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Cold But Not Forgotten

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This book was a hoot!  I enjoyed the "family" of great police and detectives in Elko County and their family.  I enjoyed this book and the story.  I really thought for a minute that this book and case was close about 50% through the book but the case took a twist and a turn and back in the game everyone was again.  I had a good time reading this book! *This book was given to me for free at my request from NetGalley and I provided this voluntary review.*

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Finding a newly dead body leads to so many twists and turns I did not see coming. This was a good mystery with lots of suspects with very different motives. The only person not guilty of something was the corpse. The relationships between Bob, his team, friends and their wives and girlfriends were genuine and loving and there was plenty of humor to balance the heavy police work.

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Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read RJ Waters' new book "Cold But Not Forgotten" in return for a fair and honest review.

This book is entertaining as well as a great mystery/police procedural. Lieutenant Robert Carson, a rural Nevada detective, discovers a woman's lifeless body while at the shooting range with his team. The dead woman is covered in blood--although her corpse reveals no apparent wounds. Thus begins a multi-pronged mystery: how did she die, who wanted her dead, how did she get into the middle of nowhere.

Diane is an avid marathoner who believes in keeping her body in tip-top shape through diet, supplements, and exercise, but it appears that that was not enough to keep her from her fate.

While not the typical, stark, black-and-white police procedural this book looks at the inner workings of the Elko County, Nevada force which consists of Carson and his two detectives (and an owl - but you have to read to understand.

Supporting Carson is his loving wife, only known as P,K. in the book - to whom he goes for advice, and who's always waiting to hear the latest.

In the mix of suspects in Diane murder is her philandering husband, his office manager who has secrets of her own, her neighbor who worships her, and her best friend and fiercest opponent.

Thrown into this are a number of other crimes, and a missing person story that turns out completely unlike you'd ever expect.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - I read the first half in one afternoon - and although the character development leaves a little to be desired, on the whole it's a good, fun read.

Recommended.

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A woman's body is discovered by a trio of rural detectives setting in motion an investigation that leads everywhere and nowhere...

That's the basic set-up of Cold But Not Forgotten. It's something of a mashup: A soft-boiled/cozy/procedural mystery. Not really my preferred reading choices but I was looking for something a little more lightweight than usual - this was it. Pretty tame stuff.

Approximately the first half of Cold But Not Forgotten is taken up by the opening storyline the next quarter or so of the book (my favorite part) is more along the lines of an overview of the day-to-day operations of a rural patrolman then it finishes up with some loose ends from the original murder case.

There isn't much in the way of nuance. The good guys are all nice pleasant people. Most of the bad guys aren't really all that bad either. There's a lot of good natured comradery among the detectives, the wives/domestic partners are all tough, sweet ladies who are the bosses of their households and there isn't a vice or bad habit to be found.

The writing style is somewhere between a personal journal and an official report. Told in first-person present: 'I am' not 'I was' 'we are going' not 'we went'. Nothing wrong with that it's just a little unusual and takes a moment of adjustment.

The use of random italics is totally out of control - no SERIOUSLY - it is so distracting!

One thing that might turn off many potential readers is the cursing. While most of it falls well within a PG to PG-13 rating there are several "F-bombs" sprinkled throughout. It doesn't offend me personally but seems completely unnecessary in the greater context of the novel. Were it not for the cursing this could almost be a family friendly mystery.

Final thoughts:I won't go so far as to recommend Cold But Not Forgotten; However, if you're into a more mild type of mystery without much in the way of violence, sexual situations and whatnot then you might consider it. Be aware that there is a fair amount of cursing and those #%@& ITALICS !!!

***Thanks to NetGalley, The Wild Rose Press, Inc. and author RJ Waters for providing me with a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review

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Cold But Not Forgotten
by RJ Waters
The Wild Rose Press, Inc
Humor , Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 15 Sep 2019


I am reviewing a copy of Cold But Not Forgotten through The Wild Rose Press, Inc and Netgalley:


Lieutenant Carson is a detective in rural Nevada. He finds a woman’s lifeless body while at the shooting range with his team. The woman is covered in blood despite no evidence of gun shot wounds.




