What do you think?
Rate this book
Standing Our Ground
A cold-blooded murder. The victim: A fourteen-year-old boy. The shooter waits patiently for the cops and calmly explains his right to kill the boy. “I was defending my property.” Can Deputy Andi Pelton find the evidence to break through the killer’s stand-your-ground defense? Suddenly, Sheriff Ben Stewart almost dies and cannot campaign for re-election. Andi knows she must take his place—her nemesis, Deputy Brad Ordrew, runs unopposed and he’s promised to fire her when he’s sheriff. Can she stand her own ground to stay in Monastery Valley while she tries to solve the murder and defends herself against scurrilous political ads paid for by a mysterious stranger?
356 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 23, 2020
71 people are currently reading
49 people want to read
About the author
Bill Percy
6 books9 followersBill Percy, an award-winning Idaho writer, draws on his experiences as a psychotherapist to write vivid, engaging tales of people confronting painful and challenging mysteries. His most recent book in the Monastery Valley series is "The Bishop Burned the Lady," released April 12, 2018, is available on Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackRoseWriting.com. "Nobody’s Safe Here" and "Climbing the Coliseum," the second and first in the series, were both named Distinguished Favorites or Finalists in three important competitions. Two more novels featuring Ed, Andi, Grace, and the people of Monastery Valley will follow.
Bill was born in Buffalo, NY, where he was taught by the nuns. He moved at 13 to Scottsdale, AZ, where he was taught by the Jesuits. He practiced psychology in Minneapolis, MN, where all that good influence went for naught and disappointed his grandmother, who'd decided he'd be a priest. Now he lives with his wife and best reader, Michele Brooks, in north Idaho. His children live in Minneapolis and in Stevensville, Montana.
Bill was born in Buffalo, NY, where he was taught by the nuns. He moved at 13 to Scottsdale, AZ, where he was taught by the Jesuits. He practiced psychology in Minneapolis, MN, where all that good influence went for naught and disappointed his grandmother, who'd decided he'd be a priest. Now he lives with his wife and best reader, Michele Brooks, in north Idaho. His children live in Minneapolis and in Stevensville, Montana.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 29, 2020
This book has a bit of political slant that bothered me. I hate when people misrepresent what my side believes in.
But other than that, it is a pretty good read. I tend to overlook the political crap and judge the book for readability, entertainment, and believability. For the most part, this book satisfies me very much in all of these areas. I was captured by the story and could not put it down. I enjoyed and believed in the possibility of the characters existing in real life. It was a wonderful book with a great story.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
But other than that, it is a pretty good read. I tend to overlook the political crap and judge the book for readability, entertainment, and believability. For the most part, this book satisfies me very much in all of these areas. I was captured by the story and could not put it down. I enjoyed and believed in the possibility of the characters existing in real life. It was a wonderful book with a great story.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
November 15, 2022
Standing Our Ground by Bill Percy
A fourteen your old boy is dead the shooter is using the stand your ground defense. Can deputy Pelton get to the bottom of this case? Sheriff Steward almost dies and needs to be replaced so Andi Pelton knows she needs to be the one to run for the office. She has an obstacle in her place it is deputy Brad Ordrew.
I had many issues with this book mostly the political tilt the story. Ordrew's behavior is extreme and I just did not like him at all. I know some topics can be discus in stories but in this case it just made the story to over wrought about the issues instead of the 14 year old who died.
The writing was not well either. I felt like this story was written on a conspiracy theory website validating racist behavior. I do not know the story just did not sit well with me. I did not like any of the characters at all.
I always try to be fair with books cause i know it takes a lot of time to write a book but sometimes you don't have to be extreme in your story telling were the reader is focused only on the extremist rantings of police. This story is not good for the time we are in. I understand some people act and think this way but it does not make it ok or normalizing it in stories to make this behavior mainstream.
Thank You to NetGalley and Black Rose Writing for a free copy of this book for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
A fourteen your old boy is dead the shooter is using the stand your ground defense. Can deputy Pelton get to the bottom of this case? Sheriff Steward almost dies and needs to be replaced so Andi Pelton knows she needs to be the one to run for the office. She has an obstacle in her place it is deputy Brad Ordrew.
