Until Proven Guilty by J.A. Jance

Thank you, Barnes and Noble, for yet another cheap/free book.  This one was by far my favorite "ebook for cheap" and deservedly so.  It had all the elements of a winner for me.  Crime drama?  Check.  In depth police investigation?  Check.  Ruggedly handsome, almost middle-aged, sensitive detective?  Check.  I must admit,  I swooned while reading this book.  It didn't hurt that it was a fast page-turner as well.  I read it in a weekend.

J.P. Beaumont (the detective I swooned over) is investigating the murder of a 5-year-old girl who seems to have been an innocent victim of a fanatical cult.  Detective Beaumont must make heads or tails of this investigation in fast order and it won't be easy.  Her mother is being closely guarded by cult members, the head of the cult is a highly suspicious character and the girl's biological father is a recently ousted cult member.  Struggling to find answers, J.P. runs in to a beautiful, intriguing woman at the victim's funeral.  She captivates J.P. from the first moment he sees her and she offers to lend a hand with the investigation.  A self-proclaimed victim's advocate, Anne Corley helps J.P. with many aspects of his case and they eventually find themselves in a relationship.  Unfortunately, a tragic accident in the last 5 pages of the book leaves J.P. back where he started.  And this time, we just aren't sure if he will find the answers.  We have to read the next book, Injustice for All to find out.

For me, this book had the right balance of crime/mystery/romance.  Well, not so much romance...more like what I call "a helping of romance on the side."  If I wanted to read romance, I would read romance.  Duh.  But straight-up crime novels would get boring after a while, so I like my books with a helping of romance.  On the side.  No mustard.  Also, I was afraid I wouldn't get through the book when I found out it was about a murdered five-year-old girl.  I try to steer clear of anything to do with violence against children (I can't even watch most episodes of Law & Order SVU) because it makes me too emotional.  This book didn't go into too much detail surrounding the actual murder, so I was okay with it. 


Hands down, my favorite part of the book was J.P.  (And no, it's not because that was what my husband used to go by...you know, before he insisted that people call him Joshua).  He is everything a good male detective should be.  Driven, considerate, empathetic, and downright cool.   He is a good partner.  He's been unlucky in love, but it doesn't consume him. The author spent a lot of time on J.P. and it worked.  All other detectives will now be compared to him.  I can't wait to read more.
Finally, let me apologize for recommending yet another book in a series.  Really though, it seems like all books these days are one in a series, so I can't be blamed.  Plus, think of it as my gift to you.  You can now spend more time reading and less time working, doing laundry, or any of the other important tasks you should be doing instead of reading a book that Amy Trimble thinks you should read.  You're welcome.