Book Review: Birthday Girl by Matthew Iden

**I received a digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

I have been following Matthew Iden since his Marty Singer series started. I honestly thought this was another one of those, and I was excited.

It's not.

This is a stand alone thriller. The story is told from 5 character perspectives.

Amy is searching for her daughter, now that the police have given up, she knows time is precious.

Elliot is a homeless man, who used to be a forensic psychologist. He lost his own daughter and it crippled his life. He hopes that by helping Amy, he can redeem himself.

Then you have Sister and Charlotte. Charlotte and the other children are afraid of Sister. But why?

And finally Detective Dave, he is the one who was on the case with Amy, and suggested she find Elliot.

This was such a wild ride! It honestly kept me guessing all the way through. Best book yet, by Matthew Iden.

Book Review: The Wicked Flee

By: Matthew Iden

Good God I love this author! I put him right up there with Johnathan Kellerman, and better than Michael Connelly. This is the 5th Marty Singer novel. I've been reviewing these since the first. Marty is a tough, retired detective recovering from Cancer.

In this one, a current officer shows up late one night. His sister is missing, but being that she's a teenager he knows the police, even with his being one himself, won't do anything. She'd be considered a runaway. But Chuck knows something has happened.

What makes this especially exciting is that Chuck's sister, Lucy is incredibly bright. She has listened to all the tips her brother has given her, based on his own experience. He has told her what to do, and she keeps her head throughout the book. There's also another officer from another area working on an intersecting case. She's also quite bright and able to hold her own.

Marty mostly seems to be along for the ride on this one, but his thoughtfulness and insight prove invaluable to Chuck in his search for Lucy before time runs out.

Seriously exciting, and it more than touches on a wide extent of human trafficking that goes on in this country. It's a great value for $4.99. Now I'm stuck waiting for #6.

Book Review: Blueblood

by: Matthew Iden

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Synopsis:
Four unrelated murders. Nothing special in Washington DC. Not even good enough to make the evening news. But then a concerned police lieutenant approaches retired homicide detective Marty Singer with a simple fact that changes everything.

They were all cops.

In a race to stop the killings, Marty tackles the case from the outside, chasing the killer from deadly Southeast DC to the heart of the Virginia gangland, on a mission to stop the spilling of yet more Blueblood.

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I beta-read and reviewed the first Marty Singer book, A Reason to Live. I thought it was excellent. I went through a phase of reading all the Michael Connelly books I could get my hands on. I also adore Jonathan Kellerman. My point being I love a well-written, gritty, crime novel. Iden does not disappoint. I honestly would put him up there with those 2 authors, and better than some others. Any publisher that didn't sign this guy should be regretting it now. The Marty Singer novels are superb.

Marty Singer, if you remember from the 1st novel, is a retired homicide detective fighting cancer. It means, our hero is unique. He has the knowledge and the experience as a 1st rate detective, but his illness leaves him easily tired and weakened overall. It means that, not only are you on the edge of your seat wondering who-done-it, but you are wondering if Marty is going to be able to complete the case with or without assistance. Not to mention wondering how his cancer is doing.

And I'm not lying when I say I was on the edge in this one. At one point I thought I was to the wrapping up stage. And this tends to be where I get bored. And I started relaxing and just wanted to see what Marty still had to do and if there'd be more news from his Doctor, when something so shocking took place I literally jumped.

It's the 2nd novel in the Marty Singer series, and fully worth the read. And BTW folks, that's not all he's done. He has several short story collections and other books that I found free at Amazon. Probably not free anymore, but reasonably priced since he's a self-published author. A diamond in the ruff, for sure!

Book Review: A Reason to Live

by: Matthew Iden

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Synopsis: (Goodreads)
In the late nineties, a bad cop killed a good woman and DC Homicide detective Marty Singer got to watch as the murderer walked out of the courtroom a free man.

Twelve years later, the victim's daughter comes to Marty begging for help: the killer is stalking her now.

There's just one problem: Marty's retired...and he's retired because he's battling cancer. But with a second shot at the killer--and a first chance at redemption--Marty's just found A REASON TO LIVE.

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The story is classic detective mystery book. Iden's writing has a natural ease to it, and his characters are deep and well rounded. Just look at Marty, a retired homicide detective. Kind of cliche until you see that he's battling cancer.

I don't think Marty likes being retired either. He's a lonely man who is forced to look death in the face. This was a brilliant move because here is a guy who has dealt with the ugly side of death his entire career, now he has to deal with the possibility of his own.

Amanda, the daughter of one of his unsolved cases, showed up at the perfect time. He needed a project, to be needed. She needed help, and the police weren't an option. She knew the murderer was back, but it wasn't anything concrete and basically the police failed her the first time around.

This is a great book. If you like Michael Connelly or Jonathan Kellerman, you will love this.