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Sudden Impact
Bestselling author William Wood spins this dark, riveting tale of a beloved Sacramento cop killed in a bizarre accident, and the hunt to track down his killer—a fast-paced thriller of murder, deceit, haunting pasts, and one man’s dangerous scheme to fight for those he loves.
Officer Tommy Ensor did not see the car that struck him down on a rainy night in California’s capital.
Ensor is no ordinary cop. He’s a hero, winner of the Medal of Valor, devoted family man and coach, helping at-risk kids. But the driver who struck him down and didn’t stop isn’t ordinary either. He’s Judge Frank Stevenson, up-and-coming member of the bench, also devoted to his wife and daughter, involved in charities and good works. In a split second he did something completely uncharacteristic that irrevocably changes his life and the lives of everyone close to him.
Terry Nye is a couple of weeks from retirement as a detective, head of Major Crimes. He’s trying to pack thirty years of bloody experiences and hard lessons into those two weeks for his new partner, Rose Tafoya. Rose is a young detective, smart, more than a little ambitious, but also insecure. Together she and Nye are a powerhouse team. He’s determined to find Ensor’s assailant and he’s going to make sure Rose doesn’t make the same mistakes he did, especially the unforgivable one that has come back to darkly haunt him after Ensor’s accident.
The city is in turmoil when Ensor dies and the hunt for a cop killer rushes ahead relentlessly, moving from Nye and Tafoya to Stevenson and his wife. The guilty and innocent are sucked randomly into the intense, high-powered investigation. Nye and Rose face death in a shoot-out; a politician’s sad, dirty secret is exposed; and ambitions threaten to destroy the investigation.
The hunters and the hunted know the stakes are life and death.
Frank Stevenson knows he’s being hunted. Stevenson is both stunned because he didn’t stop that rainy night and steeled to do whatever he has to do to avoid the hunters. Even if it means committing more crimes. He’s not just protecting himself. He’s fighting for those he loves.
Stevenson comes up with a brilliant scheme to throw Nye and Tafoya off the track. But even if it works, Stevenson is tormented wondering how he can sit in judgment on others now.
A final hard moment of reckoning arrives for the hunters and the hunted. Everyone will realize that their lives will change in the blink of an eye.
Officer Tommy Ensor did not see the car that struck him down on a rainy night in California’s capital.
Ensor is no ordinary cop. He’s a hero, winner of the Medal of Valor, devoted family man and coach, helping at-risk kids. But the driver who struck him down and didn’t stop isn’t ordinary either. He’s Judge Frank Stevenson, up-and-coming member of the bench, also devoted to his wife and daughter, involved in charities and good works. In a split second he did something completely uncharacteristic that irrevocably changes his life and the lives of everyone close to him.
Terry Nye is a couple of weeks from retirement as a detective, head of Major Crimes. He’s trying to pack thirty years of bloody experiences and hard lessons into those two weeks for his new partner, Rose Tafoya. Rose is a young detective, smart, more than a little ambitious, but also insecure. Together she and Nye are a powerhouse team. He’s determined to find Ensor’s assailant and he’s going to make sure Rose doesn’t make the same mistakes he did, especially the unforgivable one that has come back to darkly haunt him after Ensor’s accident.
The city is in turmoil when Ensor dies and the hunt for a cop killer rushes ahead relentlessly, moving from Nye and Tafoya to Stevenson and his wife. The guilty and innocent are sucked randomly into the intense, high-powered investigation. Nye and Rose face death in a shoot-out; a politician’s sad, dirty secret is exposed; and ambitions threaten to destroy the investigation.
The hunters and the hunted know the stakes are life and death.
Frank Stevenson knows he’s being hunted. Stevenson is both stunned because he didn’t stop that rainy night and steeled to do whatever he has to do to avoid the hunters. Even if it means committing more crimes. He’s not just protecting himself. He’s fighting for those he loves.
Stevenson comes up with a brilliant scheme to throw Nye and Tafoya off the track. But even if it works, Stevenson is tormented wondering how he can sit in judgment on others now.
A final hard moment of reckoning arrives for the hunters and the hunted. Everyone will realize that their lives will change in the blink of an eye.
424 pages, Paperback
First published February 3, 2014
2 people are currently reading
239 people want to read
About the author
William P. Wood
24 books19 followersWILLIAM P. WOOD is the author of nine thrillers and one nonfiction book. As a deputy district attorney in California, he handled thousands of criminal cases ranging from disturbing the peace to murder. He served as chief counsel to the Secretary of State of California, the Commissioner of the California Department of Corporations, and the Undersecretary of the Office of Secretary of State.