I had many issues with this book mostly the political tilt the story. Ordrew's behavior is extreme and I just did not like him at all. I know some topics can be discus in stories but in this case it just made the story to over wrought about the issues instead of the 14 year old who died.
The writing was not well either. I felt like this story was written on a conspiracy theory website validating racist behavior. I do not know the story just did not sit well with me. I did not like any of the characters at all.
I always try to be fair with books cause i know it takes a lot of time to write a book but sometimes you don't have to be extreme in your story telling were the reader is focused only on the extremist rantings of police. This story is not good for the time we are in. I understand some people act and think this way but it does not make it ok or normalizing it in stories to make this behavior mainstream.
Thank You to NetGalley and Black Rose Writing for a free copy of this book for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
February 4, 2020
Standing Our Ground by Bill Percy is book four in his Monastery Valley series, and let me just say...this book is absolutely fantastic and hard to put down. The author takes readers to Montana and a small country town that is about to go through a major shake-up. When I wasn't reading this book I was thinking about it and wondering what was going to happen next. The book starts off with the tragic death of a 14-year-old boy, a man claiming the "stand your ground" defense, and a sheriff with a looming medical emergency that will threaten the livelihood of one of his deputies, because if he can't run for reelection...her job will be on the line behind a fellow deputy who feels women aren't up to snuff. Where the story take you? How will it end? Delve inside and learn the answers for yourself.
Standing Our Ground is the first book that I have read by this author and I wasn't far into this book before I knew that I absolutely had to go back and read the books that came previous in this series. Now! Let me say this real quick - this book can be read as a stand-alone which I truly appreciated. Yes, the relationships are established, but the suspense surrounding the characters and the drama in the story make it so well-done that you don't need to know what has happened previously. The author does touch on past incidents from the previous books, but he doesn't make it necessary for you to have read them to be able to fully enjoy this masterpiece.
I am an avid reader of suspense thriller novels and this book has murder thrown in. We know who commits the crime, but the puzzle is why did he do it? What was the true motive behind the act? I love how the author keeps me page-turning to learn the truth piece by piece as the investigation is conducted. The characters are so true to life and it's fascinating to think that they could be real people if this book wasn't fiction. The author weaves in other storylines into this book and there were moments of where I wondered how it all would come together, but I had patience and was rewarded when the story weaves together and showed me the full picture. I was honestly shocked but truly thrilled.
There is nothing that I didn't like about this book. I was disappointed in Andi at times, because I wanted her to have more faith in herself, but that just helped elevate her character and further show her humanity. Brad was the character that I truly loved to hate. His arrogance and his issues irked me, but he helped push and drive the story along with his craving for success and ambition.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. If you are a fan of this author then I'm sure that you already know you'll love this book. If you are a fan of crime dramas, thrillers, and suspense stories with true to life characters then this book is a must-read. This author has gained a new fan of their work and I look forward to reading more of their work in the future.
Standing Our Ground is the first book that I have read by this author and I wasn't far into this book before I knew that I absolutely had to go back and read the books that came previous in this series. Now! Let me say this real quick - this book can be read as a stand-alone which I truly appreciated. Yes, the relationships are established, but the suspense surrounding the characters and the drama in the story make it so well-done that you don't need to know what has happened previously. The author does touch on past incidents from the previous books, but he doesn't make it necessary for you to have read them to be able to fully enjoy this masterpiece.
I am an avid reader of suspense thriller novels and this book has murder thrown in. We know who commits the crime, but the puzzle is why did he do it? What was the true motive behind the act? I love how the author keeps me page-turning to learn the truth piece by piece as the investigation is conducted. The characters are so true to life and it's fascinating to think that they could be real people if this book wasn't fiction. The author weaves in other storylines into this book and there were moments of where I wondered how it all would come together, but I had patience and was rewarded when the story weaves together and showed me the full picture. I was honestly shocked but truly thrilled.
