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: |
look at these guys https://blnk.my/
Выгорание — это плата за неверность себе. Верните драйв через понимание механики.
Вязкое болото дел, которые не ваши.
-тип личности генератор;
-человек генератор дизайн человека;
-тип личности генератор это;
-дизайн человека генератор описание;
-генератор это дизайн человека;
-дизайн человека генератор кто это;
from this source https://badai.sbs/
дайсон фен купить оригинальный спб pylesos-dn-8.ru .
why not find out more https://kingprotocol.cc
plinko plinko game, plinko play, plinko play online, plinko online, plinko casino, plinko real money, plinko online casino, plinko login, plinko official site, plinko mobile, plinko mobile version, plinko app, plinko gameplay, plinko start game, plinko access, plinko betting game, plinko casino game
go right here https://heyanon.my/
refreshing depth of insight. I found myself fully engaged from start to
check over here https://lombard.pw
this post https://agents-land.xyz
helpful site https://kyros.lat
basics https://hyperunit.buzz
пылесосы dyson спб dn-pylesos-kupit-4.ru .
dyson gen5 купить в спб dn-pylesos-4.ru .
дайсон пылесос купить спб pylesos-dn-10.ru .
simplesbet – https://simplesbet-br.com
betleao – https://betleao-login.com
batbet – https://batbet-br.com
pop over to this website https://prismagent.org/
click over here now https://hyperdrive.ink
try this https://alchemistai.buzz
Very rapidly this web site will be famous amid all blogging and site-building users,
due to it’s fastidious articles
browse around this website https://elara.uno
find here https://agentsland.org/
ремонт пылесоса дайсон в спб dn-pylesos-2.ru .
oddschecker – https://oddscheckermx.com
You communicate ideas better than almost anyone else I follow.
Amazing content! I’m so glad I found this post.
This was an absolute pleasure to read.
w88 – https://w88-mx.com
content https://alchemistai.tech
Где в вашем графике ваша жизнь? Чужие «хочу» задушили ваше «люблю».
Золотые цепи чужого успеха на вас.
-генератор тип личности дизайн;
-генераторы дизайн человека;
-человек генератор кто это;
-тип личности генератор дизайн;
-генератор это в дизайне человека;
-тип генератор в дизайне человека;
-тип личности генератор дизайн человека;
talon777 – https://www.talon777-br.com
more tips here https://aixbt.my
click for more info https://upshift.ltd
Потеряли годы на ненужные проекты? Расчет покажет ваш путь.
Пепел вместо драйва: цена вашего «надо».
-генератор это в дизайне человека;
-дизайн человека генератор описание;
-генератор это дизайн человека;
-тип личности генератор дизайн человека;
-дизайн человека генератор кто это;
riobet на деньги
visit their website https://tophat.space/
how effectively you communicate your ideas, and this piece genuinely
find this https://heyanon.my
allwin568 – https://www.allwin568-br.com
lobo888 – https://www.lobo888-br.com
visit homepage https://heyanon.lat
find this https://hyperdrive.lat
check my blog https://nucleusearn.ink
Наш ресурс объединяет ведущих специалистов по автоспорам в Санкт-Петербурге. Мы собрали команду квалифицированных юристов, обладающих глубокими знаниями в области автоюридических вопросов. Мы раскрываем все преимущества работы с нашей компанией, включая их достижения и заслуги.
Структура сайта продумана до мелочей, чтобы помочь вам быстро разобраться во всех возможностях. При этом вся информация на ресурсе актуальна и регулярно проверяется, гарантируя вашу уверенность в качестве предоставляемых данных. https://infiniteabundance.mn.co/members/37859975
Comment 169: This blog post is truly outstanding and provides such a
dyson v15 detect absolute купить в спб dn-pylesos-3.ru .
go to this web-site https://upshift.my
iribet – https://www.iribet-br.com