Book ~ "Fatal Harvest" (2024) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Eleven-year-old Matt Clark is staying in the outlying village of Ashton for the summer while his parents work out their separation. He’s been told to keep his head down and to stay off social media. Labour Day has come and gone and Matt believes he’ll be home soon, completely unaware that someone has been posting his photo and location on one of the sites and trouble is on its way.

Detective Liam Hunter gets the call - a double murder and a missing boy. While he spearheads the investigation, true crime podcaster Ella Tate undertakes her own search for the killer with mixed results. Meanwhile Homicide and Major Crimes is undergoing a major upheaval and the top position is up for grabs as Hunter’s partner struggles to keep her job.

Eleven-year-old Matt has been spending the summer in a small town outside of Ottawa with Devina and Stu, friends of his mother's. He comes home after fishing with his buddy, Jimmy, to find them murdered and there's a man still lurking about. He panics and takes off into hiding. When Devina and Stu's bodies are found, the police wonder about Matt. Did he kill them? Was he kidnapped or also murdered?

Police officers Liam Hunter and Rosie Thornburn investigate. In the meantime, there are internal changes and tension happening within their department which could be distracting. Liam usually works on the sly with Ella Tate, a true crime podcaster, exchanging information on cases, though they didn't spend a lot of time together in this story.

I have read quite a few of this author's books and enjoy them. This one is written in third person perspective depending on where the action was. Though it is the third in the Hunter and Tate series (and I've read the first two), you can read it as a stand alone but I'd recommend you read the first two first so you'll have the background of the characters. The whodunnit was an interesting twist. I like that it is set in Ottawa, ON, and the author doesn't try to hide it. 

Book ~ "Blind Date" (2022) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Nobody’s safe when a killer has you in their sights.

True crime podcaster Ella Tate is shaken to her core by the horrific assault and murder of Josie Wheatly, a teacher she has never met ... because not only had Josie moved into Ella’s vacated apartment three months earlier but her Facebook photos reveal a striking resemblance between the two women.

Within days, two people close to Ella are harmed and she fears that she’s become the target of twisted revenge from her crime-reporting days. Reluctantly teaming up with her neighbour, Tony, a hairdresser who loves the finer things in life, and Liam Hunter, the persistent detective assigned to the cases, Ella struggles to stay one step ahead before she becomes the target of the final kill.

Ella recently got laid off from her job as a newspaper reporter and has started a crime podcast. She and her live-in boyfriend recently broke up, taking all of his furniture with him. She's barely scraping by now. She doesn't have many people close to her except her younger brother, Danny, who is a busker addicted to drugs and living on the streets, Finn, her childhood friend, and O'Brien, a police officer she has known for about ten years.

Ella starts to investigate the rape and suicide of a teacher named Josie, who had recently moved into Ella's old apartment. Ella realizes how similar they are in appearance and wonders if she was the intended victim. As she starts digging, she receives threats and terrible things start happening to people around her.

This is the first of two in the Hunter and Tate series (I'd read the second one in March) and I liked it ... there are lots of possibilities about who could have done everything. It's written in third person perspective in various voices depending on where the action was. I like the fact that it is set in Ottawa, ON, and they didn't hide it. As a head's up, there is swearing and violence.

Book ~ "When Last Seen" (2023) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ The hardest part is not knowing…

Ottawa is baking under a July heatwave when the Homicide and Major Crimes Unit is called to help track down missing three-year-old Charlie McGowan. This is the second missing person case in nine months - a university exchange student never made it back to her Carleton University residence from a downtown party in November.

At first, the two disappearances appear unrelated but as true crime podcaster Ella Tate and Detective Liam Hunter dig deeper into both files, unsettling relationships begin to emerge. Evidence, however, remains frustratingly out of reach as the clock keeps ticking and concern for both missing victims takes on a heightened urgency.

And then Liam Hunter gets a call that a body’s been found on the Ottawa River Parkway ...

