Turtle Point: Featuring Harper Sturgis

by DL Havlin

Prominent contractor Benny Dupree’s obsession with preserving sea turtles and their nesting areas seems to be the man’s only eccentricity of this otherwise exemplary citizen. Though his concern for the turtles is sincere, there’s a more sinister reason for his slavish devotion to protecting the island sands where they lay their eggs. A very dark thirty year old secret lies buried beneath the southwest Florida barrier island sands. When modern day treasure hunters snoop on the island, Dupree’s past and what the beach property hides are threatened with exposure. Helplessly, he struggles to protect his secret and the memory of a love that prompted him to commit murder. The ruthless pair planning to destroy him doesn’t care about justice; their sole interest is billions of dollars they are trying to find. Killing those in the way is a minor problem. Benny grasps for straws and the one he is lucky enough grab is a tough retired Marine intelligence officer, Harper Sturgis. Harper is a buddy of his best friend, a lawyer, and owns a detective agency. Sturgis is an iron lady who takes no prisoners. Refusing to be impacted by emotion, she disdains those who are. Benny finds a protector equal to any mental or physical challenge and that scares him a little. He’s shocked to find she’s not worried if he’s innocent. Her interest is if he can pay her bill. The two “treasure hunters” are relentless in their pursuit of a clue to billions, not millions. They don’t care about or know of the two bodies Benny has buried, they’re looking for a third … one they’re sure that literally has the key to what they’re looking for hanging around its neck. They discover bodies in the beach sands, but not the one they want. Harper unleashes her powers of observation and her businesses resources and begins unraveling the two mysteries not one. Her side-kick uses his systems, business, and computer smarts to identify the two men that threaten to ruin his life. They’re a formidable duo comprised of a college professor and a soldier of fortune. She attacks Benny’s problem that becomes increasingly desperate as one of the treasure hunters, a psychopathic murder, goes out of control and the body count mounts. Harper out-thinks and out-maneuvers Benny and her enemies in a tale that sifts through history, saves Dupree, and with the help of another of Benny’s friends, ends a killer’s reign of terror. She unravels the mystery from the clue the treasure hunters sought and it takes her from Gulf of Mexico sands to ancient tombs in Tuscany. Along the path, Harper resurrects Benny’s lost love, and, when the story climaxes, she discovers a huge source of wealth that will power her future cases in the Iron Lady mystery series.

Kindle Edition

Published February 3, 2018

Reviews

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed by Melinda Hills for Readers' Favorite

Benny Dupree’s life has been relatively calm for 30 years in spite of the secret and heartache preoccupying him the whole time in “Turtle Point” featuring Harper Sturgis in the Iron Lady Mystery/Suspense Series, Volume 1 by DL Havlin. Quite unexpectedly, strangers seem to be looking into the double murder Benny committed one night in June, 1980, after he witnessed the burial of his girlfriend, but the story takes on an amazing life of its own as more pieces that don’t seem to have any place are added to the puzzle.

The idyllic life Benny has led is turned upside down and others are drawn into the confusion as Havlin’s plot thickens and weaves an intriguing tapestry of interconnections and surprises. Given the fact that the consequences are so high, Benny agrees to the help of a top-notch criminal attorney, former Marine intelligence officer Harper Sturgis. With Harper’s tremendous skills and a life otherwise above reproach, Benny feels he is in good hands – as long as he isn’t murdered first.

DL Havlin has created an astonishing tale of greed, love, missed opportunities and dedication in “Turtle Point”. With beautiful, evocative descriptions of the Florida Gulf coast and waters as well as the ritual of turtles laying their eggs, you feel the peace and power of the environment. This depth is the perfect counterpoint to the driven nature of the protagonists to achieve their goals, no matter the cost. Great police work, lucky breaks and supportive friends all play a role in bringing the mystery to a mind-boggling conclusion and setting the stage for the re-appearance of the unique and highly effective lady lawyer, Harper Sturgis.