A police procedural with lots going on. There is so much political issues going on that I just had to skip through some pages.
Lots of plot twists and lots of suspects with mystery kept me from figuring out who the killer was.
Thank you to my library for having a copy of this book available to me.

Thrilling plot which I could not put down. Brilliant characters, and twists and turns. Highly recommend to other fans of this genre!!

Let Justice Descend – Lisa Black

Detective’s Jack Renner & Thomas Riley are back again along with forensic investigator Maggie Gardiner, as the trio investigates the cruel and calculated death of a sitting US Senator, Ohio Republican Diane Cragin, by electrocution, two days before the national elections. Long accused by her Democrat opponent of accepting kickbacks, the investigating team is quite surprised when they find a hidden safe containing close to a million dollars in cash. Known to be corrupt himself, opponent Joey Green becomes a quick suspect.

A visit to the Republican Offices, features an unwanted interaction with Cleveland Herald reporter Lori Russo, who has been determined to discover the identity of the killer of a series of vigilante murders – the killings of some of the countries’ most ruthless criminals – that occurred over the last several months. As Jack has recently been named the lead investigator of those killings, and unbeknownst to anyone other than Maggie (or we readers), is the perpetrator of said crimes, he has no desire to be anywhere near her. As she begins to pester him with questions, he is able to re-direct the conversation, but not before learning of her plans to visit some old murder sites in Arizona. Concerned, Jack vows to keep an eye on her.

As the investigative team dives into the political arena looking for answers, it becomes quickly apparent that everyone has an agenda, as well as potential motives to have killed Senator Cragin, as everyone interviewed points the finger at someone else. A visit to the EPA indicates that Diane may have been involved in obtaining a contract for a less than competent company to renovate the local water intake facility, with potentially deadly consequences. A seeming heart attack in another high-profile individual leads the team in yet another direction as the deaths begin to multiply, and the investigation appears to come full circle, with a completely unexpected ending…or not…

I’m very late in getting this review completed – however it seems quite apropos given the political machinations taking place in our world today. But, for me, this was a great mystery with some unique characters, a Dexter like detective, the woman who is drawn to him, and a deep, yet telling look into the political world that has become so difficult to stomach lately, all of which leaves me wanting more!

I received this book as an Advance Reader Copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an objective review. Do you love to read?? Visit netgalley.com and start reviewing books today!!

Maggie and Jack are called to a murder scene where a powerful politician, Diane Cragin has been murdered by electrocution in book 5 of the Gardiner and Renner series, Let Justice Descend by Lisa Black. The storyline is very apropos for our time, since Diane had been taking bribes for some water projects and even though she well knew that if the project were to go through (and apparently it was a done deal), 20,000 people or more would die because of poison that would be released into the drinking water in Cleveland. It just happened to be a few days before the election, and although Diane was ahead, her opponent was trying to work his magic to beat her. As most people know, almost all politicians are crooked, and Joey Green was just as bad as Diane; he was apparently involved in the same schemes as Diane. Maggie’s forensic processing abilities help the case, and Jack and his partner, are investigating. Then a reporter comes on the scene and gets evidence of the political cover-up. Unfortunately, she is murdered before the story is broken.

The relationship between Maggie and Jack is interesting. Jack has no qualms about murdering criminals who don’t get what they deserve, and Maggie knows, and Jack knows that Maggie knows. Although their relationship isn’t romantic, there is chemistry between the two as they help solve murders in each installment. Black has done a good job of developing her characters, and it is very unique to have a protagonist who is also a murderer. Maggie always suspects that he is involved, and Jack is always very careful so that Maggie won’t think he is involved. The supporting characters are also well-developed, and readers will have no idea who the murderer(s) are until the very end.

As the novel progresses, readers will realize that all of the politicians, EPA people, and political aides are suspect, and Maggie and Jack are sometimes in danger as they investigate. There are twists and turns, and even though the book is fiction, readers will wonder just how true-to-life the scenarios are. This is politics in our modern world, and it will give readers pause and inspire them to look at the political scene in their own cities.