Three-year-old Charlie was playing in his yard with the neighbour's cat. His mother, Ginger, took her eyes off him for a few minutes and he disappeared. A search is done of the neighbourhood and the water not far from their house but there is no sign of him. Liam is the police officer in charge of the investigation and quietly works with true crime writer/podcaster Ella to get the word out and find Charlie. Hours turn into days and there's still no word about him. Ginger is frantic and David, his father, keeps himself busy with work.

Suddenly clues start coming out that David has had business meetings with suspicious men and then it's discovered that they may have connections to a Chinese-exchange student who went missing months before.

This was an interesting story and there were many possibilities on what could have happened to Charlie. It's written in third person perspective depending on where the action was. Though it is the second in the Hunter and Tate series, there seemed to be enough information from the first one so you can read this one as a stand alone (I haven't read the first one but will). I like the fact that it is set in Ottawa, ON, and they didn't hide it. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "Closing Time" (2020) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ It’s late summer and a restless Officer Kala Stonechild has taken her foster niece, Dawn, on a canoe trip at Pine Hollow Lodge in the wilderness north of Sault Ste. Marie. But the getaway turns deadly when a teenage girl goes missing on her way home from an evening shift at the lodge’s restaurant.

After the girl’s body is found between the lodge and the nearby town of Searchmont, Stonechild reluctantly agrees to help with the investigation. She’s teamed with Clark Harrison, an officer she worked with during her last posting in northwestern Ontario. As the investigation heats up, Stonechild’s past threatens the close bonds she’s forged back home. Will she return to her life in Kingston, or will the rekindling of an old relationship lure her away for good? 

Kala Stonechild is a police officer living in Kingston, ON, and taking care of her teenage niece, Dawn, while Dawn's mother is in prison.  Kala has been feeling restless lately and has some life decisions to make ... while she likes the life she's made for herself in Kingston, she has also been missing her old life, living in northern Ontario with no responsibilities for anyone but herself and her dog.

Kala and Dawn rent a cottage on a lodge in northern Ontario so Kala can show Dawn the joys and simplicity of life away from the city.  Days spent hiking and on the lakes are interrupted when Rachel, a teenager who was working at the restaurant at the lodge where Kala and Dawn are staying is murdered.  The area is served by one police officer, who Kala had worked with years before, and he asks for her help.  As Clark and Kala start investigating, they find that Rachel wasn't the good girl her mother wanted her to be and there are many who could have killed her.

This is the seventh (and final) in the Stonechild and Rouleau series and I enjoyed it.  Though it is part of a series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the previous ones to read this one (there is enough background given).   It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario (these characters live in Kingston and this story happens in northern Ontario and the author doesn't hide this fact).  I liked the writing style and found the storyline interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.

While I'm sorry to see this series come to an end, I look forward to reading future books in this series and by this author.

Book ~ "Turning Secrets" (2019) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Former teenage runaway and new single mother, Nadia Armstrong, moves to Kingston to turn her life around. But six months after she rents a low-end apartment, her body is found on a concrete slab at an isolated construction site.

Major Crimes begins piecing together her last days, uncertain if this is a case of suicide or murder. To make matters more difficult, a member of the team is leaking information to reporter Marci Stokes, putting Staff Sergeant Rouleau in a precarious position.

Meanwhile, Officer Kala Stonechild’s niece, Dawn, is secretly corresponding with her father, who’s out on early parole. Dawn’s friend, Vanessa, is also keeping a dangerous secret - her relationship with an older man named Leo, who preys on young girls. And it’s not long before he has Dawn in his sights.

Nadia, a young single mother, is found dead at a construction site and at first everyone assumes it's suicide.  But as the Kingston police start to investigate, they suspect she's been murdered.  As they dig into her background, they discover she has a past doing drugs and prostitution.

Police officer Kala Stonechild is taking care of her teenage niece, Dawn, while Dawn's mother is in prison.  Dawn's father has recently been released from prison and heads to Kingston to connect with her before he heads east to get away from some guys he owes money too.

Kala is attracted to a fellow officer (and the feeling seems to be mutual) but things are complicated because his ex-wife has returned to town and is living with him.

