Heather’s Bookshelf: Inherit Guilt: A Shane Allen Investigation
Author: Russell Cordner
Released: 06/21/21
Genre: Crime Mystery/Suspense
‘Shane looked out on the water. It was a question he asked himself every day. He could have listened to his editor and killed the story. He’d still have his job at the paper. He’d still have his condo. But he wouldn’t have his integrity. He wouldn’t be a journalist, not really. He’d be hired pen writing for the influential forces he strove to uncover. He looked at Jim. “None whatsoever.”’
“Inherit Guilt” introduces Grant Whalley a prominent divorce lawyer who takes only high-end clients and prefers to represent the wives. When he and his wife end up murdered, Inspector Gail York is assigned to his case. She’s led to Shane Allen, a writer who had been hired to take investigative pictures for Whalley the night of his death.
Inspector Gail York is the SFPD’s first female African American homicide inspector and with her position comes all the usuals- misogyny and racism. But she’s good at her job and loves her city. After clearing Shane as a suspect, the Whalley’s teenage twins emerge as new suspects. Sylvia, their grandmother, approaches Shane and hires him to help clear the boys in the death of their father and stepmother. Both Gail and Shane continue their investigations until their paths cross and then merge into one big hunt for the truth.
Trigger Warning: murder, sexual situations
Overall, I enjoyed this story. The two main characters of Shane and Gail are each very different but well developed and endearing in their own way. I loved that their two perspectives started off very separate, interacted, separated again, and then came together. I also really liked the Whodunit portions of the story, but felt the investigation in itself didn’t really lead the reader to the answer. The references to the true crime stories also felt authentic and a nice nod to contributing ideas to a tale that felt as if it could have really happened in Hollywood. Some of the ancillary characters were well developed, like Sylvia. Others I wish were more intriguing- like the twins. I didn’t feel invested in their characters or really what happened to them and feel like a little more development would have had me more connected. The ending was great- complete and intriguing while wrapping everything up in a satisfying way. However, the stars of this book were absolutely Shane and Gail and their interactions. This was a good intro to the characters and I can see how it could be a great start to a crime series.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A crime novel with two intriguing investigators and a double murder with a great ending
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