Shallow Grave

When I first started reading Blood Ties, the first book in this series, I confess I was shocked and somewhat offended. Heroines, even supposed "kick-butt" heroines, don't smoke like chimneys and drink like fish. I don't smoke and rarely drink and at first I didn't like her at all. But Julie Collins doesn't care if I like her. She's wrestling her own demons and she'd tell me right out front that she didn't give a flying **** about mine. And she got me. By this, the third book, I was totally hooked. In a series that's both dark and real, Shallow Grave allows us ever deeper into Julie's world, where her best friend has a glass eye and her boyfriend is the definition of mad, bad, and dangerous to know. She's juggling a lot of stress, not least of which is her continuing grief and anger over her brother's death. I can't praise this series enough. Tight plotting, true scary moments that made my heart pound, and unforgettable characters. Run, do not walk, to your nearest store and get this series of books. They are well worth it.

This series featuring Private Investigator, Julie Collins, is one of those rare finds. The books have so much going for them. Julie is a wonderful character. She drinks like a fish, smokes like a chimney and has sex with whoever floats her boat at the time. They are full of great characters, wonderful action, and there is never a dull moment in any of the first three books in this series. I anxiously await the next one, Snow Blind due out the end of 2008.

I've posted reviews of the first two books in this series, and I can only hope (since some of the loose threads were tied up in this book) the series will continue. I inhaled all three books in as many days, and added Armstrong to my list of "auto buy authors." The books reminded me slightly of the Stephanie Plum books and of the Eve Dallas "Death" series. Both of those excellent series also have endearing ensemble casts, and in Eve's case, a larger psychological issue. Armstrong has taken her heroine's vulnerabilities to new depths in this third book. Not only is PI Julie still struggling to solve the "big mystery," but she continually learns more about herself as she pieces together the smaller puzzles emerging in this exciting plot. The romantic elements (and a romantic triangle) add to the page-turning quality of the story. So, what do you get when you combine a politically incorrect, wild-and-crazy private investigator, Harley-riding badboys, the alternative reality of the Native American experience in South Dakota and a dysfunctional childhood? An incredibly good book.

P.I. Julie Collins is at her best and most venerable in this third book by Lori Armstrong. I look forward to her future works.

In Bear Butte County South Dakota private investigative partners Julie Collins and Kevin Wells freeze their butts off observing Langston Everett for Rushmore West Insurance who believes he is pulling an injury compensation scam. After feeling colder than a frozen popsicle, the surveillance team snaps into action when Lang leaves his home to ride an ATV; Julie and Kevin follow filming his activity until his vehicle suddenly flies into the air. He is dead and there is a big hole in the ground that Lang apparently drove partly in before flying over a nearby embankment. Kevin calls the sheriff's office. As Sheriff Al Richards and his team check the crime scene, Lang's spouse June arrives to learn of her husband's death. She asks Julie to say nothing about the hole that was covered, but is back sans the bones of humans that were buried there. Al asks Julie to help on the case as he lacks manpower, but that leads to issues with the Standing Elk family. They hid information related to her brother Ben as Abita Kahlen arrives from Arizona accompanied by her three years old son Jericho who has a face that could only mean he is Julie's nephew. The third Collins private investigative mystery (see HOLLOWED GROUND and BLOOD TIES) continues to provide insight into what happened to Ben with a few side shockers. The current case causes additional strain on Julie, but courageously she keeps digging in an effort to learn what was in the SHALLOW GRAVE that was re-dug leading to Lang's demise and much more as a simple insurance fraud case turns deadly and personal. Lori G. Armstrong lives up to the last syllable of her surname with this superb whodunit. Harriet Klausner