The Dead Years

A Chicago K-9 Thriller #1

by Jeffrey B. Burton

A serial killer, dormant for years, reawakens after viewing a Netflix docuseries depicting his string of homicides. The killer is not happy with his portrayal and no one in the cast and crew is safe! The first instalment of a gripping new thriller series set in Chicago and featuring a young sibling sleuth-duo and their working dogs.

Siblings Cory and Crystal Pratt are still trying to get their lives together after a tragic accident which killed their parents years ago. The only thing that distracts them now is their jobs. With Crystal working as a newly minted detective at the Chicago Police Department and Cory owning a dog training academy with two human remains detection dogs of his own, their professional paths cross every now and then.

Crime, and especially murder, in Chicago is nothing new, but when a string of killings happen that seem to be connected to a Netflix docuseries and its cast and crew, Cory and Crystal are called in to stop the number of bodies from piling any higher.

But when the siblings start poking around the killer's business, the killer sets their sights on the pair . . . and particularly on Cory and his dogs! Will they be able to escape the fury of the serial killer or become the newest victims?

Genres: Mystery, Thriller

213 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 5, 2024

About the author

Jeff's mystery/thriller, THE BOY IN THE WALL, comes out March 4, 2026. THE SECOND GRAVE came out in 2025 and THE DEAD YEARS came out in 2024 (all from Severn House).

Novels in Jeff's Mace Reid K-9 mystery series include THE FINDERS, THE KEEPERS, and THE LOST (St. Martin's Press, Minotaur).

Novels in Jeff's Agent Drew Cady mystery series include: THE CHESSMAN, THE LYNCHPIN, and THE EULOGIST. His short stories have appeared in dozens of magazines.

Born in Long Beach, California, Jeff grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. He received his BA in Journalism at the University of Minnesota. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and the Horror Writers Association. He lives in St. Paul with his wife, and a goofball of a Beagle named Milo.

Reviews

[Donne · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a big fan of Jeffrey Burton’s Mace Reid series, I was excited when I came across the second installment for his new series. So, of course, I had to read this installment first. While a lot of readers have absolutely no problem at all, reading a series out of order, I have never been like that – ever! Over the years, I have had a boatload of things to blame this quirk on, usually my day job. I can’t even imagine how terrible an administrator I would be if I didn’t start a new assignment and/or project from the beginning. In my field, I wouldn’t have a job for very long. The same attitude and practice apply to a new book series.

Anyway, the book summary basically introduces the primary storyline and MC’s. First and foremost, for those who are familiar with Burton’s Mace Reid series, Cory sounds a lot like a young(er) Mace Reid. So, if you like Mace, you’ll probably like Cory too. Crystal is the big sister, who is still trying to look out for her little brother, something she’s been doing since their parents died when Cory was in high school.

Then there is also Alice and Rex, Cory’s Bloodhound and Springer Spaniel, respectively. For me, these are two of the best characters in the story. At six years old, Alice is the mature and seasoned cadaver dog that Cory has trained since she was a puppy. At four years old, Rex is still in training and is as much Alice’s apprentice and he is Cory’s trainee. Rex is also a little bit of a scoundrel as Springers often are. I speak from experience when I say that.

Anyway, it’s not long before the Netflix connection is made and the deaths continue. However, it’s not long before the investigation becomes less focused on the Netflix connection and begins to become something altogether different with a more personal focus and much closer target. Most of the story flips back and forth between Cory and the killer, who is a successful, Chicago attorney, whose kills are in retaliation for some believed slight or injustice the killer feels the victim made towards him. The reader also gets a glimpse of the killer’s childhood that made him the wacked out psycho that he became. I guess one could have some sympathy for the killer for having really crappy parents, who most certainly screwed him up, but I simply couldn’t muster any.

The character development for Cory and Crystal and the killer was pretty good, and pretty thin for everyone else. There was also a secondary storyline of Cory and his nightmares of his parents’ deaths and his guilt over it for something he did and said that he thinks lead to their deaths. Cory and big sis Crystal live together and they support each other with their grieving. The pacing was steady to fast and the storyline interesting. I liked the writing, classic Burton where Alice and Rex have integral roles in the story. Burton makes sure that the dogs in his story are just as much heroes as the law enforcement characters. I’m looking at an overall rating of 4.2 that I will be rounding down to a 4star review. Looking forward to the next installment.

