The Girl in the Motel

Joe Court #1

by Chris Culver

You can never outrun the past.Detective Mary Joe Court sleeps with a shotgun beside her bed and a loveable bullmastiff at her feet. For the past twelve years, she's hidden from a nightmarish past, but with every passing day, her scars fade, and her heart grows lighter. Now, for the first time in her life, she looks forward to her future. She's happy.Then she finds the body.Someone shot the victim in her chest and left her to die in a cheap motel. Joe knew her well. She grew up with her. They were sisters, of a sort.Twelve years ago, the victim put a gangster in prison. Now that gangster's out, and he's looking to settle scores—Joe included.Joe has fought to leave her past behind. Now, she has to face it or lose everything she cares about. Because the killer hunting her will tear apart her carefully constructed life piece by piece until there's nothing left.Unless Joe gets him first.New York Times' bestselling author Chris Culver's riveting Joe Court series has suspense that will keep you awake at night, mysteries that will keep you guessing until the last page, and a hero you'll love.Check it out today!______________What readers say about The Girl in the Motel:★★★★★ " Lots of twists and turns. A top notch read."★★★★★ "An absolute must read, a true page turner."★★★★★ "I loved the book. I couldn't put it down ' it had me guessing till the end."★★★★★ " Loved it. His characters just come to life for me."★★★★★ "This is one twisted story. It grabs you from the start to the end. Will read all in this series. Wow great story."★★★★★ " One of the best books I've read in a long time. The opening sucks you in and makes you immediately want to know more... I can't wait to read the next books in the series."

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

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2018

About the author

Chris Culver is the New York Times bestselling author of the Ash Rashid series of mysteries. After graduate school, Chris taught courses in ethics and comparative religion at a small liberal arts university in southern Arkansas. While there and when he really should have been grading exams, he wrote The Abbey, which spent sixteen weeks on the New York Times bestseller's list and introduced the world to Detective Ash Rashid.

Chris has been a storyteller since he was a kid, but he decided to write crime fiction after picking up a dog-eared, coffee-stained paperback copy of Mickey Spillane's I, the Jury in a library book sale. Many years later, his wife, despite considerable effort, still can't stop him from bringing more orphan books home. The two of them, along with a labrador retriever named Roy, reside near St. Louis where Chris is hard at work on his next novel.

Reviews

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A girl named Joe

This is the first book I have read by Chris Culver but it won’t be my last. Happy to have found this series and look forward to seeing how Joe develops and grows through the next books.

[Russ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good mystery. Not a lot of twists and turns, but a lot of bad guys. It's the 1st book in a series so it deals with character development and background history of the major characters. In the end, one case was left hanging. I'll get the next book to see if it's resolved.

[Janelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read every single book Chris Culver has written and I have loved them all. The Girl in the Motel, however, was dreadfully slow and boring. The story was just okay and I got a little lost with the different side characters who had little to do with the overall plot. I ended up finishing this in parts over a month's time, stopping every few chapters out of boredom. I just couldn't get into the story, it had no pizazz. Anyway, I won't give up on Chris Culver just yet, so I stretched my 2.5 stars to 3 stars.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book went directions I never expected. Relationships between the main characters add another interesting dimension. A continuing desire to see what happens and a bit of an interesting ending bump up the rating - 6 out of 10.

[Fran Burdsall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome police procedural with a great protagonist and excellent plot. I am charging ahead to the next in the series. Loved it!!!

[David Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story .

Great book. Suspenseful. A lot of twists and turns throughout the story. Looking forward to The Girl in the Woods.

[Carlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great thriller by a new author for me, #1 in the Joe Court mystery series. I really wasn't sure I would like it, but I bought the first 5 in the series so there you go! Then I worried it would be too graphic...it was pretty graphic, lots of murders, but it set up the back story of Detective Mary Joe Court. Lots of time shifts in the set up...a bit discombobulating at first but definitely worth it once all the characters became clear. Now I can't wait to read the next one!

[D.L. Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Joe

This book had me hooked on the first page. Then, even more hooked when Det. Mary Joe Court came on the scene. Don't call her Mary, though. After some rough early years she eventually enters the foster care system, and that doesn't go well either. All of this contributes to make Joe into the no-bullshit cop that she becomes. This book has too much going on to cover in a review. I enjoyed the book with it's twists & turns. Mr. Culver is an excellent writer & his characters are top-notch. I read the preview for the next Joe Court book, & I plan to read that in the near future.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first book by this author and I will read more. This first of a series has potential. I really like the main character, Joe. It's a tense murder mystery that grabbed me right away, a twisty plot with characters to root for and evil villains to despise. And ...slight spoiler alert but in a good way...the dog lives! I think it didn't quite give the reader enough depth but it is the first in a series so perhaps that will come. I would give this a 3.5 but didn't quite feel it reached a 4 even though it had some pretty clever things with much potential to develop.

[Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

First time reading this author. Won't be last. I bought second book in this series. Nicely done Chris. Second book will be read soon.

[Penny Ramirez]

I really wanted to read this book, but I can't.

The premise is awesome. The crime sounds like it would be a great puzzle to solve. the MC's background is just too close to home for me at this moment.

[batkat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This started a bit slow. I was almost tired of the flipping back and forth between Joe's foster home upbringing and the murder case when it picked up. The stiff way Joe acts with most people seemed to be a bit much but maybe needed to really drive her personality home to the reader.

The relationship between Joe and her abuser came off thin and needed to be fleshed out but it worked somewhat for some terror at the end. There were a couple of points where I was turning pages a bit faster to see what happened and I definitely cared about Roger. So the author got me involved with some characters - which is a win.

