9.24.2017   Two new thrillers from Texas authors

Blame: Jane Norton and David Hall grew up next door to each other. As kids they collaborated to create a graphic superhero called Liv Danger. Their mothers and fathers were best friends, until Jane’s father died suddenly three years ago.

And then the fatal car accident took David’s life and left Jane, the driver, with no memory of the wreck or anything else from the past three years. As she lay in a coma, rumors spread that Jane may have been trying to kill herself and David was just an innocent victim. Wasn’t there a suicide note?

Best-selling Austin mystery author Jeff Abbott spins a captivating tale in his seventeenth novel, Blame (Grand Central Publishing, $26 hardcover).

Two years after the accident, Jane seeks to find the truth, even if it means that she is to blame for the death of her lifelong friend. But finding the truth may mean delving into deeply hidden family secrets. And how does Liv Danger figure into the story, and why do bad things seem to be happening to others connected with the accident?

Abbott evidently likes one-word titles. His novels include Panic, Fear, Collision, Adrenaline, and Downfall. Blame is a PG-13 type of novel, a thriller that can be recommended to all ages.

The Dime: Dallas author Kathleen Kent has launched a new mystery series with her police thriller, The Dime (Little, Brown, $26 hardcover).

This one isn’t for the faint of heart or those who are offended by strong language or grisly violence. I finished it late one evening and didn’t sleep well, it was so intense.

It’s a page-turner, that’s for sure, featuring tall, tough, red-haired Dallas Police narcotics detective Betty Rhyzyk (I have no idea how to pronounce that, but I would guess RYE-zik), who has a girlfriend lover. They’ve just moved to Dallas from Brooklyn, where Rhyzyk has honed her detective skills under the tutelage of her police sergeant uncle. It’s not clear in the book why she decides to move to Dallas; she doesn’t seem to like Texas very much.

A narcotics bust blows up, and soon bodies (and heads) are stacking up. Rhyzyk and another detective drive to East Texas to investigate a lead, and that’s where things go from bad to worse. Much worse.

Kent is the author of three other novels, including a western set in Texas, The Outcasts. Check her web site, kathleenkent.com, for more information.

Glenn Dromgoole’s latest book is West Texas StoriesContact him at g.dromgoole@suddenlink.net.

>> Read his past Texas Reads columns in Lone Star Literary Life here.