Dawn's sorta friend, Vanessa, has been acting funny since she started dating an older guy named Leo.  Leo has a friend who would like to date Dawn but she's creeped out and not interested.

This is the sixth (and latest) in the Stonechild and Rouleau series and I enjoyed it.  Though it is part of a series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the previous ones to read this one (there is enough background given).   It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario (these characters live in Kingston and the author doesn't hide this fact).  I liked the writing style and found the storyline interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.

I look forward to reading future books in this series and by this author.

Book ~ "Missing Her" (2017) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Shelley Vincent has been missing for over a year. Her fiancé, Albert Romaine, is desperate to find out what happened to her. With Christmas less than a week away and no plans to speak of, PI Anna Sweet is happy to take the case. 

But as Anna digs deeper into Shelley's past, she uncovers more questions than answers. Why would a woman with everything to live for simply disappear? Was Shelley murdered? And if so, why didn't the police find her body? 

Anna begins to have a bad feeling. She learns that her every move is being tracked ... and she fears a killer is closing in. Whoever holds the key to Shelley Vincent's disappearance isn't talking - and Anna Sweet is running out of time.

Anna and Jada, both former police officers, run a private investigations firm.  Nick is their office manager and is dating Anna.  It's the Christmas season and Anna will be all alone.  Jada is moving into a new apartment, Nick (a part-time actor) is in New York shooting a movie, her father is heading to Florida to spend time with his girlfriend and her sister is Barbados with her new boyfriend.

Anna is hired by Albert to look into the disappearance of his fiancée, Shelley, who hasn't been seen or heard from in about a year.  Everyone assumes she has committed suicide but no one knows why should would do it since she had a loving fiancé, was close to her mother and sister and had good friends.

I've read quite a few books by this author and I liked this one. It's a quick read at about 50 pages. It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa. I like this author's writing style. It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

Though it's the sixth in the Anna Sweet series, it works as a stand alone.

Book ~ "No Trace" (2016) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Ryan Green disappears one day after school without a trace. His family is caught in a living nightmare. Six months later, the police have no leads. Desperate for answers, the parents contact private investigator Anna Sweet. 

The trail has gone cold but Anna doesn't give up without turning over every clue. When a body is found in the woods, Anna and the police fear the worst. 

Who would want to harm Ryan Green and who will be next? Anna's skills are about to be tested to their limits. 

Anna and Jada, both former police officers, run a private investigations firm.  Nick is their office manager and is dating Anna. Jada is on vacation and Nick, a part-time actor, is in Vancouver shooting a movie.  Anna is hired by the parents to look into the disappearance of their son, Ryan, a popular high school student, who hasn't been seen or heard from in six months.

In the meantime, Anna's sister, Cheri, has decided to divorce her husband, a police officer who had dumped Anna years ago to be with Cheri. Anna is concerned how this is affecting their young son. And there are rumors that Nick is dating an actress while on his movie shoot.

I've read quite a few books by this author and I liked this one. It's a quick read at about 55 pages. It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa. I like this author's writing style. It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

Though it's the fifth in the Anna Sweet series, it works as a stand alone.

Book ~ "Bleeding Darkness" (2018) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Two murders, fourteen years apart, both shrouded in secrets.

David McKenna lies dying in a Kingston hospital, his children gathered from across the country to say a final goodbye. But the family reunion opens old wounds. David’s only daughter, Lauren, never recovered from the unsolved murder of her high school best friend, Zoe Delgado, fourteen years earlier - or the suspicion that her brother, Tristan, was behind it.

Before David breathes his last, Tristan’s pregnant wife, Vivian, disappears and the Major Crimes Unit is called in to help find her. With Kala Stonechild struggling to reconnect with her foster niece and Woodhouse making trouble for Staff Sergeant Jacques Rouleau, tensions are running high on the team, but they must put their personal problems aside when a woman's strangled body is found frozen on the Rideau Trail.

With a winter storm sweeping the shores of Lake Ontario, the team uncovers unspeakable betrayals that give more than one suspect a reason to kill … and raise fears that the two killings were only the beginning.

