Midnight Owl is
the first book in the Joe Leverette Mystery Series. Don’t get too comfortable
because the book starts off with a real bang. The action erupts on page one as
a young woman is stalked. We, the readers, get to watch her death by
dismemberment. That’s right, dismemberment. So if you’re looking for a sweet
little murder mystery with a Miss Marple lookalike pottering around, think
again. This is not it. The body is cut into six parts, and these parts are
found by six individuals, completely unrelated to each other or the victim. The
problem is, each ‘witness’ has had a horrible dream involving seeing the
criminal kill the young woman. The body part they dream about is the one they
find. They awaken to the sound of an owl hooting three times. Naturally, they
don’t tell the police this because they’d be thought mad or even suspects. An
even bigger problem is the killer is now going after these ‘witnesses’ and he
manages to kill two. Detective Joe Leverette, who is assigned to the case,
finds himself (hesitantly) attracted to one of the witnesses, Carole Sage, who
is a ‘sensitive,’ meaning she can see the original murder and the murders of
the two witnesses. The police sting set up to catch the killer fails, but is
Carole next on his list?
Well, put aside
your chores because you’ll just read and read and read (as I did) until you
fall off the edge of the cliff. There’s no cliff-hanger in the conventional
sense. The book ends with the reader going, “Oh no, don’t end now!” I’m a bit
of a cosy mystery fan so this one had my hair standing on end. I love things
that are slightly paranormal, but not outside the bounds of what could happen.
I found the idea of the dreams and Carole’s psychic abilities fascinating. I
also found the fact that the chief of police accepted her help in this regard
quite refreshing. I wonder how many times a psychic has pointed out the
location of a body to the police.
The book is
quite graphic, but when you consider some novels and television series that
make sure the reader/viewer is awash in blood and gore, I didn’t think this
level of action overstepped the bounds. Murder, after all, is a bloody business
and to commit cold, premediated murder, one has to be a particularly horrible
person. I was disappointed that the book ended so abruptly, literally at the moment critique, but I have it on good
authority that the author is writing furiously to continue the tale. I’m dying
to know who the killer is, why the ‘witnesses’ had dreams, what’s the meaning
of the owl hooting, so I’m eagerly waiting for the next in the series. I didn’t feel I got to know as much about Joe
Leverette as I’d have liked, but that’s what sequels are for, and I hope the
author expands on his character and back story. I’m also rooting for a romance
between him and Carole. If you’re a murder mystery or detective thriller fan,
you’ll love this book. Five stars.