Wood's literary works include "Rampage" (1985), "Gangland" (1988), Fugitive City (1989), "Court of Honor" (1991), "Stay of Execution" (1994), "Quicksand" (1998), "Pressure Point" (2004), and "The Bribe" (2006). His latest book is "Sudden Impact."
A nonfiction book, "The Bone Garden" (1994), is the definitive account of serial killer Dorothea Puente, who was the subject of a nationwide hunt after nine bodies were dug up from her Sacramento, California yard. Wood earlier sent Puente to prison for drugging and robbing the elderly.
Many of Wood's novels have been optioned for film/TV and two were produced. The first, "Rampage" was directed by Academy Award-winner William Friedkin ("The French Connection" and "The Exorcist"). "Court of Honor" was adapted into the TV-movie "Broken Trust" by Jane Fonda Films, starring Tom Selleck and Elizabeth McGovern. The screenplay was written by Joan Didion and her husband John Gregory Dunne.
Upon the release of "Sudden Impact" many of Wood's previous and acclaimed titles will be released in paperback during 2014.
Caliban’s Flight (Willowbank Books), an international suspense thriller is his latest novel. Turner Publishing has reissued all of Wood’s earlier works in paperback and as audible books. He currently lives in Sacramento, California, where he is working on his next novel. He is a member of the International Thriller Writers and Mystery Writers of America.
Wood's literary works include "Rampage" (1985), "Gangland" (1988), Fugitive City (1989), "Court of Honor" (1991), "Stay of Execution" (1994), "Quicksand" (1998), "Pressure Point" (2004), and "The Bribe" (2006). His latest book is "Sudden Impact."
A nonfiction book, "The Bone Garden" (1994), is the definitive account of serial killer Dorothea Puente, who was the subject of a nationwide hunt after nine bodies were dug up from her Sacramento, California yard. Wood earlier sent Puente to prison for drugging and robbing the elderly.
Many of Wood's novels have been optioned for film/TV and two were produced. The first, "Rampage" was directed by Academy Award-winner William Friedkin ("The French Connection" and "The Exorcist"). "Court of Honor" was adapted into the TV-movie "Broken Trust" by Jane Fonda Films, starring Tom Selleck and Elizabeth McGovern. The screenplay was written by Joan Didion and her husband John Gregory Dunne.
Upon the release of "Sudden Impact" many of Wood's previous and acclaimed titles will be released in paperback during 2014.
Caliban’s Flight (Willowbank Books), an international suspense thriller is his latest novel. Turner Publishing has reissued all of Wood’s earlier works in paperback and as audible books. He currently lives in Sacramento, California, where he is working on his next novel. He is a member of the International Thriller Writers and Mystery Writers of America.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 23, 2014
The opening line of this new book by this former Deputy District Attorney in California immediately explains the title, and propels the reader into the book: “Officer Bob Quintana did not see the car that hit his partner Tommy Ensor.” The two men are cops with the Sacramento Police Department, working an off-duty late night job providing security around a construction site in the downtown area. Ensor is 12 years older than Quintana. It is 1:30 AM on a cold, stormy night; visibility was poor, and the vehicle that struck Ensor sped off immediately after striking the man.
Assistant Chief of Police Jerry Nishimoto heads up the investigation into the hit-and-run. Twenty-three years as a cop, he is one of two men in line for the top job, and apparently the office politics endemic in much of society is front and center in this instance, notwithstanding that a beloved cop’s life lies in the balance. The hero cop had been a recipient of the Medal of Valor, the men who worked with him feeling it was an honor to work with him. “Nish” assigns Detective Terry Nye of Major Crimes as lead investigator, together with his partner of six months, Rose Tafoya, and obviously he pulls out all the stops to try to find the perpetrator. Nye has 31 years on the job, and is 13 days from retirement, and says “I sure as hell wouldn’t have picked this for my last detail.”
The identity of the driver of the vehicle that struck Ensor is revealed to the reader immediately - - well, on page 7. He is 42-year-old Superior Court Judge Frank Stevenson, a man with a wonderful wife and 11-year-old daughter; it appears that till now he has led an exemplary life, “the youngest judge in the courthouse [and thought to be the one] with the brightest future,” culminating in a hoped-for appointment to the appellate court, which has become a cause for his wealthy and influential father-in-law. However, any sympathy the reader may have felt for Stevenson quickly disappears when he realizes that there are no witnesses to the event, other than the victim himself, lying in his hospital bed with his recovery gravely in doubt.
The novel is engrossing and suspenseful, with p.o.v. switching primarily among Nye and Tafoya, and Stevenson, as they work in opposite directions to resolve the investigation. The ending was unexpected, and expertly handled, and the novel is recommended.
