Lot's Return to Sodom by Sandra Brannan
Paperback, 288 Pages
2011, Greenleaf Book Group Press
ISBN: 1608321193
Series: Book 2 of Liv Bergen Mysteries
Synopsis
The annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is no place for buttoned-down citizens - unless, of course, they are trying to hide a murder or two. In this second book in the eponymous series, Liv Bergen is back with a vengeance - a righteous one. The gutsy, sharp-witted amateur sleuth pulls out all the stops as she solves the murder of her brother Jens' fiancee, Michelle, and clears his name. As it turns out, more than one person in Liv's sleepy hometown wanted Michelle dead. A trail of clues leads Liv through the Black Hills, where she encounters half a million hardcore bikers and sideline gawkers - many clad in nothing but black leather thongs and bikinis - who have turned the place into a sodomitical playground saturated in booze. Further complicating matters, Liv is an eyewitness to a second homicide, which calls down upon her the uninvited attentions of the menacing leader of a biker gang called Lucifer's Lot. The cat-and-mouse game that ensues puts Liv in the path of her admirer Streeter Pierce, who has gone undercover with a fellow FBI agent to find both Michelle's murderer and a perp the agency calls the Crooked Man. Liv taps every ounce of brains and brawn she has to avoid becoming the killer's next victim, which wins her the further respect of Streeter.
Review
By the time Lot's Return to Sodom begins, Liv Bergen has almost fully recovered from her ordeal with De Milo. She's looking forward to returning to work and getting on with life when she learns her brother's girlfriend has been murdered, and he's a suspect. He asks Liv to find the killer, and his girlfriend's missing little sister, since she was successful in uncovering murderers before.
As with most amateur detective series, Liv Bergen needs a reason to be involved with the case and her brother gives her the standard cliched plea for help that successfully serves its purpose. Liv's involved because she's been asked by a suspected friend/family member. Her qualifications: She's done this before and survived. Nothing new here, but it gets the job done.
While Liv's involvement is standard amateur detective fare, the events of the book itself are not. Lot's Return to Sodom isn't quite as gruesome as In the Belly of Jonah was, but it's bound to make readers uneasy at pivotal moments. The mystery is even more twisty-turny than the previous Liv Bergen book, which coupled with the book's focus on 1%-ers at the Sturgis motorcycle rally, makes this novel a must read.
Liv and Streeter finally come face to face. The results are not as sexy as one would hope, but things play out in a believable manner. Liv manages to be inappropriate repeatedly, causing many of their scenes to be cutely funny. The tension between the characters seemed less strong now that they're both fully aware of each other, but I continue to have high hopes for them in the future.
Lot's Return to Sodom continues a series that fans of edgy mysteries should not miss. The biker aspect of this particular book will also greatly appeal to fans of the TV show Sons of Anarchy. The mystery always remains in the forefront of this series, making the books extremely compelling reads. I can't wait to what Liv (and Streeter!) do next.
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