Book Review: Without Mercy

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Without Mercy     Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Lois Gilbert
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Woman Main Character   Amateur Sleuth
Onyx, Sep 2000, $5.99, 304 pp.

On her beloved gran’s farm near Ithaca, New York Brett McBride recovers from the illnesses that she caught while spending a year in Africa providing medical relief. She has spent the past year at home and away from the disasters and death she saw in Ethiopia. However, she still has not reconciled with her teenage daughter Amy, who lived with her dad while Brett played doctor overseas. Amy hates the farm and wants to go back to the total freedom she had with her dad.

While hunting on the property’s woods, Brett spots the mangled remains of a murder victim. Brett calls the police. Her ex-husband heads up the investigation that soon points towards Brett, her family, and a hired hand as the prime suspects. However, the identity of the corpse leads to more mysteries that threaten to destroy the loving McBride clan.

WITHOUT MERCY is an exciting contemporary suspense with a pinch of romance that centers on the unraveling of ties that bond a family together. The cleverly designed story line focuses on the fully developed characters as they react to the murder especially who the victim is. The audience understands what motivates the cast notably Brett and Gran. Fans of Hoag and Johansen will enjoy Lois Gilbert’s taut family thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner