The Body Box

I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked the story and the way it developed but I really disliked the majority of the characters. I'm not sure that a white man can honestly write a book with a black woman as the main character and do her justice. I feel like her character feel flat. the white male characters were more relatable and believable.

The Body Box is the 1st in the Gooch & Deakes Series. I loved the strong-silent-type character of Hank Gooch. He doesn’t say much, but he can be very funny, at times. This book was very hard to put down. I was surprised who the killer turned out to be.Lynn Abercrombie, is a pseudonym used by Walter Sorrells. I can’t wait to read the next book, Blind fear.

Someone calling themselves Captain Hunger is kidnapping children and keeping them in a box and starving them and finally killing them. Demoted detective Mechelle Deakes is partnered with Hank Gooch, whom she has a hard time figuring out, to crack the case. At times, Mechelle's old life of yearning for drugs, overshadows her need to solve the case.

This was just okay. It certainly keeps you guessing, but it's hard to have much respect for Mechelle. She's pretty much a giant screw-up, and not in a particularly endearing way. And since you only ever see Gooch in a way that's colored by her view, you never really feel much for him. About the best thing I can say about it is that it contains an accurate portrayal of rural/poor Southern speech patterns.

I remember really loving this SS story. I've been on the lookout for more by him (can't remember the real name of this author offhand) and can't wait to read more.