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Tree Huggers
Single mom Kate Dennison finds her new reporting job at a local paper is not at all what she expected. On her first day, two men die in a fire apparently set by a militant environmentalist group called The Forces of Nature. Kate is assigned to cover the story, including the trial of the young man charged with the crime. As she works to unearth the truth, she begins to fear for her own safety and is faced with the loss of her daughter, her freedom and even her life.
- GenresMystery
303 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2008
2 people are currently reading
89 people want to read
About the author
Judy Nichols
11 books190 followersJudy Nichols grew up in a Batavia, Ohio, a small town 20 miles east of Cincinnati. Now, along with her husband and daughter, she is lucky enough to live on the coast of North Carolina where she never has to drive in snow and the ocean is ten minutes away.
For no good reason, she decided to write a book while her infant daughter napped. Five years and several viewings of "Toy Story" later, her novel "Caviar Dreams" was finished, a murder mystery based in Cincinnati.
Her daughter is all grown up now, and Judy never stopped writing. Her books include two featuring journalist/single mom Kate Dennison: "Tree Huggers" and "The Reason for the Season" and the Ian Dodge Mystery series, following the cases of a British transplant living in rural North Carolina.
Any resemblance between Ian Dodge and her husband Nigel is purely intentional.
Her latest book is a Young Adult Paranormal Mystery titled "Echoes of Evil," available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Echoes-Evil-Ju...
In April of 2012, Judy achieved her lifelong dream of competing on the quiz show Jeopardy! She was a two day champion winning a total of $46,500 and the distinction of being officially named the smartest person in a room full of very smart people.
Judy is available to speak at book clubs, libraries, whatever either in person if you're near Wilmington, NC or via skpye. Contact her at judyfivecents@gmail.com.
For no good reason, she decided to write a book while her infant daughter napped. Five years and several viewings of "Toy Story" later, her novel "Caviar Dreams" was finished, a murder mystery based in Cincinnati.
Her daughter is all grown up now, and Judy never stopped writing. Her books include two featuring journalist/single mom Kate Dennison: "Tree Huggers" and "The Reason for the Season" and the Ian Dodge Mystery series, following the cases of a British transplant living in rural North Carolina.
Any resemblance between Ian Dodge and her husband Nigel is purely intentional.
Her latest book is a Young Adult Paranormal Mystery titled "Echoes of Evil," available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Echoes-Evil-Ju...
In April of 2012, Judy achieved her lifelong dream of competing on the quiz show Jeopardy! She was a two day champion winning a total of $46,500 and the distinction of being officially named the smartest person in a room full of very smart people.
Judy is available to speak at book clubs, libraries, whatever either in person if you're near Wilmington, NC or via skpye. Contact her at judyfivecents@gmail.com.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 3, 2008
This book turned out better than I expected, and now I'm really beginning to like this genre, where the main character is an amateur sleuth. The main character here is a single (just divorced) mother who has just taken a job as a reporter at a small newspaper, and somehow she finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery.
I especially liked the format of the entire story -- it alternates between newspaper clippings and story chapters, and each newspaper clipping is always somehow related to the chapter that follows.
Another thing I liked, there weren't any obvious red herrings or obvious clues. I could tell that the murder suspect was wrongly charged, but that was about it. I suspected maybe one or two characters, but I turned out to be wrong, and in the end, when I did find out, my first thought was, "Of course!"
There's also a little bit of romance to sweeten the deal and a little bit of law and order drama, and the relationship between the main character and her ex is realistic. All in all, a pretty well-balanced story that ends exactly the way I like.
So this book turned out to be a nice surprise for me.
Finished reading June 2, 2008.
I especially liked the format of the entire story -- it alternates between newspaper clippings and story chapters, and each newspaper clipping is always somehow related to the chapter that follows.
Another thing I liked, there weren't any obvious red herrings or obvious clues. I could tell that the murder suspect was wrongly charged, but that was about it. I suspected maybe one or two characters, but I turned out to be wrong, and in the end, when I did find out, my first thought was, "Of course!"
There's also a little bit of romance to sweeten the deal and a little bit of law and order drama, and the relationship between the main character and her ex is realistic. All in all, a pretty well-balanced story that ends exactly the way I like.
So this book turned out to be a nice surprise for me.
Finished reading June 2, 2008.
November 3, 2010
What can I say? I wrote it, so I'm biased. Read it yourself and let me know what you think.