The end is the best, and the novel is worth reading for that alone. Those who follow Jack and Maggie will enjoy this one, especially if they like politics.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

You do not simply read this story; you live and experience this story. The author does an amazing job of going so in-depth into a wide variety of topics that surround politics today without losing any of the importance of the storyline itself. She provides perfect characters that are both endearing and suspicious at the same time. This added with the complex plot make this one page turning read with a shocking, jaw dropping ending that you will never see coming.

Although this is book 5 in the series, it is possible to read this book as a standalone. However, since I enjoyed this book, I will go back and read the other books in the series. What do you do when one of the key candidates in an election that is three days away drops dead? Actually, Senator Cragin does not drop dead of her own accord. She is murdered, in a very unique manner. Someone sets a trap for her at her doorstep. When she grabs the knob of her door in order to enter her home, she is electrocuted. Now Maggie and Jack have the job of determining who did it and why. As they work through their own theories and suspects, things become more and more dangerous as they navigate the maze of politics. There are behind-the-door deals and schemes as well as corruptions and secrets. Thru all the twists and turns, the story holds your interest as well as the little nuggets about Jack’s past. This story will definitely keep you guessing as the list of suspects grows. I must admit that I was definitely surprised by the ending and pleased. It was not at all what I expected. This book is a must read. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

The Gardiner and Renner series has less to do with murder then they do with a deep dive into a world that is usually kept from the outside world. This time, Lisa Black is diving in the dirty world of politics and the shenanigans involved in getting the right people and projects in place.

From the beginning, you know Ohio senator Diane Cragin has been electrocuted on her doorstep, but what slowly unfolds is the part she played in Ohio business placement, corruption, bribes, and why there are close to one million dollars found in a safe in her home.

As Jack Renner and Maggie Gardiner begin to move the players around the board, darkness takes center stage when a bystander is caught in the crossfire. Jack doesn’t know if he relieved or not when a reporter is found murdered since she could have blown Jack and Maggie’s well-plotted secret to shreds.

Having read the previous books, the reader is aware of the underlying mutually assured destruction between Jack and Maggie, but it isn’t until the very end of the book that the reader can see what Jack had going the whole time. “Let Justice Descend” is a well-plotted, deep, and twisty book that has the reader wondering if there is just one final thread that hasn’t yet been pulled.

This is a series that must be taken slowly. There is too much information, both from a forensic investigation stance and a large character pool, that gets murky from time to time. Take your time, know that there are no easy answers and that by the end you will have both a new understanding of the dirty world of politics and that Jack, no matter how much you want to like him, has a side that you will never be fully able to stomach.

A political thriller that will leave you guessing and not quite sure who is who. Diane Gragin a sitting senator is murdered by electrocution. With the investigation of her death, many dealings come up but who would want her dead. Another 2 murders are committed and who ever you thought killed Diane goes out the window. However, all is explained in the end and becomes politics as usual.

I love a political intrigue however, this was somewhat difficult to stay with until the end. I did not have any real connection to the plot or the characters, however, when the plot started to make more sense in the end, I was all in.

A Special Thank you to Kensington Books and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

Liked the characters a lot and the story is easy to follow. Didn't like all the politics in the book and that made it a little bit of a challenge to keep reading.

Lisa Black is a fantastic author that knows how to write a thriller that keeps you engrossed in the plot. The characters are well developed and the storyline is entertaining.

Lisa Black is such a compelling author that I found myself saying "NO don't do that!" to a character. No spoilers here I won't share if they did or did not. Gardiner and Renner are back again in the splendid Let Justice Descend.

The book opens at homicide scene. The victim is a US Senator, only 3 days from the election. She lies stretched along the walkway to her door. No sign of violence, no pool of blood, and very very dead. Once again Black's forensic expertise has provides a provocative introduction to the plot. The plot is stunningly current. No one in this political arena is an innocent. Deals are cut, self serving decisions are made, PR is spun ,becomming total lies rather than near truths. Through out the roiling campaign, Gardiner and Renner strive to uncover the trail to the culprit.

Writers of serial fiction face the challenge of maintaining freshness of protagonists while avoiding the redundancy of introducing the continuing cast. In this case, the continuing saga of Jack;s other vocation is heightened book by book as Black continues to lead the reader to an almost no win solution. I am a new reader to this series, and was quickly drawn in to this dilemma. How will it end?