As David lies dying in the hospital, his family gathers in Kingston, ON, to say good-bye ... along with his wife, Evelyn, are his daughter, Lauren, from Toronto, his son, Tristan, and his wife, Vivian, from Edmonton, and his son, Adam, and his wife, Mona, from Vancouver.  The family is still living under the shadow of the unsolved murder of Tristan's high school girlfriend, Zoe, years ago ... many think Tristan did it because Zoe had broken up with him.  When Vivian is found murdered shortly after David passes away, the police find it too coincidental that two loves of Tristan have been murdered so look to the family, even though they are grieving.

Police officer Jacques Rouleau is temporarily in charge while his boss is on an extended vacation.  Not only does his team have to solve Vivian's murder, Rouleau also has to manage the different personalities and ambitions of his team.

Police officer Kala Stonechild is taking care of her teenage niece, Dawn, while Dawn's mother is in prison.  Dawn's father has recently been released from prison and Kala uses her contacts to try to find out where he is.  Dawn has always been a loner and is wondering why a popular girl is suddenly paying attention to her.

This is the fifth (and latest) in the Stonechild and Rouleau series and I enjoyed it.  Though it is part of a series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the previous ones to read this one (there is enough background given).   It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario (these characters live in Kingston and the author doesn't hide this fact).  I liked the writing style and found the storyline interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

I look forward to reading future books in this series and by this author.

Book ~ "A Model Death" (2015) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Against her better judgment, Anna Sweet accepts a date with the secretive Nick Roma, office manager for Storm Investigations. But before they can meet up, the body of Nick's ex-girlfriend is found near a lake. Rumours swirl that Nick was hounding his ex to get back together ... and he wouldn't take no for an answer. 

The police are convinced that Nick is the killer but Anna agrees to take on his case. Her investigation will take her deep into Nick Roma's past and onto the set of a reality TV show. Will she be able to prove Nick is innocent or will her investigation put him behind bars for life?

Anna and Jada, both former police officers, run a private investigations firm and Nick is their office manager.  Lena is his ex-girlfriend and starring in a reality series of three models sharing a house in Ottawa.  When Lena is found murdered, Nick is the obvious suspect.

Nick hires Anna to investigate and find out who murdered Lena.  Given Nick's mysterious past, Anna can't help but think that maybe Nick did indeed kill her since that's where all the evidence is pointing.

I've read quite a few books by this author and I liked this one.  It's a quick read at about 60 pages.  It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa.  I like this author's writing style.  It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

Though it's the fourth in the Anna Sweet series, it works as a stand alone.

Book ~ "To Keep a Secret" (2014) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Anna Sweet's PI business partner, Jada Price, has gone missing. Anna and new hire, Nick Roma, team up to find her. The trail leads them to a teenage girl's murder and a secret internet dating site. 

Anna is about to discover how far people will go to keep a secret and who they will betray. She must work quickly to uncover the answers before a second victim dies. 

Will this case prove too difficult for Anna Sweet? Or will she put the clues together in time to outsmart a killer who has everything to lose? 

Anna and Jada, both former police officers, run a private investigations firm.  Henry, Jada's teenage brother, has been threatened and he and Jada go into hiding.  Henry and his school friend, Mandy, had hacked into a dating site where married men are looking for action on the side and they blackmailed a few of the men.  Mandy turns up murdered and it seems that Henry may be next.

Understandably, Mandy's family is devastated.  Anna and her brother-in-law, Jimmy, who is a police officer, start investigating the men who had been blackmailed, one of whom is a cop.

I've read quite a few books by this author and I liked this one.  It's a quick read at about 100 pages.  It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa.  I like this author's writing style.  It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

Though it's the third in the Anna Sweet series, it works as a stand alone.

Book ~ "The Hard Fall" (2013) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Paul Taylor, a wealthy business man, is in jail for the cold-blooded murder of his lover, Laura Flint. She is found dead in his bed one hot August morning. Taylor's wife, a former swimsuit model, is the only one to stand behind him but even she has doubts. Taylor is about to go on trial-and he is the only suspect. 