[Annarella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like series featuring K9 and this is the start of a promising one as it's twisty, dark and gripping. I appreciated the surprises, the growing sense of dread and the well rounded characters
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great start to Burtons, Chicago K-9 series. Cory trains cadaver dogs, which he has 2, Alice- a blood hound, and Rex, a Springer. Cory’s sister, Crystal, is a CPD Homicide Detective. Through Crystal, she gets Cory jobs through CPD, and this story starts with Cory and his dogs searching for a missing man, which they do find his body hidden off a walking path. Next Cory and his ‘pups’ are sent to find another man, which they do find his body. Soon CPD realizes they are on the search for a serial killer who has been dormant for 7 years.
Why did he suddenly resurface and become much more violent? Lots of surprise twists in here: who the killer is and his connection to CPD.
The brother, sister, and the pups are sensational in their search for this violent killer. I love the way this author always throws some humor into the storyline.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Source* Publisher
*Genre* Thriller / Suspense
*Rating* 3.5

*Thoughts*

Jeffrey B. Burton's The Dead Years is the first installment in the author's A Chicago K-9 Thriller series featuring a sibling sleuth-duo and their working dogs. A serial killer, dormant for years, reawakens after viewing a Netflix docuseries depicting his string of homicides. The Dead Night Killer is not happy with his portrayal and no one in the cast and crew is safe! Key Characters: Cory Pratt (23), Sole proprietor of Cor Canine Training Academy, Crystal Pratt, Detective Chicago PD Violent Crimes investigator, Alice (bloodhound), and Rex (springer spaniel).

*Full Review @ Gizmos Reviews*

https://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/20...

[Darcy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like other books by this author and this one should have been a hit for me. Instead, I was bored while reading and gave up after 60 pages. I was meh on Cory and Crystal, especially Cory. Liked the dogs best. The crime, so so. I found myself stopping while I was reading to get up to do things around the house and each time, it got harder and harder to pick the book back up. In the end, this one wasn't for me.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dead Years” by Jeffrey Burton was the first book I read of his, but it won’t be the last. “The Dead Years” is the start of a new series featuring siblings Cory and Crystal Pratt, as well as Cory’s dogs Alice and Rex. Both dogs are human remains detection dogs, also known as cadaver dogs.

Cory owns and runs a dog training academy. Crystal is a detective with the Chicago police department. Cory and his dogs are brought in by the police department on certain cases. For example, the cases usually involve missing persons and searching for them.

This book has multiple narrators. The main one is Cory, but the reader also gets to hear from the killer, the killer’s father, and Crystal. The case in this one involves a serial killer who has been dormant for seven years, but starts back up again within months of a Netflix series airing an episode about his crimes.

The book had a nice pace to it and I read most of it within one day. The killer’s motive made sense in present day, but the original set of killings were a mix of revenge and happenstance.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the next one in the series. Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss for my ARC.

[Diana Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Severn House for the chance to read an ARC of The dead years by Jeffrey B. Burton. I discovered this author when I started reading his Mace Reid K-9 mystery series. The dead years is the beginning of a new K-9 series featuring Siblings Cory (owner of a dog training academy) and Crystal Pratt (CPD detective). Chapters are written from a different character's perspective, including the killer, which I really enjoyed. Totally loved the dogs, Alice and Rex, just as much as Mace Reid's K-9's!

[antoinette gabriels · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good story, interesting the whole time

I really enjoyed this book and the author , too. The main characters are so likable, especially the dogs. I laughed, gasped out loud a couple times and read this way too fast. I really look forward to the next book by this author.

[Carol Dimitriou · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good! I loved the author's Mace Reid K-9 mystery series, and this one looks like it will be a winner, too! The characters are interesting, and the suspense was satisfying. Looking forward to the next installment!

[Megan Ellefson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book! Love everything I've read from Jeffrey Burton.

[Christina Novak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy but good read

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story - lots of suspense, excellent characters, and dogs! Can’t go wrong with that combination!

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time with author. Interesting book. Pretty surprising ending!

[Cindy Paslawski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Burton knocked it out of the park! What a thriller. The lead characters are perfect foils for the bad buy who is pure evil. And the one man on earth who knows the who and what -- how dare he keep his mouth closed. This book is quite a thrill ride, can't wait to tear into The Second Grave.

[Deb Mervold · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am looking forward to #2 in this series.

[Debbie Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent book very entertaining

A surprise until the end. I really liked this book. I will definitely look up more work from this author!

[Connie P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Engrossing.

