Adam Dutton & Beverly Laborde Mystery Series Box Set: Books 1-3

Adam Dutton & Beverly Laborde Mystery #1-3

by B.V. Lawson

Revenge is best served ... BOLD.When Beverly Laborde becomes a con artist to exact revenge on the man who shut down her grandmother's antiques business and sent her to an early grave, she crosses paths with hardened Vermont police detective, Adam Dutton, who's battling his own demons.What started out as a personal vendetta for Beverly soon grows into something more. The quirky town of Ironwood Junction, a sympathetic local antiques dealer, and the mysterious "Mr.X" all start to chip away at Beverly's tough outer emotional shell.But can she possibly push past her issues with trust and betrayal to settle down? And will her quest for vengeance ever truly be over? As Beverly and Adam come to terms with their inconvenient growing attraction toward each other, they have to dodge bribery, theft, extortion, and murder ... to settle old scores and to keep each other safe.STEAL AWAY: A con woman hoping to take revenge on the man she feels responsible for her grandmother's death has to fight her growing attraction for a hardened Vermont police detective and the efforts of her nemesis to silence her ... forever. But if she can allow herself to trust her instincts—and the detective—she might just have a fighting chance.HIDE AWAY: Vermont Detective Adam Dutton has to make one of the hardest arrests of his life—his good friend and godfather, Harlan Wilford, who stands accused of murder. Once again teaming up with con woman Beverly Laborde, Adam and Beverly must find the real killer before it's too late for Harlan...and for them.BURN AWAY: When a series of arsons targets Vermont antiques stores, Detective Adam Dutton and con-woman Beverly Laborde worry a shop owned by their friend might be next. But the stakes take an even deeper and uglier turn after a body is found inside one of the burned buildings. Was it an accident, suicide ... or murder?

714 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 5, 2020

About the author

The latest installment in the Scott Drayco mystery series, Fatal Fugue, is available for pre-order! Details here.



Hey there. Thanks for visiting my profile! I'm an author of crime fiction, including the Scott Drayco mystery series, which has been honored by the American Independent Writers, Maryland Writers Association, named Best Mystery in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, and been a finalist for the Shamus Awards, the Silver Falchion, the Daphne Awards, the Foreword Book Review Awards, and the Kindle Book Awards. Library Journal said of the series, "worth putting on your reading list," and I hope you'll think so, too.

Reviews

[Willow Webster · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked reading these. They kept me reading until I read them all. Hard to put down book. Looking forward to seeing more by this author

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cath]

This boxset contains the first three books in the Adam Dutton & Beverly Laborde Mystery series, Steal Away, Hide Away and Burn Away. The two main characters are Beverly Laborde, a con woman looking to take down the man who sent her grandmother to an early grave, and Adam Dutton, a Vermont police detective. Beverly arrives at the Apple Valley resort spa, reckoning it will be the perfect place to hide in plain sight. Shortly after her arrival Detective Dutton calls on her, to ask her about a complaint from a person called Reginald Forsythe, who states a woman conned him out of an expensive silver Paul Revere bowl. His is extremely wealthy and has criminal links, with influence in the local politics and the Northwestern Antiquities League. Not a good man to have made an enemy of. It seems Adam has also gotten on his wrong side. Forsythe may be guilty of theft, bribery and maybe even murder. Adam will have to join up with Beverly if he is to solve the case and others linked to Forsythe, but they will also need the help of a friendly antique dealer, who isn’t under the Forsythe III or IV’s control.

In the second book, Adam is forced by the mayor’s constant pressure on his chief, to keep looking into Beverly’s alibi regarding the silver bowl theft and now murder of Forsythe III, aptly well under the thumb of Forsythe IV. Adam also gets hassle from his ex-wife, who is now married to Mayor Lemann, too bored being a simple police detective’s wife and wanting the higher prestige and money that being the mayor’s wife would bring. Now she is suggesting that Adam have an affair with her, since her husband is suspicious anyway! Mr X gets pulled into Beverly’s journey of revenge, but his yaks leave him needing Beverly’s assistance in the end. A kidnapping and a face off, brings most of this episode to a conclusion, still without an actual date between Adam and Beverly, notwithstanding Adam’s numerous requests.

The third book starts with a series of arson attacks on antiques shops around the county. The second one ends with a dead body being found inside, dead by lead, before the fire was put out. Now they find out there had been further arson attacks across the state, all with the same signature. Threatening letters have been sent out to people and one even received a pipe bomb at their home. Add in some links to a corrupt police officer and more links to the mayor and his associates, then the fun continues. Mr X continues to help Beverly, while Adam seems to be keeping his distance, after an almost dalliance with his ex, after she caught him in a compromising condition. This book brings a lot of the loose ends in the whole revenge scenario and criminal investigations together and a sense of fulfilment for Adam and Beverly. An easy reading series, with intriguing and unusual characters, with just the right amount of bad guys and heroes with conviction. I can’t wait to see if there will be more to come. I received an ARC copy of this boxset from BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the books above.