Anna Sweet of Storm Investigations agrees to take on his case with little hope of winning. The trail of clues is about to lead her into a hornet's nest of ugly secrets. Will Anna find new evidence to clear Taylor's name? Or is she working to free a killer? 

Anna and Jada, both former police officers, have recently teamed up to open a private investigations firm.  They are struggling for business so are happy when the Paul Taylor murder case lands on their desk.  Taylor is a wealthy businessman whose lover was found dead in his bed.  They will get paid a daily rate but will receive a huge bonus if they can find something that will get Taylor acquitted.

There are a number of suspects ... his wife, who despite being cheated on, maintains his innocence, and his business partners,

I've read quite a few books by this author and I liked this one.  It's a quick read at about 60 pages.  It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa.  I like this author's writing style.  It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

Though it's the second in the Anna Sweet series, it works as a stand alone.

I look forward to reading the others in this series.

Book ~ "Second Chances" (2012) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ It's the summer of 1971 and fifteen-year-old Darlene travels with her mother to cottage country. This year her wild cousin, Elizabeth, is staying with them in the hopes that time away from Toronto will straighten her out - but Elizabeth has other plans. It’s her summer mission to torment Darlene by manipulating her friends and seducing every eligible male in her path. 

Meanwhile Darlene is captivated by the mysterious strangers who rent the cottage down the road, particularly free-spirited Candy, who tells stories of traipsing across the United States with rock stars. 

Darlene is also friends with a reclusive journalist who will stop at nothing to pen the ultimate anti-war story. She, too, secretly dreams of becoming a writer but knows that her father will never allow it. 

When the connections between the young strangers and the war start to become clear, Darlene is presented with more choices than she would like.

It's the groovy summer of 1971 and Darlene is fifteen.  She lives in Ottawa (hometown of the author) and spends the summers in Cedar Lake, where her mother runs a convenience store for the cottagers (her father works in a mill in Ottawa and just comes up on the weekends), and she hangs out with her summer friends.  This summer Elizabeth, her seventeen-year-old cousin from Toronto, is staying with them.  She'd gotten too wild and her parents hope that spending the summer in the country will settle her down.  Elizabeth amuses herself by annoying Darlene.

Candy and Johnny are Americans who are renting the Davidson's cottage this summer along with their young son.  Darlene is intrigued by Candy, who is a free spirit who claims to have been best friends with Janis Joplin and hung out with Jim Morrison.  Darlene is friends with Gideon, an older gentleman who lives in Cedar Lake year 'round, delivers the mail and writes articles for the Globe and Mail, especially focusing on protesting the Vietnam War.  Darlene would like to be a writer when she grows up but her father wants her to have more stable traditional job like a secretary.

I've read a few books by this author and I enjoyed this one.  I like her writing style.   It is written in first person perspective in Darlene's voice.  As such, I'm assuming it's considered a youth/young adult book but I didn't find it immature in actions or characters.  I think people of all ages (15+) would find it engaging.

Though I was younger than Darlene when this story takes place, I could relate to the references to the music, clothing and TV shows.  "Going to town" for everyone in Cedar Lake meant going to Campbellford, which I've driven through many times to visit my in-laws.

Book ~ "In Winter's Grip" (2010) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ After her mothers suicide, Maja Cleary turned her back on her family and Duved Cove, Minnesota, until a desperate phone call reveals that her father has been murdered and her brother Jonas is the prime suspect. She flies home, knowing that she will have to confront shared memories of an abusive father. 

Even as she works to prove her brothers innocence, she cannot ignore the evidence that he had every reason to kill their father. The frigid, stormy Minnesota landscape sets the mood as she battles against time, the local police and the relentless snow. 

Maja is a plastic surgeon married to a businessman and living in Ottawa.  Though she keeps in touch with her brother, Jonas, she hasn't spoken to her father in years.  Their father wasn't a nice man when they were growing up, which led their mother to commit suicide when Maja was in university twenty years ago.  She heads home to Minnesota when she hears that her father has been murdered.

