The 2nd in the Baby Shark series. Still, great characters but this did not grab me the same as the first in the series.

The story deals with her becoming a private eye in partnership with Otis Millet,.Otis helped locate the bikers who murdered her father. This tale expands her relationship with Otis, but I felt some flavor was lost without seeing Henry Chin, Sarge, and Sun Man.

Though I was a little disappointed, it seems a necessary step to let her grow into Kristin Dijk, private eye. ( )

The second in the "Baby Shark" series, Baby Shark's Beaumont Blues leaves the personal vendetta behind, and instead focuses on more traditional territory: PI work, and all the grit and violence Fate can stuff in there. Less emotionally taxing - and more predictable - Beaumont Blues follows the protagonist through her professional development, and allows Kristin and Otis to shine as the true characters they are. There's nothing earth-shattering here, but Beaumont Blues is a solid read and a great sequel. ( )

Baby Shark becomes a full blown person in this second book of Fate's series. She has moved on from the horror of our first introduction to her and joined forces with Otis as a PI to "protect" a young heiress from someone- perhaps even herself. Mr. Fate does himself proud with the plot, but even prouder with his sparse writing style- suitable to both the the landscape(Texas)of the book and the characters.A very good read indeed. I am now a confirmed fan of Mr. Fate.
The third in the series, High Plains Redemption, is on my nightstand as I type this. ( )

The second book in a series is probably hard on an author. The first book establishes the characters and readers decide if they care enough to stick with the author. With subsequent books, the author has to develop the characters and find new plots without losing what attracted readers in the first place. I've stopped reading books that had interesting plots because I didn't care about the characters so it isn't a matter of character driven vs plot driven story, it take both. for me.

I loved Baby Shark. Baby Shark's Beaumont Blues sucked me in right away and the only reason I didn't finish it in one day is because I had to sleep.

Beaumont Blues takes place about two years after the events in Baby Shark. Kristin Van Dijk has become a licensed private investigator and Otis Millett's partner in the Millet Agency. Together they are a destructive and often lethal team. Though Kristin is not yet twenty-one, Otis doesn't treat her as anything less than a partner he trusts to watch his back. There is no "watch out for the girl" attitude on the part of Otis. He trusts Kristin to shoot when shooting is necessary.

This time they are trying to protect a Texas oil heiress and make sure she is available when her father's will is read. She has to be present or the bulk of the estate goes to a televangelist. What seems like a straight forward assignment gets complicated very quickly. Kristin and Otis are not sure who is doing what to whom all the way to the end of the book. I found the ending very satisfying. The very bad people are part of a near-by crime lord's crew and if you have read Baby Shark you can predict their fate.

Baby Shark gets a love interest in this story. Has she healed enough to be able to trust? Fate does a nice job showing that healing can take a long time.

If you like a strong female character - ready with a gun or knife - and plenty of hard-boiled action then you'll enjoy this book. If you are likely to be troubled by characters who don't see anything wrong with dispatching someone who needs to be dispatched without benefit of a trial then you might want to look for a cozy to read.

My only criticism is that Fate doesn't tell how the aftermath of the messy conclusion to Baby Shark was handled. Otis, Kristin, and Henry had a powerful lot of tracks to cover to keep from going to jail. ( )

Oh Baby, Baby. She is back, all rough, tough and soft around the edges. Kristin Van Dijk, who we met in Baby Shark, has returned to her crime fighting, but now she is Otis' partner in his PI business.

Kristin and Otis are hired to locate and rescue a kidnapped girl, who ends up more difficult to find and keep than they expected. What seemed like a simple rescue mission becomes convoluted case of deception, greed and dishonor.

In this installment of Kristen's adventures it is the characters that take center stage. Baby Shark introduced us to the main characters but that book was driven by the action, the violence. Beaumont Blues has taken the promise of the first one and given the characters a chance to grow. It is no less exciting, no less blood stained than the first one, but it also shows a maturity in development. It would have be easy for Robert Fate to rest on the momentum of Baby Shark, to recreate the "little lost girl fights back" theme but he was able to step back and let her mature. Otis has a bigger role this time as the friendly boss and father figure, and he fills it well. The assorted other characters that blast their way through the action are well drawn with Fate's usual tongue in cheek spin on motive and morality.

But, of course, it is also the action driven plot that makes this a one sitting book. As the action progresses faster than a bullet, or is that as fast as the numerous bullets, it maintains the velocity of non stop suspense and thrills. It still can have scenes such as "It looked as if we were in the middle of a Popeye comic strip with all the bodies strewn about. But it was no cartoon, it was a slaughterhouse. Blood everywhere." Kristin has matured, not mellowed. The ending is satisfyingly unexpected, with the humor that makes these books so creative and welcomed.

Next up is Baby Shark's Panhandle Caravan (name change Mr. Fate? What happened to Sooner Weekends?). It will be interesting to see what Robert Fate has planned next for Kristin and Otis. ( )