Things have been rather quiet on here, between job hunting and planning a story for First Draft Fall. However, I also had an opportunity to look at A Fighting Chance, the latest story in Val Penny's Jane Renwick thrillers. This post is part of a Reading Between the Lines blog tour organised by Lynsey Adams.
Blurb
In the second Jane Renwick Thriller by Val Penny, drug cartels collide as crime boss Connor O’Grady returns to Scotland to protect his turf from rival Peggy Cheney, newly released from prison.
DS Jane Renwick and DC Brian Harris are sent to Stirling, where Jane discovers two tragic deaths—a young man and a girl—raising suspicions of a single killer.
O’Grady denies involvement, but can a drug lord be trusted?
Set in Stirling and Gartcosh, this tense police procedural thrusts Jane into the heart of a deadly turf war.
Review
Once again, Val does a wonderful job in crafting vivid characters across both the Hunter Wilson mysteries and Jane Renwick thrillers, especially when their dialogue becomes snarky.
Jane brings a great "take no crap" attitude with her to Stirling, where she immediately butts heads with local DC Chris Reilly, who is bullying fellow DC Emily Aitken. She provides a cathartic verbal dressing down, which leads to some interesting developments. Jane's wife, DC Rachael Anderson, also gets involved in the story's case in her first assignment as a victim support officer, but Jane's friendship with Emily puts a dampener on their relationship.
The story provides plenty of truly gripping moments as Jane tries to outwit O'Grady, especially after DC Brian Harris is hospitalised after being attacked by an unknown assailant. As the story progresses, things get even more tense is Jane faces threats to her life. We also get some truly grim moments as O'Grady enlists the aid of incarcerated Edna Hope to recruit people for his organisation.
A Fighting Chance is available on Amazon as an e-book and paperback, and I recommend checking it out. It's a truly gripping mystery with some interesting twists and turns.
About the Author
Val Penny has an Llb degree from the University of Edinburgh and her MSc from Napier University. She has had many jobs including hairdresser, waitress, banker, azalea farmer and lecturer but has not yet achieved either of her childhood dreams of being a ballerina or owning a candy store.
Until those dreams come true, she has turned her hand to writing poetry, short stories, nonfiction books, and novels. Her novels are published by SpellBound Books Ltd.
Val is an American author living in SW Scotland. She has two adult daughters of whom she is justly proud and lives with her husband and their cat.
Happy writing.