Forensic mysteries are a subgenre I particularly enjoy. I am so happy to have found Lisa Black. She is a treasure to be shared.

Full dsclosure: I received this e copy from netgalley and Kensington books in exchange for an unbiased review.
Thank you for this opportunity

Mmmm... Ive read a few in this series and this I have to admit is my least favourite.

When a woman is found dead entering her house, Detectives Renner and Riley, along with forensics expert Maggie Gardener arrive to investigate.
The woman turns out to be a US senator and the elections are only a few days away. She died by electrocution, which the detective find highly unusual. As they begin their investigation, they are lead into a murky world of political double dealing, corrupt city projects and as they try to unwind the web of clues, the list of suspects they have becomes larger and larger.

The good points in this book: Renner and Riley still make and interesting combination and very readable characters most of the time.

The set up at the start is intriguing and you feel you are in for one hell of a story, which you are up to a point.

The bad points: The book is very heavy reading, bogged down by too much detail into political procedures, water plants and how they work. The detail gets in the way of the story to a huge extent. I was actually bored reading large chunks of the book.

The story itself becomes a little more and more contrived and the ending for me was just such a let down and an easy out. The story seemed to tie itself in knots at times, over complicated for the sake of it, too much time spent on going into details on events that could be explained in a line or two. It really took away from the book as a reading experience. The book was just too wordy!

I really like the main characters and have enjoyed their previous exploits but this one did little for me unfortunately. Just too flawed in its execution.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.


Many thanks to Netgalley, Kensington books and Lisa Black for an ARC in excahnge for an honest review.

When a woman is found on her own doorstep, dead by electrocution, Detectives Jack Renner and his partner Detective Riley are called to the scene, meeting up with Maggie Gardiner, forensics expert working for the police department.

Surprised as they were with how the murder was committed, they are more surprised to learn who the victim is. Diane Gragin was a sitting US Senator just days away from a key election.

Investigation begins immediately, with the detectives looking for motive ..and hopefully a killer. The more they question people in the political arena, the more they discover that Cragin was not well liked ... corrupt, even. Finding a huge amount of cash hidden in her house makes it look more suspect that this was a political killing.

There are lots of suspects .... Cragin's competitor is top of the list, her chief of staff, and any number of organizations that she has promoted over the years.

Jack and Maggie have their own thoughts .... but Jack has a secret that could put him away forever. Maggie is the only person who knows his secret ... but she also has secrets that would not withstand the light of day. And now there's an investigative reporter who is very close to discovering what those secrets are.

While I really enjoyed the characters and how they relate to each other, I found the complex political background somewhat long winded and boring. I found myself skipping large segments. Although fifth in this series, it is easily read as a stand alone. I do recommend starting at the beginning mostly because of the most interesting characters. Not highly suspenseful, the ending came as a surprise.

Many thanks to the author / Kensington Books / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Maggie and Jack continue their odd partnership in this latest outing, with Maggie wishing that Jack would just hurry up and leave already. Jack, on the other hand, seems to be developing feelings for Maggie. I get the sense that things will only get more complicated for Maggie. Great story and interesting twists kept me hooked.

Let Justice Descend starts out with a bang. A politician, just a few days away from an election that has already been brutal, is found murdered in front of her own house. Forensics expert Maggie Gardiner and detective Jack Renner are the investigators on the case which is riddled with numerous secrets and suspects. As they dig deeper, they discover a myriad of dirty politics and corruption.

Lisa Black’s latest book is the fifth one in the Gardiner and Renner series. Since I haven’t read the previous books, I felt somewhat uninformed as I read Let Justice Descend. It would appear that if I understood the backstory, this book would have been more enjoyable. But, even so, I found much of it to be entertaining and suspenseful. The characters are compelling and the premise is unusual, which encourages me to read the series from the beginning.