Wanting to protect Jonas, Maja starts asking around the town they are in trying to find out who had a reason to kill her father.  Though he was outwardly friendly and nice to others, not many knew the true nature of their father.  But she discovers that there are some who did have a reason to kill him and she wants to figure out who is the killer.

I've read a few books by this author and I like her writing style.  I though this one was okay.  I found the storyline interesting ... there were lots of people who could have killed the father with good reason.  It is written in first person perspective in Maja's voice.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

Damaged from their childhoods, Maja and Jonas are not the most open people.   Maja is in a so-so marriage but not willing to do anything about it.  She is still dreaming about her high school boyfriend, Billy, from more than twenty years ago, who she meets up with again when she goes home (I found this storyline a bit distracting).  Jonas is married to Claire and they have a young teenage son and there is a lot of tension in their house for some reason.  Tobias, the police officer, assigned to solve the murder seems more interested in flirting with Maja than was professional since he knew she was married.

Book ~ "The Second Wife" (2011) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~  Gwen Lake is a forty-five-year-old police officer with a desk job, an ex-husband and a future not even close to the American dream. 

A year after her divorce, and more out of boredom and curiosity than anything else, she agrees to a meeting with her ex's new wife. She has no idea that the encounter will lead to murder. And she has decidedly mixed emotions when her ex-husband is arrested for the crime. 

Instead of accepting the lead detective's advice to book a Club Med vacation and leave the investigation to the professionals, Gwen decides to work the case on her own. Her life is about to get a lot less predictable and a lot more dangerous.

Gwen Lake is a cop but the chief of police has her in a desk job because she has a great memory for numbers and information.  She's in her mid-forties and her husband, Brian, recently left her for someone else.  When Marjory, the new wife, wants to meet her for a coffee, Gwen agrees out of curiosity.  Marjory tells Gwen that she is scared of Brian, which Gwen scoffs at since he is a mild-mannered shoe salesman.  Marjory then turns up dead and Brian is arrested for her murder.  Gwen is the only one who believes in his innocence and it's up to her to prove it.

I've read a few books by this author and I liked this one.  It's a quick read at less than 100 pages and moves at a quick pace.  I like this author's writing style.  It is written in first person perspective in Gwen's voice.  There is some swearing.

Book ~ "Shallow End" (2017) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Teacher, mother, wife and convicted child molester Jane Thompson makes parole after losing everything - her husband, her children, her career and her reputation. But just as she begins trying to build a life out of the public eye, the bludgeoned body of the student she abused four years earlier is found on the shores of Lake Ontario. Sergeant Rouleau assigns officers Stonechild and Gundersund to head up the murder investigation and Jane quickly becomes their prime suspect. 

Meanwhile, Stonechild’s niece, Dawn, has been skipping school and running into trouble in foster care. Gundersund is more trapped than ever in his failing marriage and Rouleau struggles to come to terms with the death of his ex-wife. But all their problems take a back seat as the investigation picks up steam. Stonechild and Gundersund wade through buried secrets to find the truth, which will take them on a twisted journey to the heart of cruelty. The question is - who will come out alive on the other side?

When Jane Thompson was sent to prison for having relations with one of her twelve-year-old students, despite declaring her innocence, she lost everything ... her job, her husband, her children and her freedom.  She is now out on parole and the boy, now seventeen, is found murdered.  His parents demand that Jane be arrested since she is the obvious choice.  Rouleau and his team are assigned the investigation.  Jane's ex-husband has custody of their children and refuses to let Jane see them until this matter is settled.

In the meantime, Rouleau is still grieving the passing of his beloved ex-wife and taking care of his elderly father.  After having her niece removed from her guardianship and placed in a foster home, Kala Stonechild is trying to get on with her life without Dawn.  Stonechild was also brought up in the foster system and wants Dawn to have some normalcy and stability.  Paul Gundersund has accepted that his marriage is over and wants to move on but his wife is determined to win him back.

This is the fifth book I've read by this author (I read the others in last couple of weeks) and I enjoyed it.  It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario (these characters live in Kingston).  I liked the writing style and found the storylines interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.  Though it is the fourth (and latest) in the Stonechild and Rouleau series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the first one to read this one (there is enough background given).  As a head's up, there is swearing.

