Traces of Guilt

Evie has come to Carin County, as a test run for a new division for cold cases.A plot with an array of great characters, newly married Ann and Paul, who changed her focus and step away from one career, to get married, was a good sounding board for Evie. They were the Thanes brothers and parents that added their careers and focus to help with these 2 cold cases. The plot had plot within them, the detail was great as Evie stepped back to try different approached to solving. Exie is unique in that she can quickly leave a case and enjoy the people around. Looking forward to being on the new team being formed. It was intense, well written, more of a suspenseful mystery with strong family ties and close friends working it,

Traces of Guilt Dee Henderson Book Summary: A Riveting Cold-Case Mystery from Dee Henderson Evie Blackwell loves her life as an Illinois State Police Detective . . . mostly. She's very skilled at investigations and has steadily moved up through the ranks. She would like to find Mr. Right, but she has a hard time imagining how marriage could work, considering the demands of her job. Gabriel Thane is a lifetime resident of Carin County and now its sheriff, a job he loves. Gabe is committed to upholding the law and cares deeply for the residents he's sworn to protect. He too would like to find a lifetime companion, a marriage like his parents have. When Evie arrives in Carin, Illinois, it's to help launch a new task force dedicated to reexamining unsolved crimes across the state. Spearheading this trial run, Evie will work with the sheriff's department on a couple of its most troubling missing-persons cases. As she reexamines old evidence to pull out a few tenuous new leads, she unearths a surprising connection . . . possibly to a third cold case. Evie's determined to solve the cases before she leaves Carin County, and Sheriff Thane, along with his family, will be key to those answers. Review: Great Characters and story line. The two mysteries were great for thinking and trying to guess who did the crime and what happened. I think the premise of the story was great! The details were a little overwhelming! Almost too many characters and too much going on at times. I loved Evie, the character was well written and enjoyable. Great procedural story with a lot of details about an overwhelming amount of information. Took a bit of time to get through the book, like going through each of Evie’s files. I liked all the characters, but sometimes the characters are lacking in a way to connect. I would like to thank Net Galley and Bethany House for allowing me to read and review this book in return for a free copy and I was never asked to write a favorable review by anyone. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

The character development couldn’t be better in my mind. I am always amazed at how many characters there are in Dee Henderson’s books. I really like seeing how many characters from previous novels make brief appearances in each new book. She truly seems to have “a small world” scenario going on even crossing over from series to series. Along with that she has a marvelous talent for revealing personal information in a subtle way so that it feels like it comes out of a clear blue sky. The cases that are being reexamined in this book are quickly summarized as each one is initially discussed. They over the course of time they are slowly picked apart and looked at from every possible angle. One of the aspects of the search that is covered is the search for cadavers using specially trained dogs. The way that a handler works with a pair of dogs was described in great detail. I was fascinated by the information given. I do want to warn that this is a very heavy book to read emotionally. The subject matter of two of the cases made it a difficult read. On top of that there is a great deal of focus placed on one of the family members who is looking for closure, and the emotions that she has been dealing with for years. I found myself having to take breaks from my reading just to work through the feelings that were stirred up in me for what the characters were dealing with. To me though that is just proof of how good the writing is. I received a free eBook copy of this novel through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Traces of Guilt is another intensely emotional, gut wrenching mystery from Dee Henderson. While categorized as a romantic suspense, I would say its more of a mystery with Christian and romantic elements. There are glimpses of romance between the two main characters: Evie and Gabe, but the romantic story is not the primary purpose of the book. The mystery was well written and I found myself following threads right along with the characters, hoping to find the answers at the end. Ms. Henderson sends the reader down several rabbit holes, convinced of the answer long before the final answer presents itself. I found myself wanting it to be each of the ideas the characters explored, because Ms. Henderson presents compelling reasons why each solution could be reality We meet a new cast of characters in Carin, Illinois and also re-engage with favorites from other Dee Henderson books. Ann Falcon. I just love her. From the minute we met her in her own story, through the many subsequent books where Ann makes an appearance, I love her even more. I love the life that she has carved out for herself, the relationship she has with her husband, and the wisdom she brings to each situation she's a part of. I see Ann as the voice of reason and the conscience of the characters in the story. She's a wonderful character and brings an additional depth to any story she's in. Additionally, Ms. Henderson introduces the Thane family and I fell a little bit in love with Gabe from the beginning. The Thane family is a great model family showing how a family can remain close even despite some fundamental differences in faith. Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.