November 25, 2010
I'm always read about crime stories in the newspapers and as a forensic science student I always look at the cases from the eyes of an investigator or the criminals and victims. However, Judi Nichols brought me into a new perspective which I never even thought before. Investigate the crime scene from the point of view of a journalist. Do you ever wonder how the crime reporters could come out with all the crime stories? They also do their own investigations. That is what the protagonist of "Tree Huggers", Kate Dennison, a single mother and a reporter of Beacon does. She gets an assignment to cover the story about an arson case with two people getting killed. Her coverage of the story makes her as the next target for the criminals. Her office is bombed, a treat letter is sent to her, and she even gets the gun barrel pointed to her head.
I loved the way Judy Nichols write the story. She not only focuses on journalism and the crime, but she also makes a really good job in discussing about the family matters, environmental crisis, as well as the society issues. Kate is divorced with a daughter, Molly in her custody. I kind of understand what it feels to be a child like Molly because I also came from a broken family. She yearns for love from her parents and wish that her father and mother will reconcile but when her father remarried with another woman, she has to adjust herself to get together with her steps. I have to admit that it's not an easy thing to do and it sometimes gives a lot of pressure to the children. Nichols also pointed out about the environmental crisis. How the development may cause a great damage to the environment if it is not properly planned and this may cause a conflict between the environmentalists and the the developers. The crime in Tree Huggers is a result from that conflict. The development is good for human civilization, but when human become greedy, they tend to act beyond their right mind and cause very regretful damages to nature.
Judy Nichols' writing style is quite intelligent and fruitful. I'm not only enjoyed the story but at the same time she makes me realized about some important issues in our life. However, there are several things that can be improved in her writing. First is the development of the characters. The main characters developed very well but the others are just superficial and sometimes very dull. The second thing is, for a thriller novel, straightforwardness is not good. A thriller supposed to be unpredictable, full of surprises and also twisted all over so that the readers can feel the suspense and the thrill.
As a whole, Tree Huggers is a good book as it discussed a couple of critical issues such as family relationship, environmental crisis, as well as the problems arise in our society with a bit of thrills and ends exactly the way I like.
I loved the way Judy Nichols write the story. She not only focuses on journalism and the crime, but she also makes a really good job in discussing about the family matters, environmental crisis, as well as the society issues. Kate is divorced with a daughter, Molly in her custody. I kind of understand what it feels to be a child like Molly because I also came from a broken family. She yearns for love from her parents and wish that her father and mother will reconcile but when her father remarried with another woman, she has to adjust herself to get together with her steps. I have to admit that it's not an easy thing to do and it sometimes gives a lot of pressure to the children. Nichols also pointed out about the environmental crisis. How the development may cause a great damage to the environment if it is not properly planned and this may cause a conflict between the environmentalists and the the developers. The crime in Tree Huggers is a result from that conflict. The development is good for human civilization, but when human become greedy, they tend to act beyond their right mind and cause very regretful damages to nature.
Judy Nichols' writing style is quite intelligent and fruitful. I'm not only enjoyed the story but at the same time she makes me realized about some important issues in our life. However, there are several things that can be improved in her writing. First is the development of the characters. The main characters developed very well but the others are just superficial and sometimes very dull. The second thing is, for a thriller novel, straightforwardness is not good. A thriller supposed to be unpredictable, full of surprises and also twisted all over so that the readers can feel the suspense and the thrill.
As a whole, Tree Huggers is a good book as it discussed a couple of critical issues such as family relationship, environmental crisis, as well as the problems arise in our society with a bit of thrills and ends exactly the way I like.
April 29, 2008
In the manner of Scott Turow, Judy Nichols keeps her stories fresh by having a new protagonist in the same fictional world. In Tree Huggers the amateur sleuth is Kate Dennison, a newly divorced mom re-entering the work force as a reporter for a small struggling newspaper. She balances investigative reporting with motherhood and a newly budding romance. The author combines mystery and danger with a realistic portrait of a woman balancing work and mothering. The characters seemed so real. I really cared what happened to them. As a special treat, it was fun to see Kate use her mommy knowledge to save her own life with the bad guys seem to have her cornered. I couldn’t put it down.
July 4, 2008
Fun sequel to the first Kate Dennison mystery story. Hopefully there will be more to the series. The herone has a refreshingly honest viewpoint regarding the developments that surround her new position as a reporter for a Wilmington, NC newspaper.
February 11, 2011
This is a murder mystery, but it's also about a single mom muddling through her life, trying to balance all the aspects of her life--her job, her daughter, her new love interest. Really enjoyed it.
June 19, 2013
Just ok, not that exciting. Not sure what everyone else saw in this book. To me it is just a slightly interesting mystery.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews