Taxed to Death
Debra Purdy Kong
Mystery/Suspense
[rating: 3/5]
Available in:
• Mobi/Kindle
• ePub/iPad
• PDF
• HTML
… from…
• Amazon
• MobiPocket
• AllRomanceEbooks
• OmniLit
Also in paperback
When Revenue Canada auditor Alex Bellamy discovers that $150,000 is missing from Ice Craft Jewelers inventory, someone from Special Investigations suddenly takes him off the case. But Alex decides to keep investigating anyhow, and before he knows it, his best friend is dead—suicide, if you can believe it. Moreover, someone is chasing Alex himself, and he must turn to Jillian Scott, a woman he’s never met and who is as afraid of him as he is of being caught. Soon, her fears and his search embroil them in a bizarre and disturbing nightmare.
I read Taxed to Death as part of a review-exchange on GoodReads: I read someone’s book, and someone else reviews one of mine. To that end, and short of cash, I purchased a copy of Debra Purdy Kong’s Taxed to Death on the used market. This is the first in the Alex Bellamy series, the second being her more recent release, Fatal Encryption. But I couldn’t find a used copy of the more recent title, and I thought it would probably be best to start with the first in the series, anyhow.
The book started by throwing names and facts at me, as many mysteries do. Unfortunately—maybe because I’m dense—I didn’t get what was happening until later in the story. The story is billed as a mystery, but in some ways, it reads more like a suspense novel… except that I didn’t understand the characters, at all. In fact, the major viewpoint character, Les Silby, who gets the most screen-time, he’s one of the suspects. Him I got, at least as much as I could without knowing his full role until the end. Alex and Jillian, the hero and heroine of the story, I had no idea why they did most of the things they did.
As a side-effect, because the story can’t give away the ending, it frequently gave me a partial view, blanking out obvious things that the viewpoint character could see and was thinking about. Now, I’m not an expert in the mystery genre. As I recall, the mysteries I’ve read have achieved this effect simply by staying in the mind of the detective. Suspense novels, not so much, but in a suspense, it’s more important to maintain the tension between hero and villain, rather than to keep secret who the villain is. I’m not sure I liked the effect in Taxed to Death.
The story did get better near the end, as the situation became clear and the forces of evil began to close around our heroes. Even so, I never understood why Alex and Jillian did most of what they did, or felt what they felt, or thought what they were thinking. This is extremely important to me, because rich, three-dimensional characters are key to a good story. And these characters just fell flat.
This story is also missing a theme, as far as I can tell. I had originally expected something like: financial fraud is about more than money. (And that could be the theme of the story… maybe, kinda.) Or: we all pay when someone embezzles funds. (And I didn’t get that at all from this story.) Much less did I see an uplifting, character-based theme. It simply wasn’t that kind of book.
After all of that, I do hope to read the next book in the series Fatal Encryption. Why? Well, Taxed to Death is Debra Purdy Kong’s first book, published 15 years ago. That means that Debra probably put more into it than any other story she’s written, but also that it reflects her inexperience as an novelist. I’m hoping that Fatal Encryption, which came out just a couple years ago, gave her a chance to address some of the storytelling issues I noticed in Taxed to Death. Most importantly, I’m hoping she has gotten better at characterizing her characters, and I really want to get to know Alex Bellamy.
-TimK
|
Taxed to Death |
Available in: |
https://venus-club-health.mn.co/posts/94645940
Hi, constantly i used to check web site posts here in the early hours in the morning, as i like to learn more and more.
fortinet vpn
https://student.uog.edu.et/becoming-a-better-designer/#comment-271
Feather Market Hub – Smooth layout and tidy listings made finding products simple.
Играю ночами, зеркало всегда онлайн
Dragon Money Studio
https://honda-fit.ru/forums/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=8612
продолжить Мега сайт
Читать далее Mega онион
http://www.belmos.ru/forum/post.php?mode=post&f=2407
seoenhancementpro.shop – Mobile version looks perfect; no glitches, fast scrolling, crisp text.
