NetGalley Review: Shallow End (Stonechild and Rouleau Mystery #4) by Brenda Chapman

29977284Title: Shallow End (Stonechild and Rouleau Mystery #4)
Author: Brenda Chapman
Publisher: Dundurn
Published: March 11, 2017
Pages: 384
Genre: Mystery and Thrillers
Review: ebook provided by NetGalley and publisher
Buy Links: Amazon, Amazon.com 


Teacher, mother, wife, and convicted child molester Jane Thompson makes parole after losing everything — her husband, her children, her career, and her reputation. But just as she begins trying to build a life out of the public eye, the bludgeoned body of the student she abused four years earlier is found on the shores of Lake Ontario. Sergeant Rouleau assigns officers Stonechild and Gundersund to head up the murder investigation and Jane quickly becomes their prime suspect.
Meanwhile, Stonechild’s niece, Dawn, has been skipping school and running into trouble in foster care. Gundersund is more trapped than ever in his failing marriage, and Rouleau struggles to come to terms with the death of his ex-wife. But all their problems take a back seat as the investigation picks up steam. Stonechild and Gundersund wade through buried secrets to find the truth, which will take them on a twisted journey to the heart of cruelty. The question is — who will come out alive on the other side?

I received this book via NetGalley to give an honest review.

So I read the blurb and was like you know this book sounds right up my alley of reading, I need to give it a try. When I went onto Goodreads I noticed in the title it said book four and that concerned me as would I be missing out on things that I need to know? Well I can say the book can be read as a stand alone though it seems that some issues that some characters have going on, are in the previous books. With that said overall it was a good book.

Jane Thompson had been accused of being a child molester. Her whole life has gone down hill she has been in prison, her husband has divorced her and won't let her see her kids, and she no longer can be a teacher. Though the book doesn't say she had to register as an offender which I thought was weird, especially since she has kids. She really wants to just be with her kids and her husband isn't making it easy. He seems a bit of a controlling person and I felt we see why she ended up with him because of up bringing. I think it is really good for an author to write a bit of why a character acts or does something a certain way because of their past when it is needed.
When the kid she has been accused of molesting ends up dead the spotlight is back on her and the parents of the boy will stop at nothing to make sure she is behind bars again. Though it will be up to the detectives to solve the case while dealing with their own things going on in their personal lives. What they will uncover had me going oh wow this was a bit more deeper psychological than I thought it was going to be. I really liked the way the detectives just didn't go straight to blaming Jane Stonechild could really tell that something was up when she was interviewing witnesses. To me that is what makes a great detective.

There are things I didn't see coming when we got towards the end and I was very surprised with it all. Just by reading this it seems the author has an amazing way with pulling you in and having you guess why someone would kill another person.
If you enjoy cop thrillers and murders give this book a try.


Brenda Chapman
I'm an Ottawa author with 14 published novels in the mystery genre, both adult and YA. I am currently writing two adult mystery series: The Stonechild and Rouleau police procedurals from Dundurn include Cold Mourning (2014), which was shortlisted for an Arthur Ellis Award for crime novel of the year, and Butterfly Kills (Jan. 2015). Tumbled Graves will be on the shelves in February 2016.
The Anna Sweet mysteries are novellas from Grass Roots Press for adult literacy or those wanting a quick read. My Sister's Keeper and The Hard Fall were both released in 2013. To Keep a Secret was published in September 2014 and A Model Death in December 2014. My Sister's Keeper was shortlisted for an Arthur Ellis award and The Hard Fall was shortlisted for a Golden Oak Award.
Previous published fiction includes: the Jennifer Bannon mysteries for ages 10+, a full length adult murder mystery In Winter's Grip (Dundurn 2010), and a Rapid Reads mystery The Second Wife (Orca 2011), which was shortlisted for a Golden Oak award. Second Chances, a YA novel for ages 13+ was released by Dundurn in September 2012.



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