I look forward to reading future books in this series.

Book ~ "My Sister's Keeper" (2013) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Anna Sweet, ex-cop turned waitress, is bar-hopping her way across the U.S.A. But a middle-of-the-night phone call to Anna's hotel room in Kermit, Texas, is about to end her life on the road. The brakes on her sister Cheri's car have failed, and she's lying banged up in an Ottawa hospital. Cheri warns that unless Anna comes right home, she will be dead by Christmas. 

Anna has more than enough reason to stay away from her hometown. Yet her sister's terror is a calling card she cannot ignore. Is Cheri's life really in danger? Or is this another bid for attention? A doubting Anna Sweet is about to find out.

Anna was a cop in Ottawa until she was forced to kill someone in the line of duty.  Though she was found not guilty of any wrong doing, she quit the force and started mindlessly traveling around the States picking up waitressing jobs.

Anna gets a call from her dad that her sister, Cheri, was involved in a car accident and needs to speak with her.  Cheri is recently separated from her husband and fears he is trying to kill her.  So Anna heads home to Ottawa to unofficially investigate what's going on.

This is the fourth book I've read by this author and I liked it.  It's a quick read at less than 100 pages.  It's set in the author's hometown of Ottawa ... it's always fun to read a book set in Ontario and Canada.  I like this author's writing style.  It is written in first person perspective in Anna's voice.

It is the first in the Anna Sweet series and I look forward to reading the others.

Book ~ "Tumbled Graves" (2016) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ A missing child. A dead mother. Kala Stonechild is about to discover what one betrayal can lead to.

When Adele Delaney and her daughter, Violet, go missing, Jacques Rouleau is called upon to investigate. However, struggling with the impending death of his ill ex-wife, he sends Kala Stonechild and Paul Gundersund instead. Stonechild has been trying to adapt to life as her young cousin Dawn’s guardian, and even though Gundersund has offered support, Stonechild is at risk of losing custody.

On the second day of the investigation, Adele’s body turns up, dumped on the shoulder of the highway with no sign of her daughter. Her husband, Ivo, denies any involvement with either his wife’s death of their child’s disappearance but not everyone is convinced. As the investigation unfolds, Stonechild learns that Adele was once entangled with a Montreal biker gang and heads to Quebec to investigate further.

As Stonechild and Gundersund juggle personal troubles and a complicated dangerous case, they find themselves piecing together a chain of disasters leading back to a single betrayal.

Adele and her young daughter,Violet, from Kingston, ON, are missing and officers Kala Stonechild and Paul Gundersund are assigned the case.  When Adele's body is found on the highway and it appears that Violet has drown, everyone assumes it was Ivo, the woman's husband, who killed his family.  Stonechild and Gundersund, though, head to Montreal to check into Adele's past and discover she used to work in a strip bar and was involved with some questionable people.

In the meantime, Stonechild has temporary guardianship of her cousin's daughter, Dawn, whose parents are now in prison.  Stonechild is used to just having to take care of herself but now wants to make sure that Dawn doesn't have the same upbringing she had in foster care.

Jacques Rouleau has some time off to be with his ex-wife, who he still loves, who is dying.  Gundersund is dealing with his wife who had left him for someone else but has made it clear she wants him back.

This is the third book I've read by this author (I read two last week) and I enjoyed it.  It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario (and Canada).  I liked the writing style and found the storylines interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.  Though it is the third in the Stonechild and Rouleau series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the first one to read this one (there is enough background given).  As a head's up, there is swearing.

I look forward to reading the others in the series.

Book ~ "Butterfly Kills" (2015) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ Two separate crimes, two tragic outcomes.

Jacques Rouleau has moved to Kingston to look after his father and take up the position of head of the town’s Criminal Investigations Division. One hot week in late September, university student Leah Sampson is murdered in her apartment. In another corner of the city, Della Munroe is raped by her husband. At first the crimes appear unrelated but as Sergeant Rouleau and his new team of officers dig into the women’s pasts, they discover unsettling coincidences. When Kala Stonechild, one of Rouleau’s former officers from Ottawa, suddenly appears in Kingston, Rouleau enlists her to help.

