's killer, only to find out in a gut wrenching climax how the real killer was propelled to commit the crime. One of Black's strengths is the ability to bring characters into a here and now reality that makes the reader live within the book. J. Carson Black is definitely an author to be watched. Can't wait for the next book!

In this second book of the Laura Cardinal series, J. Carson Black takes the reader to a small Arizona tourist town that is reeling from a double murder of two locals. In the very first chapter, Black introduces the idea--through the voice of the man who will become a leading suspect--that so much in life is not what it seems; not what it looks like; not what you hoped for. That theme continues throughout DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, where no one is what they appear to be and dreams are based on lies. While I enjoyed Black's first book in the series, DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN, this second book is even better--a full-on psychological thriller that explores the need for illusion and the lengths people will go to maintain those illusions. The ongoing story of Laura Cardinal also moves front and center as Laura copes with her fear of death and the collapse of her personal life. I'm eagerly waiting for the third book in this series!

Like the book reviewers and the critics, I found this second novel by J. Carson Black to be a WINNER . The rich descriptions and detail, especially those of the desert settings, solidly place the reader in the milieu. This is where Black shines, in detail and in depth of character. Detective Laura Cardinal investigates what seems to be two unrelated crimes, yet in the end the connection of these crimes takes the reader to a higher level-the human condition. Thought-provoking and gripping. I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I can hardly wait for the next in the Laura Cardinal series. Black has proven to be a writer worth following. Kudos!

This one was a real twist when the perpetrator was revealed. But the crimes weren't the only story here. Background for the story was the multiple indiscretions and seemier side of life of a rural town that really has a lot to hide. This story really kept me wondering who was doing what to whom, and with a large cast of characters it keeps you guessing the motivation behind the crimes. Laura really gets cast as the sympathetic character here and goes through the emotional and psychological meat grinder during the investigation. Looking forward to see what she does next!

Arizona Department of Public Safety criminal investigators Laura Cardinal and her new partner Richie Lockhart investigate the murders of camping newlyweds, college students, Dan Yates and Kellee Taylor by Cataract Lake. Apparently someone fired a shotgun through the tent when the married couple was sleeping killing both. No footprints anywhere near the crime scene or any evidence surfaces as the assailant seems to have gotten away with the homicides. Laura still recuperating from her last case with a serial rapist-killer (see DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN), struggles not to kill Richie, who gets on her nerves with his unprofessional (at least in her mind) attitude. Still the case comes first; she obtains a copy of the list of wedding guests and begins her inquiries with the male victim's sister, Shana and her boyfriend Bobby Burdette. She soon finds seemingly "coincidental" links including a potential eco-terrorist threat to the nearby Colorado River and her deceased former mentor Frank Entwhisle haunts her without helping her with her investigation, but nothing provides the motive to the double homicide. Though Laura's life seems a bit more cluttered then in her debut tale, she remains a terrific courageous law enforcement official struggling with a case that has no clues at the crime scene and no motive to who would want both dead. To solve the double homicide, Laura needs to make a paradigm switch on why both were murdered. Fans of police procedurals will appreciate her latest investigation which is handicapped by an albatross of a partner and a ghost who offers nothing except doomsday ramblings. Harriet Klausner