This is the first book in the Chicago K-9 series and it was good. There was plenty of action, it wasn't extremely gory, which I prefer, and the characters were relatable. Brother and sister who are living together in the house they'd inherited when their parents were killed in an auto accident. Crystal is a Chicago detective and Cory has a dog training business until he can pull together the money to go to college. He has 2 excellent cadaver dogs, Agnes the Bloodhound and Rex, a Spaniel. Cory has been called in to help search for a jogger gone missing. From there, Cory, Crystal, the CPD and the FBI are on the trail of a serial killer. The killer had previously killed several people until he suddenly stopped killing. Now, after 7 years, the killings have started up again. I like this series enough to buy the 2nd book. I love the dogs. This author seems to have spent a lot of time with dogs, because he really brings them to life in his books. I had previously read the "Mace" series and I really liked it. I was hoping there would be a third in that series but so far, no such luck. As I said, I will read the second book in this series.

[Alabama Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically a good storyline but Burton spends a lot of time explaining simple things in great detail during the first half of the book.
Just let the reader figure it out and roll with the tale at hand.
After reading the Mace Reid K-9 trilogy I went back to read Burtons early book, The Chessman, but was so bored with it that I just couldn’t finish it, mostly again with the crushing volume of details and lack of much action.

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House for allowing me to read an ARC of this title. This is the first book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. I like how it flowed and each chapter was from a different character's perspective. Sometimes it took me a paragraph or two to figure out who's narrative I was reading though. I know what I read was an ARC but there were a lot of words in italics that I am not sure why they were so. Anyway, that is small potatoes-overall the story was great and I really enjoyed it!

[Anne - Books of My Heart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
 

Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I read Burton's  unrelated Mace Reid K-9 Mystery series and liked it.  The Dead Years starts off the Chicago K-9 Thriller series which I think will be a bit better.  We have a brother and sister team who lost their parents in a car crash.  Crystal was old enough to assume a quasi parental role for her almost adult brother,  Cory. Crystal is a Chicago police detective, and Cory has a dog training business. We get mostly Cory's perspective.

Crystal is on the case in the hunt for a serial killer who was not caught 7 years ago but has been dormant.  Cory and his trained dogs, Alice and Rex, assist in searches and later a surveillance operation.  I have some trouble with this because Cory is not official, and he and his dogs are not respected or trusted.  They also aren't protected in the way members of the team would be.

When the killer starts going after people from the original investigation, who have some knowledge or experience to pass to the current team, they start to think it may be someone within their ranks.  The dogs reveal a suspect, but only Cory and Crystal believe them.   There's some real twists and turns until the killer is caught.

I hope Cory and the dogs get more certification and official standing rather than going along with Crystal.  Alice and Rex are mainly cadaver dogs but they are also very smart.  They seem to easily follow smells of live people too.  The next book, The Second Grave, is already out in ebook and will be on audio later this year.

Narration:
I'm not familiar with this narrator but he's narrated quite a few audiobooks.  I was comfortable with his voices for the characters. The tones were neutral enough to leave me completely in the story and not distracted by the narration.  I listened at my normal speed of 1.5x.

Listen to a clip: HERE

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great thriller.

[Dsbook · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this mystery and the relationship between brother and sister. It had me fooled as to who was the father of the killer. I also enjoyed Alice and Rex the human remains detection dogs. I hope this is the start of a series because liked Cory and Crystal.

[Thrillseeker · Rating 5 out of 5]

New series off the a thrilling start in Book 2

I oved this new series from Burton introducing new characters and new pack of cadaver dogs- look forward to Book 2!

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dead Years by Jeffrey B. Burton is a slow-burn mystery set in and around Chicago, IL.

Cory Pratt is a dog trainer who also works with local law enforcement when they need cadaver dogs. He is considering changing his career path when he is called in to find a missing man. Cory and his dogs unfortunately discover the man’s remains. Not long after, they find another man who has gone missing. Law enforcement, including his sister Crystal who is a detective, realize the tie between the deceased and they are soon on the hunt for a long dormant serial killer.

With an ever-increasing body count, Cory and Crystal work with the FBI and Chicago Police Department to stop the killer before he strikes again. There are few clues to work with, but Cory and Crystal come to a stunning realization that could turn the investigation around. But will Special Agent in Charge Todd Surratt believe their shocking discovery?

The Dead Years is an intriguing mystery with a fascinating cast of characters. Although Cory is the main narrator, there are also chapters from the serial killer's and interestingly, the killer’s father's perspectives. The investigation moves in fits and starts due to a frustrating lack of evidence. The storyline is engaging but is a little slow for the first half of the mystery. With jaw-dropping revelations, Jeffrey B. Burton brings this first installment in A Chicago K-9 Thriller to a satisfying conclusion.