Stonechild isn’t sure if she wants to stay in Kingston but agrees to help Rouleau in the short term. While she struggles with trying to decide if she can make a life in this new town, a ghost from her past starts to haunt her.

As the detectives delve deeper into the cases, it seems more questions pop up than answers. Who murdered Leah Sampson? And why does Della Monroe’s name keep showing up in the murder investigation? Both women were hiding secrets that have unleashed a string of violence. Stonechild and Rouleau race to discover the truth before the violence rips more families apart.

Jacques Rouleau recently moved from Ottawa to be near his elderly father to head up Kingston's Criminal Investigations Division.  He has a position open on his team and is hoping fellow police officer Kala Stonechild, who had worked for him in Ottawa, will take the job.  She has gone off the grid for the last four months (she has gone home to Northern Ontario).

Leah is a university student and works part-time on an anonymous helpline.  She is found murdered in her apartment ... did it have something to do with her job at the helpline or because of her supposed married lover?  On the same night, Della has been raped by her husband and wants to press charges.  Kala arrives in town around this time and agrees to help Jacques and his team with these two cases, while she decides if she wants to stay on or not.

Dalal and Meeza are the young daughters of Indian immigrants.  Despite now living in Canada, their parents are staying true to their Indian background and ways.  This causes conflict in the family as Dalal yearns to have the similar freer life of her friends at school.

This is the second book I've read by this author (I read the first one earlier this week) and I enjoyed it.  It's always nice to read a book that is happening in Ontario and Canada.  I liked the writing style and found the storylines interesting.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.  Though it is the second in the Stonechild and Rouleau series, it works as a stand alone and you don't need to have read the first one to read this one (there is enough background given).  As a head's up, there is swearing.

I liked the main characters, Kala and Jacques.  Kala is used to working alone but is reluctantly enjoying working with her partner, Gundersund.  We get to know more about Jacques through his interactions with his dad.

I look forward to reading the others in the series.

Book ~ "Cold Mourning" (2014) Brenda Chapman

From Goodreads ~ When murder stalks a family over Christmas, Kala Stonechild trusts her intuition to get results.

It’s a week before Christmas when wealthy businessman Tom Underwood disappears into thin air - with more than enough people wanting him dead.

New police recruit Kala Stonechild, who has left her northern Ontario detachment to join a specialized Ottawa crime unit, is tasked with returning Underwood home in time for the holidays. Stonechild, who is from a First Nations reserve, is a lone wolf who is used to surviving on her wits. Her new boss, Detective Jacques Rouleau, has his hands full controlling her, his team and an investigation that keeps threatening to go off track.

Old betrayals and complicated family relationships brutally collide when love turns to hate and murder stalks a family. 

Kala Stonechild is a police officer working in Northern Ontario.  To put some space between her and an ex-boyfriend, she takes a job in a specialized crime unit in Ottawa.  On her first day, she becomes part of the team that is investigating the disappearance of a local businessman, Tom Underwood.  When he is found dead, left to grieve are his young wife, his two adult children, his son-in-law, his ex-wife and his business partner.  Is one of them a murderer or was it random?

Kala's boss, Jacques Rouleau, knows his team has been set up to fail so is pushing them to solve this murder.  They also have two other cases on the go, though ... a missing homeless woman and a man who is assaulting women.  With a shortage of staff and all this happening over the Christmas holidays, the pressure is on.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it.  I liked that it happened in Ontario.  I've been to downtown Ottawa a few times so kind of knew some of the areas that were referred to.  I liked the writing style and thought it moved at a good pace.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on the various characters wherever the action was happening.

I liked the main characters, Kala and Jacques.  Kala is used to working alone on a small police force and it's an adjustment for her to have to work as a team.  Jacques sounds like a fair and caring boss.  He has just received some devastating personal news that he is trying to deal with.

It is the first in the Stonechild and Rouleau series and I look forward to reading the others.