Assistant Chief of Police Jerry Nishimoto heads up the investigation into the hit-and-run. Twenty-three years as a cop, he is one of two men in line for the top job, and apparently the office politics endemic in much of society is front and center in this instance, notwithstanding that a beloved cop’s life lies in the balance. The hero cop had been a recipient of the Medal of Valor, the men who worked with him feeling it was an honor to work with him. “Nish” assigns Detective Terry Nye of Major Crimes as lead investigator, together with his partner of six months, Rose Tafoya, and obviously he pulls out all the stops to try to find the perpetrator. Nye has 31 years on the job, and is 13 days from retirement, and says “I sure as hell wouldn’t have picked this for my last detail.”
The identity of the driver of the vehicle that struck Ensor is revealed to the reader immediately - - well, on page 7. He is 42-year-old Superior Court Judge Frank Stevenson, a man with a wonderful wife and 11-year-old daughter; it appears that till now he has led an exemplary life, “the youngest judge in the courthouse [and thought to be the one] with the brightest future,” culminating in a hoped-for appointment to the appellate court, which has become a cause for his wealthy and influential father-in-law. However, any sympathy the reader may have felt for Stevenson quickly disappears when he realizes that there are no witnesses to the event, other than the victim himself, lying in his hospital bed with his recovery gravely in doubt.
The novel is engrossing and suspenseful, with p.o.v. switching primarily among Nye and Tafoya, and Stevenson, as they work in opposite directions to resolve the investigation. The ending was unexpected, and expertly handled, and the novel is recommended.
August 30, 2015
A prominent judge who has big dreams of being on the appellate court is involved in a horrific accident that changes everyone's lives. The judge'a father-in-law was in the car with him but doesn't remember what happened. Instead of doing the right thing like stopping to help, he keeps going. That one decision will haunt him and everyone else in his life. He spends the rest of the book trying to stay ahead of the detectives who were assigned to the case.
The two detectives investigating are at opposite ends of their careers...Rose, the young, smart female is early 30s and Terry is the old, soon-to-be retired partner. They each have personal issues and the entire department is also caught in the middle of a political standstill as two top assistant chiefs are in the running for chief of police. So there is more going on than just a simple investigation. The judge, who is a "good guy" and has a great family, made some terrible decisions along the way.
I will admit I was really, really into this book AT FIRST. A LOT of promise and excellent details kept me interested. However, the OVER ABUNDANCE details is what made me give this book 3 stars, not 4. You need details in the beginning, but at some point you need to get to the good stuff. This book could have easily been 150 pages shorter. There is NO reason it needed to be 415 pages! I definitely want to read other books by Wood because I like how he explains scenarios and you can actually see the scene. However, as we got more and more into the case, instead of advancing the story, he would drag out the details. Several pages I just skimmed because they provided nothing to the story. It wasn't an awful book but it's a pretty simple premise after you break it down and it was story that didn't require so much extra stuff. I liked it for the effort in trying to make this more than what is was but he tried too hard. I won't even mention the ending. So many other options he could have chosen for the ending than what we were provided. I just wanted it to be over. Eh.
The two detectives investigating are at opposite ends of their careers...Rose, the young, smart female is early 30s and Terry is the old, soon-to-be retired partner. They each have personal issues and the entire department is also caught in the middle of a political standstill as two top assistant chiefs are in the running for chief of police. So there is more going on than just a simple investigation. The judge, who is a "good guy" and has a great family, made some terrible decisions along the way.
I will admit I was really, really into this book AT FIRST. A LOT of promise and excellent details kept me interested. However, the OVER ABUNDANCE details is what made me give this book 3 stars, not 4. You need details in the beginning, but at some point you need to get to the good stuff. This book could have easily been 150 pages shorter. There is NO reason it needed to be 415 pages! I definitely want to read other books by Wood because I like how he explains scenarios and you can actually see the scene. However, as we got more and more into the case, instead of advancing the story, he would drag out the details. Several pages I just skimmed because they provided nothing to the story. It wasn't an awful book but it's a pretty simple premise after you break it down and it was story that didn't require so much extra stuff. I liked it for the effort in trying to make this more than what is was but he tried too hard. I won't even mention the ending. So many other options he could have chosen for the ending than what we were provided. I just wanted it to be over. Eh.
April 12, 2014
I won this book through Stop You’re Killing Me (www.stopyourekillingme.com), a website for mystery readers.
An older detective days from retirement and his young eager rookie are assigned to investigate the hit and run death of a cop beloved by his fellow officers and the community at large. Their investigation is hamstrung right from the start by a pair of power-hungry superior officers angling to be named the next Chief of Police.
