Cane and Abe Tour: Review

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for CANE AND ABE hosted by TLC Book Tours! I'll be sharing my review of the book with you - and be sure to check out the tour schedule at the end of the post to visit more blogs!

Cane and Abe

Author: James Grippando

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Release Date: January 20, 2015

Publisher: Harper

Description:

An explosive psychological thriller from New York Times bestselling author James Grippando in which Miami’s top prosecutor becomes a prime suspect when his wife’s disappearance may have a chilling connection to the vicious murders of beautiful women in the Florida Everglades

Unbelievable was the word for her. Samantha Vine was unbelievably beautiful. It was unbelievable that she’d married me. Even more unbelievable that she was gone . . .

Samantha died too soon. Abe Beckham’s new wife, Angelina, feels like Samantha never left. Through it all, Abe has managed to remain a star prosecutor at the Miami State Attorney’s Office. But his personal life is a mess, and it’s about to get worse.

When a woman’s body is discovered dumped in the Everglades, Abe is called upon to stay on top of the investigation. The FBI is tracking a killer in South Florida they call “Cutter” because his brutal methods harken back to Florida’s dark past, when machete-wielding men cut sugarcane by hand in the blazing sun.

But when the feds discover that Abe had a brief encounter with the victim after Samantha’s death, and when Angelina goes missing, the respected attorney finds himself in the hot seat. Suspicion surrounds him. His closest friends, family, professional colleagues, and the media no longer trust his motives. Was Angelina right? Was their marriage failing because he loved Samantha too much? Or was there another woman, and did Abe have a dark side that simply wanted his new but very unhappy wife gone? 

Cane and Abe is an intense psychological thriller/mystery that will have readers on the edges of their seats and guessing until the very end. The story is a seemingly simple one: One of Miami's best prosecutor's - Abe Beckham - suffered a horrible tragedy when his young wife Samantha died some years ago. Abe struggled to pick up the pieces of his life and eventually married again. Now, he's on the case of a serial killer nicknamed "Cutter" because of the brutal ways in which he kills his victims - in a manner that goes back to Florida's sugar cane history, where men were basically slaves even though it was in the 1900s. Strangely, Abe has an intimate history of these events because Samantha's father was one of the slaves that worked the sugar cane fields. A strange coincidence - right? But then the FBI and Abe realize that he had spoken to the victim after Samantha's death, and then the unthinkable happens: Angelina, Abe's new wife, goes missing. Suspicion is growing around Abe and his possible involvement in the case. Could he possibly be the Cutter? Was he the one that has taken Angelina because of their failing and miserable marriage? 

I love thrillers and mysteries, and I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about this book after reading the description. I'm not really one who enjoys police procedural crime novels, but I thought I'd give it a shot. I'm extremely glad that I did because it's one of the best mystery/thrillers that I've ever read. From the beginning words of the novel, I was immediately inside Abe's world. The writing was magnificent and showcased the author's talent so much - it was incredible. The story is written with such detail and vivid imagery along with a certain conversational point of view - that it took mere moments for me to slip inside the world the author created - feeling as if I was experiencing the story alongside Abe. The plot was extremely intricate and complex with a ton of twists and turns that you don't see coming. I love thrillers and mysteries where I can try to figure out who's behind it all and what's really happening - especially before the characters themselves do. I was nowhere near the mark with this book. I kept building up (what I thought) were good theories, just to have a huge twist in the story knock me back to square one. That ability - to keep a reader completely engaged and questioning until the very end - is one that marks a truly talented writer. I loved the book and every part of it - every aspect of the book was intricately detailed and written - and they came together to create one masterpiece of a novel. The plot, the characters, the setting, writing style, dialogue - they all wove together seamlessly to create a stunning piece of fiction. There's absolutely no way I can do this book justice with a review. Suffice it to say that this was a fast paced, edgy, and intense thriller that will keep you reading as fast as you can to see what will happen next. It by far surpasses any expectations or hopes I had for it, and luckily for me, the author has written a large number of novels previously - so now I can dive into those stories for more of the magnificent writing and gripping plots that had me so enthralled during this book. I couldn't recommend this book more highly to fans of mysteries, thrillers, suspense novels and police/crime fiction. You need to read this book NOW - it's sure to be a bestseller and an enormous success when released. 

James Grippando is a New York Times bestselling author whose novels are enjoyed worldwide in twenty-six languages. Black Horizon is his twentieth novel published by HarperCollins, the eleventh in the acclaimed series featuring Miami attorney Jack Swyteck. He is also the author of Leapholes for young adults. Grippando was a trial lawyer for twelve years before the publication of his first novel in 1994 (The Pardon), and he is now counsel at one of the nation’s leading law firms. He lives and writes in South Florida.

Find out more about James at his website, and connect with him on Facebook.

Purchase Links:

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

James’s Tour Stops:

Thursday, January 8th: Gspotsylvania: Musings from a Spotsylvania Dog and Bird Mom Tuesday, January 13th: Vivacious Hobo
Tuesday, January 20th: Mockingbird Hill Cottage
Wednesday, January 21st: My Bookish Ways
Thursday, January 22nd: Built by Story
Monday, January 26th: From the TBR Pile
Tuesday, January 27th: Kritters Ramblings
Tuesday, February 3rd: A Dream Within a Dream
Wednesday, February 4th: Why Girls Are Weird
Monday, February 9th: BoundbyWords
Tuesday, February 10th: Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews
Wednesday, February 11th: The Year in Books
Thursday, February 12th: Living in the Kitchen with Puppies
Friday, February 13th: FictionZeal
Wednesday, February 25th: Booked on a Feeling
Date TBD: Sidewalk Shoes
TBD: Brooklyn Berry Designs