Remains of Innocence

Two murders in two cities, presents a challenge and a possible connection. When Liza Manchett, begins to go through her mother's house, she discovers something she can't explain. Growing up she lived in poverty with no electricity or hot water, yet in going through her mother's things after she has died, she discovers money in various places that amounts to a small fortune. Not sure what this means about the way her mother dealt with raising her and her step brother Guy, she is more than puzzled to come up with a valid explanation. Since she can't ask her mother, she tries to pieces things together as best as she can. She knows her father left them all for another women and died many years ago. Guy had no problem attending Harvard and John Hopkins to become a doctor but he earned it all on his own.

Now he refuses to have anything to do with Liza or helping her try to figure things out. When she attempts to renovate her mother's home to something that is suitable for sale, she receives a warning from a man at her mother's funeral. He warns Liza that people don't forgive and forget. One by one, people in Liza' life begin to come up murdered and she seems to be the only connection. Is it possible Liza is hiding something? Something she is keeping from the police? Is Liza responsible for the string of murders that begins to follow her everywhere she goes?

On the other end of the spectrum, Sheriff Joanna Brady struggles to come to terms with an apparent serial killer in the small town of Bisbee, Arizona. The man in question, Junior Dowdle, has the body of an older man, but mentally has the age of a young child. Combine that with the effects of Alzheimer's and it's no wonder that Junior has wound up missing. When all all out search reveals Junior has fallen to his death in an abandoned cave, they discover three mutilated animals beneath his body. Only on further investigation, do they find a small kitten that has escaped death but is injured beyond belief to even seasoned officers and yet managed to survive. How is Junior responsible? Did his mental capacity lead him to commit these horrible crimes when his parents were forced to lock him inside his room or is there another explanation?

I received Remains of Innocence by J.A. Jance compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins Publishers for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions contained here are strictly my own. I really enjoyed this novel due to the complexities of the two cases that eventually converge for Sheriff Joanna Brady and was more than surprised at who was responsible. Completely missed it on my end and so glad I am not a detective. This one rated a true 4.5 out of 5 stars and is a definitely must read for fans of criminal murder mysteries!

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Remains of Innocence by J.A. Jance

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