Title: Bury the Past by James L’Etoile
Detective Penley Mystery Series Book Two
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery
Length: 320 pages
Book Rating: B
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
How do you stop a killer who’s already behind bars?
Sacramento Police Detectives John Penley and Paula Newberry are enlisted to investigate a case involving the trafficking of stolen street drugs. But they quickly find it’s more difficult than they first imagined when the crime is being committed by a group of corrupt cops undermining the system.
That’s not the only wrench thrown at Penley and Newberry, however, as Sherman, the leader of the group, is orchestrating murders against those who testified against him. He turns the lens onto Newberry, who begins to receive blame and as the political pressure mounts, it’s clear someone has to pay for the crimes. And it comes down to Newberry or Sherman.
With a plot full of twisty, hairpin runs and heart-pounding action, Jim L’Etoile’s Bury the Past is a riveting follow-up to the first in the Detective Penley mysteries, At What Cost.
Review:
Bury the Past is a fast paced mystery with a complex storyline about police corruption and revenge. This second installment in James L’Etoile’s Detective Penley Mystery series can easily be read as a standalone.
Penley is one of the few cops who do no not have a problem with the fact that his current partner, Detective Paula Newberry, worked in Internal Affairs before her current assignment in homicide. One of her most prominent cases involved exposing major police corruption on a narcotics task force. Several cops from this case begin turning up dead just as former Sheriff department officer Charles Sherman is released from prison after his conviction is overturned. This puts Newberry in the crosshairs of District Attorney Linda Clarke who makes it clear that she is convinced Paula is responsible for the murders. With only a short span of time, Penley and Newberry are desperately attempting to show that Sherman is framing Paula for the murders. Will they find the evidence they need to bolster their case despite the fact that Sherman was behind bars when murders started?
Despite the ever increasing amount of evidence to the contrary, Penley has absolutely no doubt that Newberry is not a killer. Together, they frantically try to find the evidence they need to not only clear her name, but prove that Sherman masterminded the plot. An equally daunting task is showing the evidence recovered at the crime scenes has been planted in an effort to frame Paula. With Sherman quickly evading their attempts to keep him under surveillance, Paula and John immediately run up against the white supremacists that Sherman befriended behind bars. With Paula under investigation by Internal Affairs and increasing pressure from DA Cooke, the crime fighting duo turn up the heat on Sherman’s former associates in an attempt to uncover the truth but a shocking revelation turns the entire case upside down.
Bury the Past is an outstanding police procedural that has an clever but slightly unrealistic storyline. Penley and Newberry are well-developed characters who are very easy like despite their flaws and quirks. With plenty of cunning twists and turns, James L’Etoile keeps this readers on the edge of their seats as the novel wends its way to an action-packed, exciting conclusion. A wonderful addition to the Detective Penley Mystery series that old and new fans are sure to enjoy.