There is nothing that I didn't like about this book. I was disappointed in Andi at times, because I wanted her to have more faith in herself, but that just helped elevate her character and further show her humanity. Brad was the character that I truly loved to hate. His arrogance and his issues irked me, but he helped push and drive the story along with his craving for success and ambition.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. If you are a fan of this author then I'm sure that you already know you'll love this book. If you are a fan of crime dramas, thrillers, and suspense stories with true to life characters then this book is a must-read. This author has gained a new fan of their work and I look forward to reading more of their work in the future.
February 5, 2020
Standing our Ground is a powerful book. It showcases a small town's sheriff department and the strong members of the force. The main deputy in the book is Andi Pelton, a smart, resourceful woman of principle, who is quick to fight for victims and for her town. The book starts with a shooting of a teen boy in a supposed home invasion. Andi realizes in investigating the crime, that there were some unusual and suspicious pieces of evidence that showed the shooting to be outright murder, not just a man defending his home. As the story unfolds, Andi's coworkers and friends help as her path changes in the midst of the investigation. She is challenged to run for Sheriff when her boss is sidelined by a major illness. The campaign that follows will take every bit of her toughness to get through. It's an adventure, a suspenseful story with many surprises. It had a lot to say about the integrity of policemen and women and how they deal with the day to day workings of their job. I highly recommend this book, Standing Our Ground.
December 5, 2020
Part of a series, but I haven’t read any others , so I read this with no background information. Now I want to read the others. The author does a great job with the characters and the story, so the reader is totally immersed. I received an advanced digital copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
January 26, 2020
I Enjoyed everything about this book there was nothing I didn't like about the book. I Like the setting,the writing style,the plot,the plot twists and the characters in the book were amazing.I would reread this again.
May 28, 2020
Almost impossible to put down; sleep was a luxury
The entire series is paced with enough realism, honest emotion, and a cast of good people, to keep you reading far beyond midnight.
The entire series is paced with enough realism, honest emotion, and a cast of good people, to keep you reading far beyond midnight.
September 14, 2020
A rival to James Patterson
It was a first class read with multi threads and plots to keep you on your toes. I found it difficult to put down. If you enjoy a crime thriller with human sub plot this is one for you.
It was a first class read with multi threads and plots to keep you on your toes. I found it difficult to put down. If you enjoy a crime thriller with human sub plot this is one for you.
September 15, 2020
Really good read
Small town, had a man kill a teenager. The man, said he was standing his ground. The sheriff and deputies, are trying to solve it. During this, there is also an election. For the new sheriff.
Small town, had a man kill a teenager. The man, said he was standing his ground. The sheriff and deputies, are trying to solve it. During this, there is also an election. For the new sheriff.
October 7, 2020
Ranks right up there with other novelists
Mr. Percy writes a novel right up there with th best of them. Standing Our Ground is great story full of twists and turns in just about every chapter. I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and I look forward the next Monastery Valley book.
Mr. Percy writes a novel right up there with th best of them. Standing Our Ground is great story full of twists and turns in just about every chapter. I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and I look forward the next Monastery Valley book.
May 12, 2020
The series was excellent - stories are well written, characters well developed. Wish there were more in the series.
September 12, 2020
Wonderful book!
Adventure and excitement, nail-biting moments, well written. It is a dead that you won't put down till the last page! Highly recommend this book.
Adventure and excitement, nail-biting moments, well written. It is a dead that you won't put down till the last page! Highly recommend this book.
Read
September 22, 2020Small Town Politics
A s!all town deputy runs for sheriff in Montana., while she helps with a murder investigation. Well written and thoughtful
A s!all town deputy runs for sheriff in Montana., while she helps with a murder investigation. Well written and thoughtful
October 1, 2020
Likes it
This book was well written. The characters were likable and believable. The story was entertaining. I would recommend it. X
This book was well written. The characters were likable and believable. The story was entertaining. I would recommend it. X
April 24, 2020
i thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, it had what I was looking for in a mystery novel and I enjoyed getting introducted to the characters in this book.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews