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: |
Customer support was knowledgeable, which gave me confidence to continue. I moved funds across chains without a problem.
Paragraph writing is also a fun, if you know after that you can write or else it is difficult to write.
stake – https://stake-br.com
sportium – https://sportiummx.com
useful reference
https://russian-traditional-clothes.com/
flames bet – https://flamesbet-br.com
Hey there! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog. Is it very difficult to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty quick. I’m thinking about creating my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any points or suggestions? With thanks
It’s in reality a nice and useful piece of info. I’m satisfied that you shared this useful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.
Привет! Решил собрать только те игровые клубы, где лично получил выплату. Критерии: вывод до 10 минут. Все рабочие ссылки — по адресу: Лев. Кто уже тестировал эти площадки?
I personally find that the staking tools are accurate charts and clear transparency.
I’ve been active for a year, mostly for staking, and it’s always trustworthy service.
You really make it seem so easy with your presentation but I find
this topic to be actually something which I think I would never understand.
It seems too complicated and extremely broad
for me. I am looking forward for your next post, I will try
to get the hang of it!
If some one needs to be updated with latest technologies afterward he must be pay a visit this web page and be up to date all the time.
The interface is trustworthy service, and I enjoy using the API here. Great for cross-chain swaps with minimal slippage.
Ребята, не верьте громким обещаниям! Настоящее онлайн казино должно иметь положительную репутацию. Я отсеял все подозрительные площадки и оставил только платящие варианты — смотрите здесь: [url=https://telegra.ph/Vavada-Promokod-Uvelich-svoj-vyigryshnBonusy-i-Frispiny-v-Parimatch-Kak-poluchit-maksimumnKazino-X-Sekrety-promokodov-dlya-novic-01-07]онлайн казино[/url]. Кто уже выводил оттуда?
aviator aposta – https://aviatorbet-br.com
Thanks for a marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading it, you might be a great author. I will be sure to bookmark your blog and will eventually come back from now on. I want to encourage one to continue your great posts, have a nice day!
World Cup 2026 qualifiers live score, road to USA Mexico Canada tournament
обучение продвижению сайтов обучение продвижению сайтов .
goinbet – https://www.goinbet-br.com
Just want to say your article is as surprising. The clearness in your post is simply excellent and i can assume you are an expert on this subject. Fine with your permission let me to grab your feed to keep up to date with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please keep up the enjoyable work.
betway login – https://betway-login-mx.com
1bet – https://1bet-mx.com
The best choice I made for testing new tokens. Smooth and trustworthy service.
esport bet – https://esportbet-br.com
The best choice I made for testing new tokens. Smooth and wide token selection.
I value the quick deposits and trustworthy service. This site is reliable. Support solved my issue in minutes.
I’m impressed by the low fees. I’ll definitely continue using it. The mobile app makes daily use simple.
rey casino – https://rey-casinomx.com
Click This Link
russian traditional clothing
The interface is fast transactions, and I enjoy learning crypto basics here. Support solved my issue in minutes.
凯伦皮里第一季高清完整版结合大数据AI分析，海外华人可免费观看最新热播剧集。
At this time it appears like Drupal is the preferred blogging platform available right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you’re using on your blog?
учиться seo kursy-seo-2.ru .
Great platform with fast transactions — it made my crypto journey easier.
The site is easy to use and the quick deposits keeps me coming back. The mobile app makes daily use simple.
browse around here
russian traditional clothing
It’s an awesome article in favor of all the internet users; they will get advantage from it I am sure.
loteria – https://loteria-mexico.com
I’ve been active for a week, mostly for fiat on-ramp, and it’s always fast transactions. Charts are accurate and load instantly.
I absolutely love your blog and find a lot
of your post’s to be exactly I’m looking for. Would you offer guest writers to write content available for you?
I wouldn’t mind creating a post or elaborating on a lot of the subjects you write concerning here.
Again, awesome weblog!
betfair – https://betfair-777.com
Logan here — I’ve tried providing liquidity and the clear transparency impressed me. Perfect for both new and experienced traders.
vm777 – https://vm777-11.com
I’ve been using it for a month for portfolio tracking, and the intuitive UI stands out.
продвижение сайтов интернет магазины в москве продвижение сайтов интернет магазины в москве .
1bet – https://1betmx.com
Woah! I’m really digging the template/theme of this blog. It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s hard to get that “perfect balance” between usability and appearance. I must say you’ve done a fantastic job with this. Also, the blog loads super quick for me on Chrome. Exceptional Blog!
The checking analytics tools are scalable features and easy onboarding. Great for cross-chain swaps with minimal slippage.
seo специалист seo специалист .