[Michele Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adam Dutton is a police dective and Beverly Laborte is a con woman searching for the people responsible for causing her grandmother to lose her antique store which led to her death. She is conning the Forsythes, her grandfather and cousin, who head the NAL, for their actions in the frauds on Antique dealers. In book one, she succedes in distroying them, the son kills his father and shoots himself in the head and is in a coma. Adam is investigating her intentions and follows her as things keep happening around her. There's another murder and new suspects on the horizon. She and Adam, along with his partner Jinks, solve that murder in book two. Book three follows an arson investigation and another murder, along side the prospect that the cousin is coming out of his coma and threatens both she and Adam. The investigation continues and involves the new head of the NAL, the shady mayor who has been involved in all,but cons his way out of being involved. The mayor's cousin, a police officer who is trying to get Adam fired so he can get his job, gets involved with the arson and bombing of Adam's home at the urging of the new NAL head. Surprised happen when Beverly's cousin wakes from his coma. Read the three books set to find the killers in all three cases. Surprise ending or is it an ending?

I received this book free for my review of same.

[Infosleuth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great characters, complex plots. I just devoured these books!

I was a little unsure if I would be able to connect with a con-woman out for revenge but I needn’t have been. Beverly is a wonderful character and we can sympathize with her anger when we learn the reasons that drive her. She turns out to be the perfect foil for by-the-book cop Adam. Their different strengths combine to make them a very effective, and highly entertaining, crime-fighting team. It’s also entertaining to watch the two fight their mutual attraction for each other. There is a slew of colourful secondary characters from the kindly antiques dealer, to the mysterious Mr. X, to the cold, evil members of a crime syndicate.

Each of the three books has a mystery that is solved by the end of that book. However, each book leads into the next as they all have to do with this shadowy group of well-connected, rich crooks. Just who is the mastermind at the top though and what is the end goal? There were plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. You’ll need to read all three for all the pieces to fall into place but once you start reading, you won’t want to put the book down.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Emily Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 3-book mystery set includes: Steal Away, Hide Away, and Burn Away. When Beverly Laborde becomes a con artist to get revenge on the man who shut down her grandmother's antiques business and sent her to an early grave, she meets handsome Vermont police detective, Adam Dutton. As Beverly and Adam come to terms with their growing attraction toward each other, in each of the stories, they make a good team as they dodge bribery, theft, extortion, and murder to settle old scores and to keep each other safe.

This is a fast paced book that will keep the reader interested from start to finish. It is well written and flows easily. The characters are likable which draws the reader deeper into their story. I really enjoyed this box set and look forward to reading more from this author!

[Douglas Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of three books of kind of a heist/con and mystery series. The books are well written, easy to read and just plain fun. I love the characters, both our hero who is trying to do the right thing and our heroine of questionable approach who is always challenging him on just what the right thing is. They make the perfect pair in this delightful mystery series.

Overall, these stories were a lot of fun and I hope to see more from this author.

Highly recommended

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes

[Jeanne Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 5th time I've read books written by BV Lawson; she has done an excellent job at writing a good set of short stories; I can’t wait to read more of her books.

The story lines caught my attention at the very beginning and kept me interested throughout the entire book.

I loved the characters.

I received a free copy of this box set via booksprout and I’m voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 3 book set that will keep you turning the pages in each book to see if you have solved it before you reach the end. Each one is well written and captures your attention with suspense, mystery and intrigue. The characters are strong and well developed and very likable. If you're a mystery lover, this is the set for you.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Janice Drake · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not read this author before but I did thoroughly enjoy the stories and look forward to more. Lawson creates believable characters and her descriptions of the scenes and wilderness make me want to see Vermont for myself. The mysteries were good and the twists sneak up on you. Loved it!

I received this book for free and wished to leave a review.

[Kendall Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unconventional relationship between 2 people on either side of the law, team up to solve a mystery and exact a little revenge. This starts the series of wonderfully written books. Complex, well developed characters and riveting plots burn up the pages. Great chemistry between the characters and fascinating plots make this a very successful series! Not any disappointments in these books!!

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling and gripping read with interesting characters that need to work together. Edge of your seat reading in all three books. All books are entertaining and hard to put down. Good read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Suzanne Bertrand · Rating 2 out of 5]

a bit of a disappointment

I was looking forward to such a strong female character, with the intricacies of a Scott Drayco mystery. Instead, my strong character needs two men ( one an excellent draft man as Mr X) the other a standard cop to try to excel in anything. There is no depth in Dolores or Dorothy? What’s the name already? A, very light reading on the beach, soon forgotten.

[Kindle Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vermont charm

Adam and Beverly are like old friends. We know that they are defined to be together yet realize why they keep bashing heads. Its good to have a mystery intertwined with small town characters and charm.