"Steeped in fascinating family history..."

• ASIN: ‎ B0C9WC9D44
• Publisher: ‎ Nashvegas Native (July 27, 2023)
• Language: ‎ English
• Paperback: ‎ 315 pages
• ISBN-13: ‎ 979-8988569503
• Genre: Cozy Culinary Mysteries

The BookViral Review:

With flawless attention to detail, Julie Adkison brings to her readers ‘Cimarron Falls, a crime novel set against a stunningly beautiful backdrop and steeped in fascinating family history.

A strange letter brings the Davidson family together after difficult times. The patriarch of the family, Dean, blighted by the first stages of Alzheimer’s, visits the local Marshall with a shock confession, splitting wide open a previously dormant investigation. Erica, his daughter, who herself experienced strange goings on at Cimarron Falls as a teenager, is plagued by disturbing dreams as the past and present grow coincidentally closer together and the investigation gathers momentum.

At times the crime seems more incidental than a family drama which forces each family member to take stock and consider what is important to them. However, this lack of over-the-top melodrama only serves to heighten the tension and makes the climax all the more shocking as a sickening realisation finally dawns, exposing unexpected motives, and well-hidden secrets in a surprising denouement.

Using plenty of superficial but convincing suggestions, a tantalising back-story, and some shady characters, Adkison keeps us guessing in true classic murder mystery style, until the solution staring both Erica and the reader in the face meticulously gathers together all the previously scattered shreds of evidence.

Adkison’s evident skill with imagery, no doubt harvested from her own experiences in similarly beautiful surroundings, creates a sense of familiarity which lends its own immersive aura to her narrative. Her protagonist is fully supported by a well-developed peripheral cast, though not eclipsed, keeping the reader’s interest firmly centred around Erica as she hurtles towards a finale that is destined to change her world forever.

A worthy addition to the literary world of crime fiction, Cimarron Falls is unreservedly recommended.