[Jeannine Wickliffe · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy a book with twists and turns you will really enjoy The Girl in the Motel. Joe is a police detective with a past that has caught up with her and the dead bodies are piling up. Joe works with her adoptive mother, and her police chief to figure out the clues. Everything revolves around what happened to her 12 years ago. sit back and enjoy the ride

[Dave Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story could have been really good.

When the plot was developing the author change course with background on the main character. This stopped the flow and was frustrating. The author also repeated information on a regular basis and made it hard to stay interested. Overall the plot was good but wasn't well presented.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfectly Flawed Feisty Female Detective!!!

Great non-formulaic female police detective thriller. The characters good and bad are multi-faceted making this a real page turner. Great plot twists are icing on the cake!!!!!

[bonnie kirchner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Girl in the Motel

Great mystery . It keeps you in suspense till the very end. Loved it. Can't wait to read the next book in this series. I recommend this book. Really worth reading.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man I’m really enjoying this detective series and I’m on my third installment. joe had a rough life and you really feel for her..she’s also tough and loves her job. You’ll root for Joe as the bad guys get theirs.

[Jeanette Remily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found a new author

This is a great mystery. I highly recommend it. Adjectives to describe it...well written, Joe is a believable character,couldn’t put it down. Now I’m going to buy the next book in the series.

[Norma maldonado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story

If you have ever worked for the foster system, this a must read. Unfortunately what happened to Joe Court and other young female foster kids does happen! Read her story! She shows strength, compassion and grit!

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the new character, Joe Court. She is a strong lead.

[Cheryl Landmark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

[Joyce Ortis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

I like surprise endings. Can't wait to read Joe Court book #2. Especially loved Roger and Joe's deep devotion to him.

[Susan Tull · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joe Court

This book keeps you on your toes. I loved reading about Joe Court! She made me think of her as a real person. A must read!!

[Cheryl Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review

Enjoyed the book. It had a lot of twist and turns you didn’t see coming. Thanks for a good read

[The Humble Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure why there's five star reviews, I honestly don't know if anyone actually read the book. Look, I am a stickler for crime mysteries and suspense, aka cop books. I have read so many and most of them are amazing but this one...lacked. I'm being nice, lacked isn't the world I'd use but I'll say it anyway. The tip of the day: if your going to write a crime mystery with a female heroine, you need to make her likeable. She needs to be strong, fearless, courageous. She needs to be like a ICE QUEEN, someone who doesn't care what anyone else's thinks and does her job brilliantly. This female lead, Joe was not that. She's pathetic. She's an alcoholic. She's a drunk. She doesn't respect authority even though she's a cop. She's reckless, puts herself in bad situations and then continues to defy orders and continues to work a case she's pulled from. Must I say more?? The heroine in this book is not a hero she's a lousy cop who needs to be fired. Ugh. I can't give this a five star. I did not like Joe and so it made it really hard to like the book but I gave it a three for being mediocre.

Would not recommend reading

[Bonnye Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first of five in a series titled Joe Court. 'Sisters' from her foster home days are being murdered one by one. Twelve years ago, along with Detective Mary Joe Court they framed and then testified against a local gangster - now he's out of jail and longing for revenge. Joe needs to find him - before he finds her. A good book, with intense drama at times, well-described personalities and a clear-headed, realistic protagonist in Joe. She does have a bit of difficulty with authority and the violence and sex are not for young readers. There are a couple of basic gun mistakes caught mostly by experienced gun users. St. Augustine is well presented and much as I remember it, and Missouri is well represented. Altogether, a good, quick read and a series I am enjoying. I am pleased to recommend Chris Culver to friends and family. The author has a special on his website at the moment.
REVIEWED on April 3, 2024, at AmazonSmile, Barnes&Noble, and BookBub. Not available for review on Kobo.

[JoAnne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had previously read two other books in the series and decided to buy the first two. (I think the others could be read as stand-alone books.) (I have the paperback edition. Not Kindle.)

Joe Court (female) is the youngest detective in the precinct. She has a lot of baggage (which is explained in this book) and this helps in understanding her personality later in the series. This "baggage" becomes a case she works on of two murdered young women. Joe is smart, smart-alecky and digs her heels in and won't let go.

This is the first book in the series. Having read the other two, I could see the character development of Joe Court. This was an interesting story with a few twists and turns and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Jan Norton · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was pretty good though there were some mistakes in the storyline. Wonder what happened to the editors? Mary Joe’s foster sister is found dead in a motel room but she died 12 years earlier and her foster dad is in prison for the murder. Christopher is released from prison before the body is proven to be Megan’s. In fact, the reader never told if the body was Mary Joe’s foster sister. There is a discrepancy on her eye color that is never resolved. There were others but I will just point these out. Some other things that bother me is Mary Joe’s drinking problem (I am tired of the main characters being alcoholics), the use of the F word, and the use of a man’s name for the female police office.

[ConniW · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, very well written MC

The first thing that should be said here, I was phenomenally impressed with just how well written and expressed the character of Detective Joe Court is. I have to say “is” because Mr. Culver brought her to life in a way that few male authors can depict a female lead. The insight of her and the job as well as her backstory was so beautifully done, I am already looking to getting and reading the second in the series.
This is something that just shy of life altering and the profound emotions and interactions will have you on the edge of your seat.
Prepare yourself for a hardcore bumpy ride because this isn’t about flowers and folderol; this deals with life events and the root of all evil. Humanity and all that implies.