However, Let Justice Descend is also quite involved with the forensics of the investigation as well as the political machinations that drive the suspects and, therefore, the story itself. While I found some of it interesting, it became tedious and, in my opinion, overdone which is why I have only given it 3 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Let Justice Descend is the fifth in the Gardiner and Renner series. I started reading and decided before I went further I wanted to learn their backstory. Ended up reading all flue of the previous books.
Wow! What a great series and this is a wonderful addition. The books info on lobbyists and greedy politicians is very timely. Just when you think all is explained you realize it's not what you think.
Great ending that you will not see coming!

I received a ARC of Let Justice Descend from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my fair and honest review.

This book is pretty much a depiction of what I expect from our elected officials. From what I can see in todays day and age most appear to be crooks, they may go in with the best of intentions but then eventually the greed take over and they become wealthly. I believe this is my first book from this author and overall I found it very well written, it contains murder, corruption and greed just to name a few things. I was actually surprised by the ending, and I would recommend this to others.

Let Justice Descend by Lisa Black is a very highly recommended crime thriller and procedural, featuring murder along with plenty of political corruption and intrigue. This is the fifth book in the series featuring Cleveland crime scene investigator Maggie Gardiner and homicide detective Jack Renner.

"Anyone can be dangerous, when they have what they think is a good reason." Three days before the election U.S. Senator Diane Cragin is murdered. Someone rigged up her front door so she would be electrocute on her front step and her chief of staff suspects her opponent, Joey Green. Green is a corrupt city development director who has been accepting bribes and favors in exchange for favors and city contracts for years. When an unbelievably large amount of cash is found in a safe in Cragin's home, it becomes clear that she may not be squeaky clean either. Maggie and Jack delve into the world of political rivals, corruption, bribes and economic hit men. Meanwhile Jack is keeping an eye on Cleveland Herald reporter Lori Russo who is not only following the political corruption story, but also the trail of the vigilante killer. That case involves a secret cover up between Maggie and Jack.

Let Justice Descend features excellent writing, including an interesting, detailed, complex plot, and the return of two engaging, well-developed characters. This is a great combination of a political thriller and a crime/procedural novel and a wonderful addition to the series. While I have read two previous books in the series and not all four, I was still able to easily follow the narrative and I think a reader new to the series could also easily understand the interaction between Maggie and Jack. Some of my enjoyment was because of the political intrigue and corruption tied into the case, so this would be a great choice for other readers who enjoy crime novels and political thrillers.

"... the twenty-four hour channels, who have discovered the same thing: the economic beauty of a built-in customer base. They can chat away for hours and hours, not about what has actually happened but about what might have happened and what they think might happen and their opinion of what happened or what they think should happen. Why? Because it’s easy and it’s cheap. You don’t have to do any investigation or any real news-gathering." Truth.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Kensington Publishing

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An excellent thriller, well written and gripping. It was on the edge till the end and it kept me guessing.
I liked the plot, the fleshed out cast of character and the setting.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Let Justice Descend by Lisa Black
Gardiner & Renner #5

Great story even though I am not a big fan of politics and political shenanigans that include corruption, bribery and not putting the constituents needs first. Putting THAT aside...I LOVED this book and skimmed over parts of the politics to get to the meat of the matter. And what might that be? The murder mystery and the tension/story developing between Maggie Gardiner, CSI and Jack Renner, homicide detective.

Maggie knows something about Jack that has her always wondering about him and what he has been up to. She admires his police abilities but perhaps questions his ethics. The two have a bond based in their mutual secret and at times it feels as if the two might actually move toward a relationship although it is also difficult to see how they might be able to do so. It is indeed a twisty twisted situation the two have managed to create for themselves – a balanced situation that the two both want to keep stable without either ending up too far up or down on the teeter-totter.

What I liked:
* Jack – I like this silent man who does what he believes necessary to bring evil people to justice
* Maggie – I enjoy seeing her work the case and the dilemma(s) she sometimes finds herself in while working or when thinking about Jack.
* The plotting and pace of the stories and the “gotcha” feel I had at the end
* Riley – Jack’s partner on the job seems a nice guy and I look forward to hearing more about him.
* The anticipation of what story will come next.

What I did not like:
* The many despicable characters only out to further their own agendas
* The greed
* The politics – after so many years of watching politics in the countries I have lived in...am happier not looking at what is going on and playing ostrich instead.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I like to read more in this series? Without a doubt

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars