Hocus: An Irene Kelly Mystery

Irene Kelly #5

by Jan Burke

When her detective husband Frank turns up missing and she finds an ominous bloodstain in the trunk of his car and a warning left on the rearview mirror, Irene must determine who had kidnapped him and why so that she can find him before they kill him

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

411 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omgosh this was probably my favorite so far. I was on the edge of my seat almost the entire time. What an interesting and intriguing story. Wow. All the feels for this one. My love for this series just keeps growing and growing.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's been many years since I read one in this series. Found this on a shelf and figured I'd go for it. Kidnap stories are not my favourite thrillers. I guess I much prefer death and dismemberment. I was waiting for more body counts in this one. Knowing full well they wouldn't kill off a main character I don't know who I figured they'd bump off lol

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, that was extremely tense and thrilling. Wow. I think this is the fastest I've read one of these books, and even though I knew (because I've read one later book in the series before) who was going to come through this book alive, I was frantic to get one character rescued. I couldn't read fast enough.

Anyway, Irene Kelly continues to be a delight to hang out with. I love that she never does stupid things like run heedlessly into what she knows will be a dangerous situation, or go off chasing someone without letting other people know where she's going. Yes, she runs toward danger at times, but she knows that she's doing so, and she calls for backup and help consistently. I appreciate that a lot.

[Ch J Loveall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this because it is one book that kept me guessing. Rarely does an author plot as well.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

My new favorite mystery series. Irene Kelly is a reporter married to a homicide detective. quick reads. not too much gore and lots to think about.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, kept me up at night because I couldn't wait to find out the next part. Burke has combined tenseness (is that a word?) with heart-pounding AND heart-breaking emotion!

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light reading but I enjoyed and will read more of her books.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh man, this book just pushed this series up to a whole other level of being well written and well plotted. It has a very different flavor in that it is pretty much what one would call a thriller, and like the blurbs and reviews state, the action begins immediately and just continues to ratchet up throughout the entire book. There is a lot of specific backstory that comes out about Frank's life before he met Irene, and said backstory drives the events in the book. It is ultimately a really painful and bittersweet story and while I knew how it would end, it still felt like such a loss/horrible failure that it left me feeling quite empty. Everyone who should survives, but there is NO happy ending.

There is a new character introduced who is really, really interesting and I hope he continues to appear in other installments in the series.

I do have a quibble with the last death. Frank is a "cop" in heart and soul and has been for many years. He is known in his community as being an upstanding, ethical guy. I simply cannot envision him allowing Bret to walk out into the open while wearing what could be construed as a concealing garment (a cape) with SWAT teams ready to shoot to kill him on sight. I also cannot envision Frank not making sure Bret knew to keep his hands up and in plain sight at all times. It just felt like all of Frank's ambivalence that made him want him to protect Bret as much as possible and hopefully push Bret away from the things Sam made him a part went right out the window when it came to actual moment of surrender. I know the result had to happen somehow, but it just felt poorly handled when the rest of the book was so spot on.

Excellent, fast-paced, smart, engaging read and HIGHLY recommended.

[Nolan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d forgotten most of the first four books in this series. I’m not convinced you absolutely must read them before grabbing this installment.

Irene Kelly is a reporter at a local southern California newspaper. This is before the digital age and after the clang-bang of electric typewriters and teletype machines that rang constantly.

Irene’s husband is Detective Frank Harriman. The two were never sure initially whether a reporter and a cop could engage in a marital union that would have lasting power, but they talked most of it through, and took the plunge. That relationship comes under real strain in this book when a local home-grown terror group kidnaps and holds hostage her husband.

She faces the issue of trust from other cops who like Frank, but don’t think much of her profession. She faces the constant push and pull of information waves. How much can she tell her editor about what she knows regarding attempts to rescue Frank?

The origins of this hostage taking go way back to a Father’s Day when Frank was a young beat cop in Bakersfield. He helped rescue two young boys from a hostage situation. The boys watched as someone murdered their respective dads. Neither of them spoke for months. It was Frank who said he would never leave them until they could rejoin their mothers, and they built a lifelong rapport with him. Why then is Frank now a hostage of theirs? What made the boys go so far adrift and join a terror network whose legal violations went from the helpful and mundane to murder and a hostage crisis?

This won’t leave you profoundly changed, radicalized, or revolutionized. But it’s a solid read that won’t make you feel you’ve wasted time.

[Vivien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. First time there were other perspectives other than Irene's.
Cecilia didn't turn out to be a total bitch after all once the truth has been revealed but I don't know why she doesn't set the record straight. It's like she wants people to know how much of a homewrecker she is, stealing other people's husband because she doesn't want her former lovers to be happy with anyone but her.
I knew Lieutenant Carlson was crooked but I wish his crimes were more severe & caught sooner. Any cop who harasses another cop for no good reason means that cop has an agenda, an agenda that is not good for the department.
Captain Bredloe shouldn't be demoted for getting a criminal killed, even if he was a former cop.

[T · Rating 3 out of 5]

Irene is a reporter, husband Frank is a police officer.

Frank has gone missing. Being held hostage.

Early in his career, Frank was involved in a famous case involving two dads who were killed in front of their two sons. Frank was the office to first find them and the two young boys clung to Frank and were afraid of any other males - to the point of being selectively mute for years.

Fast forward. Frank was on a case and went to see an informant. And never came home.

Where is he? Who has him? What do they want?

[Corinne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to the Recorded Books edition of this audiobook.

I suffered through about 49% before I returned it to the library.

This book was gruesome, violent, sad, and not worth my while to finish. I didn't care to find out the solutions to the kidnapping or other nefarious acts in the story.

[Barbara Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good detective mystery in its complicated storyline and difficulty in discovering "who did it" (my difficulty the first time through). It turned out to be worth my reading it twice after bringing this copy home only to discover I had read it several years ago, also.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series gets better with each successive book. Stayed up way too late last night finishing this one.

[Jewett · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best. One you just can't stop listening too. A real nail bitter.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent thriller! Stayed up way too late but just had to finish it! My first Burke book and thinking I will explore more of her titles.

[Hebah Dwidari · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't impressed

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series.

[Holly Mcclain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great one in this series.

[Natalie K Hout · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it in 2 days! It was a fast moving story. I think my favorite since her first. Enjoyed that it was written in multiple perspectives

[Gail Bailey]

Like this book. I didn't realize it was a series.

[Dlmrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done.

[Lior Arenzon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great writing, great plot kept me entertained until the end. Would definitely recommend

[Kim Jarman]

Good

[Linda K. Pollari · Rating 5 out of 5]

intense

Read enough of Jan’s books and you will recognize the same plot-line, but the stories are still good and keep my attention

[Lynn Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me quite a while to get the meaning of the title. And, when it hit, it was an aha moment.

[Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story that had me on the edge of my seat at times. I actually listened to the audiobook, and I loved the narrator.

[John Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boring. And while it seemed like a pretty good whodunnit, when all was said and done I found it so confusing I just wanted to be done with it.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great mystery writer found to add to my list, so glad my sister found this and passed it on. Irene Kelly isn't your usual protagonist, she's a reporter, but that's not why this mystery is hers to figure out at all, it's because her husband is a hero cop. You'll have to read the book to find out more but if you see another book by Jan Burke be sure to pick it up and get ready to go off to find the truth.