As Carson digs into the case, he encounters a web of suspects. The woman’s husband a dentist is having an affair with his office manager, who has been embezzling from him. She has a Marathon partner who is jealous of her trophies and a doctor who has been prescribing her arsenic to scare her into eating better. Kindly Mrs. Howell, a widowed neighbor of the victim's, had access to her computer and detested the husband.


Everyone said she was the nicest lady in town, so who wanted her dead?


I give Cold But Not Forgotten Five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

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I received a free electronic copy of this novel on January 5, 2020, from Netgalley, RJ Waters, and Wild Rose Press. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my personal, honest opinion of this work. I am pleased to recommend this novel to friends and family. RJ Waters writes a clear, concise story with a good rhythm and a down-home feeling that keeps you reading.

Taking place in Elko, a small town with too much winter in north-west Nevada, our POV is through the eyes and mind of Lieutenant Robert "Bob" Carson, newly-appointed head investigator of the Elko County Sherriff's Office's three investigators. Bob is a fairly new import from California with loads of big city experience but he is enjoying settling into this small town of 18,000 with his new bride. His co-workers are all interesting personalities who bring a lot to the story, and the mystery of the death of dentist's wife and marathon runner Diane Morrissey, which starts out as a small, questionable death, eventually wraps around to include all of Elko City, County, and on to Las Vegas. As the death count grows, it becomes necessary to work through the crazy to get to the truth of what happened. A very interesting ride...

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A unique and gripping premise, this book takes you on a wild ride inside the mind of a diabolical killer...one who ends up hitting a bit too close to home. Eye-opening twists keep you engrossed in the story for hours on end, and culminates with a satisfying conclusion. Recommended.

**My sincere thanks to the author and publisher for providing a copy free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.**

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Ebook/Cozy Mystery: I saw that most of the reviews were giving this book four and five stars. The description is a mystery with comedy and lots of confusion in a small town. The book’s narration is on first person so you hear Carson’s mindset and inner comments. The book reads like a police report with comments and observations that I think are supposed to be the funny comments. There are a lot of story lines including a serious murder to some embezzlement. I was like Columbo and got the murderer at the first meeting. The rest ended up being lose exposition because you knew it was a red herring because there was still half a book left and it was very formulaic to a Law & Order episode. I struggled through this book.

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I really enjoyed all the twist and turns of this book. It was interesting and kept me involved through out the book. It was interesting that the point of view was from the police investigating and how they balanced that with their home lifes. I'd love to read the next book. #ColdButNotForgotten #NetGalley

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It's a good story, engrossing and entertaining.
I liked the solid mystery, the setting, and the fleshed out cast of characters.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

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detective, sheriff's-deputy, Nevada, family-dynamics, family, friendship, procedural

This book serves as a clear reminder of why due diligence is so vital to an investigation. The early part of the investigation seems to indicate that the husband poisoned the victim, but the case against him was not solid enough for prosecution. Good thing, because there was a lot more to the case and it was very convoluted. Great characters and solidly believable interactions that reflect what good law enforcement is all about. This is not an unbiased review as I was a jail nurse with two different sheriff's departments for a number of years.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Wild Rose Press via NetGalley. Thank you!!

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Lt. Robert Carson is a detective in the small town of Elko, Nevada. While preparing for mandatory target practice, one of his fellow detectives spots a body of a woman, She is covered in blood, but there are no evident injuries. She is identified as Diane Morrissey.

As Carson and his team begin to investigate, they find multiple suspects. Her husband was having an affair. Her marathon competition is jealous of her wins. Her own personal doctor has been giving her alternative medications. Her next door neighbor, a real fan, is jealous of the time she spends running and also hates Diane's husband.

This small-town police procedural is well-written, with liberal doses of humor from the detectives and even their wives. The author has brought his experiences in law enforcement and created a debut novel full of surprises. It almost reads as a few days in the life of a detective with various cases, some large, some small, and culminating with a remembrance of a cold case that Carson has never forgotten. The pacing is constant, guaranteed to keep the reader hooked.

The characters are a jolly bunch, full of humor, and sarcasm at times. They breathe deeply and roll their eyes and constantly pick at each other ... especially when it comes to the OWL.

Many thanks to the author / Wild Rose Press / Netgalley for the digital copy of this humorous police procedural. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

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