Good day! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this page to him. Fairly certain he will have a good read. Many thanks for sharing!
fortinet vpn
инъекционная гидроизоляция микроцементы inekczionnaya-gidroizolyacziya1.ru .
Feather Finds Studio – Clean pages with clearly displayed items made exploring simple.
услуги экскаватора в москве arenda-ekskavatora-pogruzchika-5.ru .
гидроизоляция подвала цена за м2 гидроизоляция подвала цена за м2 .
найти это Mega darknet
инъекционная гидроизоляция вводов коммуникаций http://www.inekczionnaya-gidroizolyacziya1.ru/ .
перейти на сайт Mega сайт
SimpleBuyZone – Pleasant shopping experience, site design feels modern and user-friendly overall.
наплавляемая гидроизоляция цена наплавляемая гидроизоляция цена .
Hi! This is my 1st comment here so I just wanted to give a quick shout out and say I really enjoy reading through your posts. Can you recommend any other blogs/websites/forums that go over the same topics? Thanks a lot!
fortinet vpn download
инъекционная гидроизоляция обзор методов https://inekczionnaya-gidroizolyacziya1.ru .
https://dzone.com/users/5455574/bayimi.html
brandvisibilitypro.shop – Overall, professional vibe here; trustworthy, polished, and pleasantly minimal throughout.
инъекционная гидроизоляция трещин инъекционная гидроизоляция трещин .
стоимость услуг экскаватора погрузчика стоимость услуг экскаватора погрузчика .
гидроизоляция подвала снаружи цены gidroizolyacziya-czena.ru .
усиление проёмов металлоконструкциями https://www.usilenie-proemov2.ru .
strategicseoagency.shop – Mobile version looks perfect; no glitches, fast scrolling, crisp text.
silverleafmarket – Smooth interface, products are clearly displayed and simple to locate.
обмазочная гидроизоляция цена за работу м2 http://www.gidroizolyacziya-czena.ru/ .
инъекционная гидроизоляция оборудование инъекционная гидроизоляция оборудование .
Читать далее Мега онион
Heya! I realize this is kind of off-topic but I needed to ask.
Does operating a well-established blog like yours take a massive amount
work? I’m brand new to blogging but I do write in my
diary everyday. I’d like to start a blog so I will be able
to share my personal experience and feelings online.
Please let me know if you have any kind of suggestions or tips for new aspiring blog owners.
Thankyou!
silverleaflane – Layout is tidy, navigating products is quick and simple.
усиление проема в монолитном доме усиление проема в монолитном доме .
гидроизоляция подвала цена гидроизоляция подвала цена .
обмазочная гидроизоляция цена работы за м2 https://gidroizolyacziya-czena.ru .
Soft Feather Hub – Easy-to-browse layout and appealing product presentation enhanced the experience.
Howdy! I understand this is kind of off-topic however I had to ask. Does operating a well-established website such as yours take a large amount of work? I am completely new to blogging but I do write in my journal on a daily basis. I’d like to start a blog so I can easily share my experience and thoughts online. Please let me know if you have any kind of recommendations or tips for brand new aspiring blog owners. Appreciate it!
fortinet vpn download
гидроизоляция подвала снаружи цена гидроизоляция подвала снаружи цена .
экскаватор погрузчик jcb аренда москва http://www.arenda-ekskavatora-pogruzchika-6.ru/ .
Feather Workshop – Neatly organized products with smooth navigation made shopping pleasant.
Soft Feather Treasures – Smooth navigation and well-laid-out products made browsing fast.
материалы усиления проема https://www.usilenie-proemov1.ru .
Feather Hub – Logical product arrangement and simple interface enhanced usability.
ремонт гидроизоляции фундаментов и стен подвалов https://www.gidroizolyacziya-podvala-iznutri-czena1.ru .
инъекционная гидроизоляция своими руками инъекционная гидроизоляция своими руками .
заказать курсовую работу https://kupit-kursovuyu-21.ru/ .
обмазочная гидроизоляция цена за работу м2 gidroizolyacziya-czena1.ru .