This was a good story overall. But the pace was a bit too slow for my taste, mostly because too much of the book was spent delving into the characters’ thoughts. I was over halfway through the book before the story thoroughly engaged me and really made me want to keep reading. But the ending disappointed me. While there was a believable resolution to the crime, there was no justice.
Readers like their antagonists to have some redeeming qualities, but the antagonist here had none. Right from his first appearance, he was selfish and vain, concerned only with escaping the consequences of his actions. And he – a judge due to be appointed to a seat on a higher court – was one of the stupidest smart people I’ve ever encountered.
At one point, Wood has the antagonist stowing items in the trunk of his SUV, an impossibility since SUVs don’t have trunks, they have hatches or tailgates. As a car guy, errors like that bug me and make me wonder if the author got something I’m not familiar with wrong as well.
There were lots of errors – duplicated words and missing ones – that should have been caught in the editing process before this book ever went to the presses. And there were many scene breaks that weren’t needed because the one that followed happened almost immediately after the one before. That broke up the flow of the story but made for many convenient places to stop reading and lay the book down.
An older detective days from retirement and his young eager rookie are assigned to investigate the hit and run death of a cop beloved by his fellow officers and the community at large. Their investigation is hamstrung right from the start by a pair of power-hungry superior officers angling to be named the next Chief of Police.
This was a good story overall. But the pace was a bit too slow for my taste, mostly because too much of the book was spent delving into the characters’ thoughts. I was over halfway through the book before the story thoroughly engaged me and really made me want to keep reading. But the ending disappointed me. While there was a believable resolution to the crime, there was no justice.
Readers like their antagonists to have some redeeming qualities, but the antagonist here had none. Right from his first appearance, he was selfish and vain, concerned only with escaping the consequences of his actions. And he – a judge due to be appointed to a seat on a higher court – was one of the stupidest smart people I’ve ever encountered.
At one point, Wood has the antagonist stowing items in the trunk of his SUV, an impossibility since SUVs don’t have trunks, they have hatches or tailgates. As a car guy, errors like that bug me and make me wonder if the author got something I’m not familiar with wrong as well.
There were lots of errors – duplicated words and missing ones – that should have been caught in the editing process before this book ever went to the presses. And there were many scene breaks that weren’t needed because the one that followed happened almost immediately after the one before. That broke up the flow of the story but made for many convenient places to stop reading and lay the book down.
March 21, 2024
Overly lengthy. Could have the same impact with about 2 less hours of listening. Grizzled cop on his way to retirement, local judge so ambitious he'd do anything to protect himself, murdered off duty cop, dumb ideas of how to cover up a hit and run, and an aging father-in-law that gets pulled into the nightmare of covering up a crime. That's the gist of the 14 hour audio book. It had some good parts, no real likable characters, and a decent narrator. Had enough to keep my attention most of the time.
April 7, 2021
I listened to this book while working over the course of two days. I found myself being annoyed with the repetitive “old man” and “pukes” comments thrown out through the entire book. The story itself was pretty good and the narrator did a decent job. All in all it wasn’t a bad read/listen, but probably wouldn’t do this one again.
January 29, 2021
Good story of car accident, judge accidentally runs down police officer.
February 4, 2022
Not bad. Not Great. Seriously wanted to bitch slap the Judge. Could have been shorter and not so long.
February 28, 2022
Decent story concept but felt like it could have easily been shorter and still told the same story. Narrator mispronounced Spanish surnames. Small improvements could have made it better.
April 20, 2022
This was a run-of-the-mill whodunit. Worthwhile for a diversion but not a novel that will stay with you. It had a fairly unbelievable ending.
June 4, 2014
I won this book from first reads giveaway. I really liked the layout of this book. Most thrillers or legal thrillers will have the cops figuring out a murder mystery. You get that in this one but you also know who it is the whole time. Each chapter alternates between the cops trying to solve the crime and the bad guy who is feeling guilty for not turning himself in and trying to hide the crime to protect his family. This guy was a respected judge so he did not want word to get out that he was a cop killer so he did everything he could to hide the evidense. I thibk having his point of view shines a whole new light on the book.
July 14, 2016
A hero and cop is struck in the night; another person is rising among the ranks and making plans; a retiring cop only has weeks to find his partners killer. How far would you go to hide the truth in order to save your family and how far would you go to bring the guilty to justice? In the blink of an eye our lives can change and the guilty and innocent get caught up in this thriller of who dun it. Great read, recommended for all.
September 28, 2014
real good story.... by a local aurthor
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews