Notorious

A Nate Richards Mystery #1

by Ray Ellis

Half of Treasure Valley is controlled by a violent street gang. The other half is controlled by fear. Rookie detective Nate Richards is thrust between the two.
Abyss, a new and mysterious gang, has moved into the valley and people have started dying. Nate's girlfriend suddenly disappears and the gang is targeted as the cause.
Will Nate succumb to the pressure to get the job done by any means necessary and become part of the problem?
Desperation grows as time runs out and Nate can feel the heat as the pressure builds. Will his faith hold? Will Nate rise above the pull into darkness? Or will he sink into the ranks of the Notorious?

Note: This eBook was previously released as N.H.I. (No Humans Involved)

Genres: Amazon, Suspense, Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime

314 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 3, 2012

About the author

Ray began his law enforcement career with the Orange County Sheriff's Department in Orange County, California. After working for a number of years in the maximum security facility, he transferred to patrol working along Orange County's coast as well as the inner canyons and barrios. After 8 years he moved to Idaho and continued his law enforcement career, serving as an instructor for the Idaho POST Council.

Ray was first ordained into the ministry while living in Orange County and now serves as the Associate Pastor in his home church in Nampa, Idaho. A former United States Marine, he is a public speaker, communicating to groups of all sizes on the topics of community and personal safety. Since 1999 Ray has been a primary instructor for the Idaho POST Academy - Police Training Institution for Idaho- instructing on subjects of Arrest Control, Cultural Diversity and for the last five years exclusively on the topic of Instructor Development, where he teaches other officers to be POST certified instructors. He has served as both patrol officer and detective for the agency where he works. He has been married to the same woman for 27 years and has three children; two sons and a daughter. Ray lives with his family in Idaho.

Reviews

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detective Nate Richards and his partner Sabrina were focusing on the murder of a teen, which was followed by one of their own being murdered. The death sites were brutal, the carving of a symbol on the bodies linking the two. It wasn't long before Nate had discovered a new gang which had taken over the area, who were determined to get rid of any opposition and rule Treasure Valley. ABYSS was their call code, and their leader was a psychopath. But when Sabrina was shot, in a coma in hospital, then Nate's best friend Amber was kidnapped, he wondered what more could happen...

Notorious is the 1st in A Nate Richards Mystery series by Ray Ellis and I've had it on my kindle since December 2012! It was fast paced, brutal and breathtaking. Nate took the ire of his boss, Brown, daily, having no idea what he had against him. But Brown wasn't a nice person IMO! Amber owned a bookshop which she loved working in, and Nate's parents were sweet. A great series starter - recommended.

[Robertson Frederick · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Notorious" is a gripping crime thriller that expertly explores the line between justice and vengeance. Ellis Ray delivers a fast-paced narrative centered on rookie detective Nate Richards, who must navigate gang violence in Treasure Valley while searching for his missing girlfriend.

What impressed me most was the moral complexity. Nate is flawed and human, struggling with the temptation to compromise his principles under pressure. Ray doesn't offer easy answers, instead examining how desperation tests faith and integrity.

The pacing is excellent, balancing intense action with thoughtful introspection. The central question—will Nate rise above the darkness or become part of it?—stayed with me long after I finished.
Highly recommended for fans of crime thrillers with psychological depth and authentic characters.

[Marko Baay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Within 24 hours a detective and a 16 year old boy are found dead. The murders are evidently gang related. Both bodies are left with a mysterious symbol none of the police officers can identify. Things get real strange when a box is delivered at detective Nate Richards' front door in the middle of the night, containing a cloth with the very same symbol printed on it. How does the symbol connect to the new and extremely dangerous street gang that has settled in the old part of town?
Nate Richards has to solve the murders, but finds all kinds of difficulties on his path. Besides the challenges at work, Nate struggles with his feelings for his girlfriend Amber, whom he loves but is afraid to admit it. Unfortunately the king of the new street gang does not have this problem and not for long Amber is in grave danger.

Notorious is a marvellous suspense novel, written from experience, both as to the police work as to human thoughts and actions. Some of the characters act rather strange and unexpected, but isn't that exactly what people do from time to time? We are all inclined to act contrary to what we should do.

Being a baptist myself I love the christian atmosphere the book breathes. Nate's father is a preacher. Nate, being a Christian too, wants to convince his superior of God's love for him, but the man gives Nate a hard time.
Through the book, Nate struggles with his faith. He is slack on attending church and Bible studies, blaming it on his work. His father urges Nate to ask God's help in his search for the killers. However, Nate's memory is rather short on this topic, which does not bring him closer to solving the case.

All in all this is a great read. I must admit I had some reservations when first picking up the book. "How interesting can a book named `N.H.I.' (the previous title of Notorious) be?" But soon I found myself flipping through the pages.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not one that normally goes out of my way to read "Christian fiction." I know that sounds strange, me being a Christian, and all, but I've found that a lot of it is just cheesy.

