Michael Kelso's Blog: That writer's blog - Posts Tagged "intrigue"

The Consequence of Loyalty

Trey Stone has managed to do something with this book that few authors have been able to do, surprise me.
I’m not saying that I know everything but when I read a book usually I can guess pretty well where the ending is going and whodunit. Trey stone managed to surprise me with his ending. At the end of this book, we find out that it is extremely well named. When I started out it seemed very straightforward. Two of the main characters were in the middle of a drug bust and were saved by the third member. Day done, everyone happy, they go about their merry way as much as possible for a team of cops in Columbus Ohio.
That’s when things go sideways. One of the members of the team is accused of and arrested for shooting his boss and we spend the rest of the book trying to find out if he did it and why.
At first, this seems like the American dream, to shoot one's boss, but as we delve further into the story we find that he actually has the utmost respect for his boss.
So what started out seeming very straightforward questions started coming up and as his coworkers try to unravel the mystery by delving deeper into his past, they find secrets that make them believe maybe he isn’t the man they thought he was.
Mr. Stone did a good job of keeping the intrigue going throughout this entire book. The characters that were brought in each seemed to have their own agenda and each one was made to look like they were involved in the shooting. Each character seemed to have their own past that made it seem like they weren’t what they appear.
It was very well done in keeping the reader on their toes. Keeping them wondering how many of the characters really were involved and what their motivation was.

A wonderful crime/mystery with a surprise twist ending that kept me enthralled the whole way through.

A State Of Despair
When I read Trey Stone's first book, 'The Consequence of Loyalty', I was impressed by the fact that he was able to do something that few authors can... surprise me. As I read 'A State of Despair', the second in the Columbus Archives series, I found myself being led down yet another rabbit hole of mystery. Would Mr. Stone succeed in pulling the metaphorical wool over my eyes a second time?

The story starts simply enough. Undercover agent Jordan Greer is struggling with the realities of being undercover as he tries to track down a drug ring that is pushing a deadly new drug. We follow along as he has a hard time of it both physically and mentally. This could easily be a blueprint for how not to deal with substance abuse.

1/4th of the way through the book it looks like everything is nicely wrapped up. Another successful investigation, with the bad guys on their way to jail, close the file, another case solved. That's when it takes a hard turn, the metaphorical excrement hits the fan, and the real story is revealed.

The story does several flash-forwards through the interview process, just like the tv show NCIS, which does a wonderful job of creating intrigue and tension. It also weaves in some callbacks to the previous book that readers of 'The Consequence of Loyalty' will enjoy. Seeing both Callaway and Martin in more active roles this time around was a real treat.

Mr. Stone does a great job of balancing between a hardcore cop story and a story about how far you would go for your friends.

Calling A State of Despair a pageturner would be an understatement. I was hooked on this book from moment one and found it very difficult to put down.

In the end did Mr. Stone succeed in fooling me a second time? Yes and no. I had my suspicions, but he still managed to throw a curveball into the story which had me doubting my choice of who the 'bad guy' was.

This was a well-written book with an intriguing story that gripped me from moment one and didn't let go until the end. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes crime books, cop stories, mysteries, or just a great pageturner.