The Crows

P.J. Benson Mysteries #1

by Maris Soule

The crows are cawing when accountant P.J. Benson takes a walk in the woods with her four-month-old Rhodesian Ridgeback. Next comes gun shots. Quickly she returns to her house, ready to call the police, only to find a man dying in her dining room. It's tax season, and she's just started her home-based business. She doesn't have time to devote to solving a murder, but when she becomes the prime suspect, she has no choice. Either someone is breaking into her house and threatening her life, or she's becoming as schizophrenic as her mother.

Genres: Mystery

243 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2007

About the author

Maris Soule has had 6 mysteries, 25 romances, and 2 short stories published. In addition to twice being a RITA finalist, several of her romances have placed and won in other writing contests. Her 30th book, ECHOES OF TERROR, a thriller set in Skagway, Alaska, won first place in the 2017 Florida Writers Associations Royal Palm Literary Competition's mystery/suspense category. Born and raised in California, Soule was working on a master's degree in art history at UCSB when she met and married her husband. The Soules, who have two grown children and two granddaughters, now live in Michigan in the summer and Florida in the winter. Over the years she's raised and shown Rhodesian Ridgebacks; taught art, math, and some college English; has continued painting and drawing; and enjoys (along with her husband) boating on Lake Michigan. She writes a weekly blog on the craft of writing (https: //marissoule.com/blog/).
She is a member of MWA, MMRWA, Sisters-in-Crime, RWA, FWA, and Authors' Guild.


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Reviews

[Elizabeth Meyette · Rating 5 out of 5]

You will not be able to read to the end of a chapter and stop. Maris Soule is a master of the end-of-chapter hook. P.J. Benson lives in fear that she will become schizophrenic like her mother, and the strange occurrences at her newly inherited home seem to point in that direction. When a man dies on her kitchen floor, the police, including Detective Sergeant Wade Kingsley, question her story. Nor is there evidence that someone had entered her locked house or tried to poison her. As the investigation proceeds, P.J. and Wade have trouble resisting their attraction. Oh, and there is an adorable Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy who often gets tangled up in the clues. An intriguing mystery/suspense, I read this book in three days which is highly unusual for me. If you love small town mysteries, pick this one up now.

[Kat Walter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was in a mystery book club with this writer when I lived in Kalamazoo and thought I’d give her book a try. It was okay, but simplistic and predictable. The characters didn’t really act/react like you’d expect in real life. Mix of mystery and romance, which isn’t really my preferred genre.

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a very good story, but I am not a romance fan and I could have done without so much of that to it. I could see it being top rate for a lot of people.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW

[Elizabeth Haines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting characters you can care about and a fun mystery. So good!

[John Hawck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found The Crows to be suspenseful and provocative. I loved the storyline. The characters were clear and fit the plot beautifully. The ending came as an artful surprise.

[Bgrice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book from KDL staff picks because the author is from Michigan. It takes place in a rural area outside Kalamazoo. It's an older book, 2007. So a bit dated. I'm going to read the next book in the series to see if her writing gets a little better. Otherwise I really enjoyed this quick read.

[Ruth Soz · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mom suggested this series to me since it takes place in a small town outside of Kalamazoo (it's fun to read about a place you know!) A quick read that held my interest, I think I will read the next one as well.

[Walt Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great suspense, likable heroine, well plotted, well written, a little too much "romance" for me but a real page-turner.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: accountant P.J. Benson is walking her dog when she hears shots and finds a man dying in her house.