Notorious is anything but cheesy. A crime thriller set in a town called Treasure Valley, Notorious hits the ground running and never slows down. It kept me gripped the whole time I was reading it.

This book is book one in a series of Nate Richards mysteries. Nate is a detective for the Treasure Valley Police Department. Nate is also a Christian. Treasure Valley has a gang problem, and that gang problem has just intensified with the arrival of one Israel Vega and his new gang, Abyss. Israel is out to show the other gangs in the area that Treasure Valley is his. He also takes a liking to Nate's good friend, Amber, who works at a local bookstore. Along with the drama of the gang problems, there is also an issue of police corruption that must be dealt with, and the added stress of the fact that one of Nate's superiors, Lt. Larry Brown, can't stand him or his beliefs.

Notorious is a great book, and I would recommend it to anyone who loves a good crime drama and doesn't mind a little faith and Gospel being thrown in, to boot.

[Michael E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Notorious is a fun and exciting detective novel that shows the dark side of detective work, as well as the the many different human elements involved across criminal and law enforcement situations. You get to see the emotions from an honest cop, trying to do his best, but who is too close to the crime to be objective. You see him struggle with his Christian faith as he is forced to deal with horrible situations. The author also shows us part of a dark underworld, and you get to feel the fear of a victim, the anger of villain, and the pressures internal to a police department. The story moves fast, and the plot has twists and is filled with lots of action. It is a gritty novel, and I enjoyed it.

[Marlon Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy reading this book. Has a great plot and very hard to put the book down. An African American detective in a urban city dealing with crime and also struggling with his own salvation. I would recommmend this book to anyone who loves a crime storyline and and believes that there is hope in God. Check it out, I believe you will be pleasantly surprise.

[Regina Farmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suspense

At first it seems like the typical gangbang book, but then after the 3rd chapter, it was surprisingly different. I enjoyed the way The Most High was a focal point but didn't take over the story. In my opinion the book was excellent and can't wait to read the next one.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book

I enjoyed reading this book. I will be reading the next book within this series. I would recommend this book if you like a good clean crime book.

[CATHERINE · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did read this through to the end but ultimately dull, uninspiring story. The female characters were dreadful described purely in the role of female stereotypes. The heroine was so dense that it was unbelievable! She constantly put herself in danger and seemed to have the personality of a potato, isn't God supposed to help those who help themselves, her faith that everything would be alright despite overwhelming odds doesn't make up for the fact of lack of brain cells and common sense. I get that she was supposed to be pretty and that her faith was appealing at least to Nate but really! Her preachy condescending attitude about things she knew nothing about was irritating to say the least. The constant references to Christianity I thought were ill judged. At one point preaching to a teenager prostitute who had been consistently raped and abused about the mercy of God just felt trite and extremely unpleasant under the circumstances. Putting the equivalent of Mary Poppins in a story about drugs and the sexual abuse of women just didn't work. While it could have been interesting to delve into a police officer's religious faith being put to the test in the face of the worse aspects of mankind and an interesting take on the usual story it simply didn't work. Full of cliches, with plot twists so large that you could see them coming from a mile away. Although Amber was as thick as brick her reaction to a terrible ordeal was unrealistic to say the least, and the damsel in distress recurring story line was insulting. Also the description of shared laughter peppered throughout the book was simply annoying as there was nothing that was funny but there were lots of shared moments when somebody said something and everyone in the room laughed for no reason whatsoever! Badly written, one dimensional characters, with religious overtones that jarred with the story lines and the ending was awful. Avoid.

[Robbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure when I first began reading this one that I would finish it. I stuck with it and am pleased that I did; it was well-written, fast-paced, the characters were well-developed and the protagonist was decent, honest and intelligent. It was also well-edited, unlike many of the new e-books I've read. I rated this one 4.5 stars and plan to read the next in the series. Nice to meet you, Mr. Ellis.

[Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Warning: While Christian fiction, there was quite a bit of adult violence including references to rape. Not for kids. Not saying Christian fiction can’t deal with tough topics, but some readers might prefer a bit softer content.
Pros: The suspense was great. Kept me turning the pages.
Cons: There were several points that the writing was not polished, and though not bad it just detracted from the storyline.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read, although I spent the entire book wondering what N.H.I. meant and who Nate's ex was. Sometimes it was hard to tell who was talking, and a few descriptions seemed muddled, but overall, I would recommend this book and I'd like to read the rest of the series.

[sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was kinda hard to take it seriously. There were several scenes where I found it hard to believe that the people were reacting so casually. It could have and should have been much more intense.

[Tina]

I'm not done reading this book. I let a friend borrow it and I'll finish it later. What little I did read was good.