[Erica angell]

Well, folks, I finally made it to the end of "The Dead Years" by Jeffrey B. Burton, and let me tell you, it was a struggle from start to finish. I had high hopes for this book, but unfortunately, it fell flat compared to what I've been reading lately.

I'll be honest, I didn't think I'd make it through this one. The story felt bland, lacking the spark and excitement I crave in a good read. Even as I reached the last 100 pages, I held out hope that things would turn around, but alas, my optimism was misplaced.

In the end, I'm just relieved that "The Dead Years" didn't end up on my DNF (did not finish) list. It's rare for me to give a book zero stars, but this one earned it. It was, without a doubt, the slowest book I've read all year, and I can't in good conscience recommend it to anyone.

But amidst the disappointment, there was one shining light: Rex and Alice, the two dogs who stole the show. Their antics and sleuth ways provided a much-needed respite from the monotony of the main storyline, and for that, I'm grateful.

So, if you're in the market for a slow, lackluster read with a couple of standout canine characters, then "The Dead Years" might be for you. Otherwise, I'd suggest giving this one a hard pass.

[HappyBookWorm2020 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the author's previous series which involved a young man who had search and rescue dogs, so was thrilled to see that he had started another K-9 series. I lived in a rural community with no leash law and grew up with dogs. Most of ours just showed up.

The two main characters are a brother and sister: Cory has a dog training business, and his sister Crystal is a detective for the Chicago police. Two of Cory's dogs are training in detecting human remains.

Crystal is called to a site where one murder victim is missing. She calls her brother who comes with his dogs, since dogs trained in finding dead bodies - cadaver dogs - are scarce.

The fear is that a serial killer who had become dormant years ago has started again. I wasn't able to guess the killer although there was one place where I thought maybe ... nah, it couldn't be. This is a great book and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys mystery, suspense, and dogs.

I received an e-arc from the publisher Severn House via NetGalley, and voluntarily read and reviewed it.

[Brian Lutterman · Rating 5 out of 5]

You don't have to be a dog-lover to love Jeffrey B. Burton's The Dead Years but, of course, it helps. As in Burton's wonderful Mace Reid K-9 trilogy, the book's unsung stars are the human remains detection dogs. But the dogs' human minders, Chicago siblings (and orphans) Cory and Crystal Pratt, also have a compelling story. In The Dead Years, they are opposed by Burton's most formidable antagonist yet, a long-dormant serial killer who objects to his portrayal on a Netflix documentary series. No one combines intensity, quirkiness, humor, and canine lovability like Burton, and it all adds up to a most satisfying thriller.

[Cathy Cole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have enjoyed previous books by Jeffrey B. Burton. He has a knack for creating irreverent, sympathetic characters and pairing them with working dogs-- always a potent combination in my book. Although the same framework is present here, I found The Dead Years to be less satisfying.

The story is told from Cory Pratt's perspective, and I liked this twentysomething's voice. However, I found his angst over the deaths of his parents a bit of a yawn. (Why do so many characters in mysteries have parents who died tragically?) His canine partners, Alice the bloodhound and Rex the springer spaniel, did their jobs well, and Cory's sister, Crystal, is the more logical, grounded one of the pair.

The serial killer in The Dead Years is a bit different, resurrecting his reign of terror after becoming incensed over his portrayal in a Netflix documentary, and he also plays a role in Cory's dreams. Readers learn the killer's identity before Cory and Crystal do, but once they do know, it's a race to the finish.

I did enjoy this book. It's all there: fast pace, engaging story, sympathetic characters, but I have to admit that it felt as if I'd read it all before. Even a winning formula can become tired.

(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)

[Shae · Rating 1 out of 5]

People rating it 4 and 5 🌟 .....are we reading the same book?

The author gives away to much to soon, there's hardly any focus on the killings just a bunch of boring stuff about the MMC, the sister is kind of annoying, and what's with "the killers father"? You tell us who the killer is like halfway through just call him by his name.

I was sold an exciting thriller about a serial killer coming out of the woods and was given... guy I don't care about solving a crime way to fast

Finishing this book was like pulling teeth and im so glad to be done.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved, loved, loved the dogs, Alice and Rex in The Dead Years by Jeffrey B. Burton. Crystal was a good character, too. I did not like Cory for some reason. He came across as brash and a bit arrogant.

The story was just okay for me. Not a page-turner as advertised. There is definitely an audience for this book, but I was not that audience.

#TheDeadYears #NetGalley @severnhouse