Peter A. Leonard

3.5 stars

Three months ago, retired Detroit homicide detective O'Clair (Oak) moved to Pompano Beach, Florida & bought a motel. With him, he brought a few possessions & Virginia. He met her during his last case & although he doesn't understand why, she seems to have chosen him. Virginia is 26, handy with tools & a knockout. Oak is 46, divorced & can't believe his luck. All he knows is she's the best thing that ever happened to him & he's going to enjoy it while it lasts.
He doesn't have a show more background in hospitality but his previous life has given him some experience dealing with drunken frat boys & people's complaints. Luckily, he has Virginia to fix broken appliances & Jady, the maid, to keep the place clean. It's a small motel but backs up to the water off Pirate's Beach where every day is perfect.
On one such perfect morning, Oak goes out to clean the pool, pick up the beer cans & straighten the deck chairs. One is missing. Looking over the wall, he sees it down by the water. He goes to retrieve it but it's occupied....by a beautiful, young & very dead woman.
When the police arrive, he meets Det. Roger Holland. He's a nice guy, a little green but keen to learn once he realizes Oak has a wealth of experience. It's not so much what they find at the scene as what's missing. The woman's eyes have been removed. Oak is reminded of a case from 2006 in Detroit where several prostitutes were found strangled & without eyes. But he & DeAndre Jones, his partner, put the killer away.
Holland finally ID's the woman. She was an escort with a high class agency that seems to have no physical address. Reluctantly, Holland agrees to let Virginia pose as an online job applicant & she leads them to the boss. But what they don't know is the killer has been watching the whole time.
In alternating chapters, we travel with "Frank", the psycho responsible for the horrific murders (I won't go into how he kills them). Each day he sits on the beach, just close enough to observe Oak & Virginia at the motel. Obviously he has some connection to Oak but we don't know who he is or why he's trying to get Oak's attention.
But after the next murder, he has it. This one hits close to home for Oak (and ruins another of his deck chairs). He decides to go back to Detroit & check the old case files, meeting up with Lt. DeAndre Jones. And soon the bodies are piling up in both places.
I don't want to risk any spoilers but the author takes us on a convoluted path to the killer's identity. The story is told on two fronts. We follow Oak around Detroit as he & Jones reinvestigate, coming up with new information & suspects. Meanwhile, back in Pompano, Holland works the clues & tries to keep loved ones safe as they are threatened by an elusive killer who dogs his every step.
I really enjoyed this book. It's a combination police procedural/thriller & has more than enough twists & turns to hold your attention. Although we meet "Frank" early on, we don't know who he actually is 'til the final pages.
But the main reason I liked it is Oak. He's not a cyber genius or former covert spy/black ops agent. He's just a regular guy who worked hard as a cop & then walked away. He's a smart & decent guy with a slightly cynical take on life, a good dependable man you'd want in your corner. That's certainly how Virginia sees him. Their relationship is touching & seems to work despite their age difference because she is older than her years due to surviving some tough times before meeting Oak.
The setting is beautiful & there are strong peripheral characters that flesh out the plot. I know the author has written other books but I'd really like to see a sequel so I can follow these people around a bit longer. show less

Just when you think author Peter Leonard couldn't top the suspenseful thrill ride in Voice Of The Dead, he proves me wrong with the sequel, Back From The Dead.

Set in 1971, the story picks up where it left off in Voices Of The Dead, with Holocaust survivor Harry Levin thinking that he had killed Nazi war criminal, Ernst Hess, having dumped his body off the Florida coast. But Hess survives the shots to his chest and winds up in the Bahamas, where he recovers from his wounds. Hess is not show more deterred from continuing his murderous ways, he continues to plan to eliminate the remaining survivors and anyone else who gets in his way. Meanwhile, Harry Levin is back at home in Detroit, Michigan, when he learns that Hess has survived. The cat and mouse game resumes taking Levin and Hess globetrotting around the world from Florida, the Bahamas, Michigan, Germany and France. Levin is determined that this time Hess will pay the ultimate price for his murderous ways.

In Back From The Dead, author Peter Leonard seamlessly continues the suspenseful cat and mouse game between arch-enemies Holocaust survivor Harry Levin and Nazi war criminal Ernst Hess that began in the first book of the Harry Levin series, Voices Of The Dead.

Written in the third person narrative, the author weaves a thrilling tale with enough action and suspense that easily draws the reader back into the story, captivating them with the calculating cat and mouse game and globetrotting, that keeps them sitting on the edge of their seats guessing what will happen next. The characters come to life and leap off the pages, they are realistic and believable, you can't help but want to follow their every move. Even though I was completely satisfied with how Voice Of The Dead concluded, I think that the sequel, Back From The Dead is an edgy continuation that is just as riveting and action packed, the reader easily will get hooked back into this story.

Back From The Dead is a fast-paced suspenseful sequel that takes the reader to the edge, keeps them guessing and holding their breath until the chilling conclusion.

I would not suggest this book as a stand alone read. In order to really appreciate the complete story and thrilling cat and mouse game between these two men, you have to read the books in order.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours.

http://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2013/04/back-from-dead-by-peter-leonar... show less

I don't reach much fiction, but when I do I demand superiority within the first two pages, else it gets tossed and I continue with my voracious non-fiction appetite. I took a flyer on this one and was hooked immediately. It grabbed me by the throat and didn't let go until the end. It induced genuine trepidation and fear. What kept my eyes glued to the page was its message of justice, a global urgency that resonates with me personally. Peter does borrow from, and enhances, many of his show more father's narrative tricks. He's even zippier, and gets on with the story at an even more rapid clip, shedding supfluity everywehre. What I truly enjoyed was two of his father's book titles employed as parts of dialogue. Nice touch. show less

Pompano Beach, Florida. Beautiful nice, hot weather, blue ocean vistas, shorts and tops, endless sandy beaches, long cool drinks, good company, delicious sea food. You get it, right?

No, actually, you don't! Forty-five year old Oak O'Claire was happy in his retirement from the Detroit Police Force, managing Pirate’s Cove, the motel he bought on the beach front. His personal life couldn't get better with the beautiful twenty-six year old Virginia at his side who knew more about maintenance show more than he could ever learn. Their life was perfect, until a young blond woman is discovered in one of his deck chairs on the beach. Then another body is found. This time he knows the victim and the modus operandi reminds him of a murder case he handled fifteen years before. Once a detective...

The plot gets messy, the drama escalates, the reader gets edgy and nervous, especially being part of the psyhco killer's plans, embedded in his brain, knowing exactly what he is going to do and nobody can stop him...

A highly entertaining murder mystery! Yes, it will keep you fidgeting in your chair, never leaving the story for one second, trying to find excuses to read. I almost got myself into trouble today, thanks to this book. And of course, as with a good suspense crime drama, nothing is what it seems to be. There is an interesting twist. The murderer is known to the reader, or so I thought. It is a cat and mouse game with the reader being the willing mouse in this ingenious plot! Oh, you have no idea how willing!

All the good characters are believable and lovable. No over-indulgence in heroics, unrealistic perfect human beings, or potty-mouth verbal diarrhea to pollute a perfect story. No clichés. Fast moving, never a dull moment. The title is so applicable! Just thinking about it sends my arteries on a shivering cruise down my spine! I hyperventilate.

Eyes Closed Tight is destined for release in March 2014. I rate it five stars for being a tasteful, exciting, light, easy read. However, do not make a mistake, this is a THRILLER! I don't think I want to close my eyes ever again!

If you need a quick, exciting holiday, read this book. Believe me, it works!

More information about the book can be found on my blog: http://something-wordy-reviews.blogspot.com/2013/12/eyes-closed-tight-by-peter-l... show less