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: |
интернет магазин dyson техника dsn-10.ru .
http://opensource.platon.sk/forum/projects/viewtopic.php?p=12834297#12834297
juwa 777 casino app – https://juwa-777-online.com/juwa-777-casino-app/
futebol interior placar ao vivo – https://futebol-interior-placar-ao-vivo.com
super placar ao vivo – https://super-placar-ao-vivo.com
58 bet app – https://58bet-bouns.com/58-bet-app/
кухни на заказ спб каталог кухни на заказ спб каталог .
كرة قدم بي بي سي سبورت – https://bbc-sport-football.com
casino frenzy – https://casino-frenzy-ph.com
canadian pharmacies without an rx
Cloud infrastructure setup for global casino operations https://northfloridahouse.com/regulatory-and-certification-requirements-for-slot-development.html
VODKA Casino — это ваш официальный сайт для азартных игр vodka casino зеркало рабочее на сегодня наслаждайтесь уникальными играми, большими
выигрышами и привлекательными бонусами.
Погружайтесь в мир азарта и
удачи
03 bet – https://03bet-br.com
Die technische Infrastruktur wurde auf hohe Ausfallsicherheit ausgelegt. https://apacheadmin.com/quantum-ai-ein-vergleich-moderner-und-klassischer-ansatze/
jilivip – https://jilivip-ph.com
mr green – https://mr-green-de.com
brwin – https://brwin-88.com
win88 – https://win88-ph.com
casino партнерка – https://casino-affiliate-program-ru.com
I know this if off topic but I’m looking into starting my own blog and
was curious what all is required to get set up? I’m assuming
having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny?
I’m not very internet savvy so I’m not 100% sure.
Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Kudos
мебель для кухни спб от производителя kuhni-na-zakaz-4.ru .
https://www.ilgitrafik.com/en/blog/blog-personal-parking-barriers/
betty wins casino app – https://betty-wins-us.com/betty-wins-casino-app/
ir6 bet – https://ir6-bet-br.com
https://www.bdrum.com.tw/blog/another-blog-post
краш игра – https://crash-game-ru.com
lodi291 – https://lodi291-ph.com
http://wiki.kaskady2.cz/api.php?action=https://khelibet.asia
Продолжение водкабет
canadian meds without a script
перейти на сайт vodka премиум онлайн казино
Go to the main company website
зайти на сайт vodka bet casino
можно проверить ЗДЕСЬ vodkabet прямо сейчас
Перейти на сайт зеркало водка бет
здесь vodka bet casino
كرة القدم الأمريكية – https://american-football-eg.com
этот сайт водка казино бет
ninecasino – https://ninecasino-de88.com
lsm99 – https://lsm99-888.com
espn ao vivo – https://espn-ao-vivo.com
A fascinating discussion is worth comment. There’s no doubt that
that you should publish more about this subject, it might not be a
taboo subject but usually people don’t talk about these issues.
To the next! Cheers!!
узнать vbet brazil
пояснения vodka bet casino
Доброго!
Оригинальные запчасти Cummins — гарантия стабильной работы. Аналоги могут сэкономить деньги, но рискуют ресурсом двигателя. Маслоохладитель, прокладка ГБЦ, топливные фильтры — здесь лучше не экспериментировать. Мы рассказываем, как отличить подделку от оригинала. ProCummins — ваш путеводитель в мире запчастей.
Вся информация на сайте https://pro-cummins.ru/vibracziya-dvigatelya-cummins-na-holostom-hodu/
работа компрессора Cummins, состояние ремней Cummins, подключение сканера к Cummins
как проверить направляющие клапанов Cummins, ошибка электроники Cummins, мощностной ряд Cummins
Удачи и комфортной езды!
содержание водкабет
Источник vbet casino
нажмите здесь зеркало водка бет
worldwinner – https://worldwinner-us.com
Читать далее войти на vbet poker