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A Mountain Mystery #4
A Town Divided
LUKE MAXWELL BOOK #1
On a blustery autumn evening, Luke Maxwell leaves his Ridgeview, North Carolina law office to find his elder partner, Glen Perkins, facedown in the parking lot. He’d been fatally shot in the chest. Other than two 9mm shell casings, the sheriff’s deputies find no clues at the scene.
Perkins had been representing landowners of the historic mountain community in a heated battle against the Department of Transportation. The DOT is seizing property along a proposed highway expansion, connecting the town to larger cities. Rumors circulate that powerful men benefiting from the construction project are behind Glen Perkins’ death.
The investigation takes the first of many turns when the murder weapon is discovered in a construction dumpster two blocks from the crime scene. The gun is registered to Aaron Perkins, Glen’s ne’er-do-well son.
Luke is not convinced of Aaron’s guilt. Along with Kari Watkins, the firm’s feisty paralegal, they become entangled in Aaron’s defense. Both are determined to find the real killer–unaware of the danger their search will bring.
On a blustery autumn evening, Luke Maxwell leaves his Ridgeview, North Carolina law office to find his elder partner, Glen Perkins, facedown in the parking lot. He’d been fatally shot in the chest. Other than two 9mm shell casings, the sheriff’s deputies find no clues at the scene.
Perkins had been representing landowners of the historic mountain community in a heated battle against the Department of Transportation. The DOT is seizing property along a proposed highway expansion, connecting the town to larger cities. Rumors circulate that powerful men benefiting from the construction project are behind Glen Perkins’ death.
The investigation takes the first of many turns when the murder weapon is discovered in a construction dumpster two blocks from the crime scene. The gun is registered to Aaron Perkins, Glen’s ne’er-do-well son.
Luke is not convinced of Aaron’s guilt. Along with Kari Watkins, the firm’s feisty paralegal, they become entangled in Aaron’s defense. Both are determined to find the real killer–unaware of the danger their search will bring.
Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2020
75 people are currently reading
692 people want to read
About the author
D.R. Shoultz
19 books125 followersAn author of mystery/crime novels, D.R. (Donn) Shoultz hails from Delavan, a small town in central Illinois, but has resided in the Southeastern U.S. most of his adult life. Donn and his wife Claudia have recently moved from their longtime residence in the Carolina Mountains to a home atop the Cumberland Plateau in Crossville, Tennessee. Claudia continues to share her considerable editing experience in shaping Donn's novels. In their free time, they both enjoy traveling and hiking nearby wooded trails with their dog, Milo.
Donn began writing fiction more than a decade ago following a sales and marketing career that took him across the world. His early work featured Miles Stevens, a time-traveling CIA agent, sent back from 2050 and his home in Langley, Virginia to intercept historic tragedies already in the history books.
Donn’s recent focus is adding stories to his Mountain Mystery Series. In each Mountain Mystery, tension rises quickly. The mystery (usually a murder) makes an early appearance. Hometown heroes spring into action, searching for clues, often competing with local law enforcement as they move closer and closer to danger. The stories are set in fictitious mountain communities with the Blue Ridge Mountains as a backdrop. Clues are sprinkled throughout with twists keeping readers off balance. These books are great for weekend reads, offering crisp, fast-moving chapters and up-all-night suspense.
If you’re looking for a mystery series with legs, this is it. Your favorite sleuths from the initial stories return in future novels, making them a series within the Mountain Mystery collection of novels.
In order of publication, his books include:
Miles Stevens Series
* Melting Sand
* Cyber One
* Gone Viral
Mountain Mystery Series
* At the River's Edge (Emily Edwards #1)
* Butcher Road (Jack Fowler #1)
* Fallen from Sight (Ryan Nelson #1)
* A Town Divided (Luke Maxwell #1)
* A Town in Fear (Luke Maxwell #2)
* Dark River (Emily Edwards #2)
* Road to Justice (Jack Fowler #2)
* Rising River (Emily Edwards #3
* Border Town (Luke Maxwell #3))
Donn's short stories, which he interweaves between writing novels, are an eclectic collection of tales looking at the lives of lovers, schemers, everyday people, and even pets. Each includes a twist and is designed to bring a tear and/or a smile to the reader. His stories have received national contest recognition, including from Writer's Digest magazine. His short story collections include:
* It Goes On
* Most Men
You can find more about Donn and his writing at DRShoultz.com.
Donn began writing fiction more than a decade ago following a sales and marketing career that took him across the world. His early work featured Miles Stevens, a time-traveling CIA agent, sent back from 2050 and his home in Langley, Virginia to intercept historic tragedies already in the history books.
Donn’s recent focus is adding stories to his Mountain Mystery Series. In each Mountain Mystery, tension rises quickly. The mystery (usually a murder) makes an early appearance. Hometown heroes spring into action, searching for clues, often competing with local law enforcement as they move closer and closer to danger. The stories are set in fictitious mountain communities with the Blue Ridge Mountains as a backdrop. Clues are sprinkled throughout with twists keeping readers off balance. These books are great for weekend reads, offering crisp, fast-moving chapters and up-all-night suspense.
If you’re looking for a mystery series with legs, this is it. Your favorite sleuths from the initial stories return in future novels, making them a series within the Mountain Mystery collection of novels.
In order of publication, his books include:
Miles Stevens Series
* Melting Sand
* Cyber One
* Gone Viral
Mountain Mystery Series
* At the River's Edge (Emily Edwards #1)
* Butcher Road (Jack Fowler #1)
* Fallen from Sight (Ryan Nelson #1)
* A Town Divided (Luke Maxwell #1)
* A Town in Fear (Luke Maxwell #2)
* Dark River (Emily Edwards #2)
* Road to Justice (Jack Fowler #2)
* Rising River (Emily Edwards #3
* Border Town (Luke Maxwell #3))
Donn's short stories, which he interweaves between writing novels, are an eclectic collection of tales looking at the lives of lovers, schemers, everyday people, and even pets. Each includes a twist and is designed to bring a tear and/or a smile to the reader. His stories have received national contest recognition, including from Writer's Digest magazine. His short story collections include:
* It Goes On
* Most Men
You can find more about Donn and his writing at DRShoultz.com.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 5, 2020
I won this book in a goodreads drawing.
A small town lawyer is murdered, and his law partner has to take over the practice, and find the killer. It seems the firm was representing landowners against the use of eminent domain for a highway project. The primary suspect of the murder is the victim's son, but he might have an alibi. Then someone else is murdered.
Passable.
A small town lawyer is murdered, and his law partner has to take over the practice, and find the killer. It seems the firm was representing landowners against the use of eminent domain for a highway project. The primary suspect of the murder is the victim's son, but he might have an alibi. Then someone else is murdered.
Passable.
June 25, 2020
D.R. Shoultz has done it again! His new murder mystery, A Town Divided, is such a great read. I was so honored to receive an “advanced review copy” from the author and enjoyed every minute reading it. The list of “who done it” candidates grows as the story develops. Just when I thought I had identified the murderer, D.R. threw in a new twist....kept me guessing til the end. That’s what I call a good story! Put this book on your reading list and read it soon. Can’t wait for the next book in his Mountain Mystery Series.
June 24, 2020
An enjoyable mystery. Once again, D.R.Shoultz has written an easy to read mystery that keeps you guessing. Without the blood and guts and gore that many writers feel they need to use, Shoultz grabs your attention from the first chapter to the last. Although I term this an easy to read book, make no mistake - the twists and turns and personalities will keep you reading “just one more page”. The interaction between lawyers and lawmen make you think about how challenging their jobs are, and how interconnected the professions can be. All in all, a great summer read.
July 12, 2020
Hiding in plain sight
Greed is a terrible thing. Luke has come back home to take over in a law practice his father was a partner in, after his death. Small town not many big cases, until the DOT want to put a new road in. By doing this, land must be confiscated and the town is divided. Luke's partner, takes on the lawsuit to stop the process? Next thing you know, Luke finds him dead in the parking lot. This can't be happening. Follow along, as one thing leads to another, and like any good mystery, you don't expect the ending.
Greed is a terrible thing. Luke has come back home to take over in a law practice his father was a partner in, after his death. Small town not many big cases, until the DOT want to put a new road in. By doing this, land must be confiscated and the town is divided. Luke's partner, takes on the lawsuit to stop the process? Next thing you know, Luke finds him dead in the parking lot. This can't be happening. Follow along, as one thing leads to another, and like any good mystery, you don't expect the ending.
July 21, 2020
I won this book in a giveaway.
This one started off as pretty good mystery thriller, but for me it lost steam toward the end. I found it to be a predictable story and didn't keep my interest so well. I was really enjoying it initially, however.
It has a unique style that's a bit like a P.I. mystery but not quite. It has kind of a slow pace with some decent action mixed in. It's an interesting story that struggled to keep me engaged to the end.
This one started off as pretty good mystery thriller, but for me it lost steam toward the end. I found it to be a predictable story and didn't keep my interest so well. I was really enjoying it initially, however.
It has a unique style that's a bit like a P.I. mystery but not quite. It has kind of a slow pace with some decent action mixed in. It's an interesting story that struggled to keep me engaged to the end.
July 21, 2020
A really enjoyable book. I have read and enjoyed each of the books in A Mountain Mystery Series. D.R.'s characters are always interesting and relatable, his writing style is engaging and keeps me reading. This one had me guessing right to the end! Looking forward to #5.
August 20, 2020
Quite an interesting story of problems a small town must weather when progress is knocking on their doorsteps. Characters were well developed and depth was necessary to the realism that the book entailed. Luke, son of a small law office partner, returns home after his father dies to replace him. Luke left behind a larger career in a big town in order to see what the status of the office was. He must decide if he wants a small town life or return to bigger things. After his arrival, he discovers that the firm is handling several fires at once and he will jump in feet first and swim. After his mentor and father's law partner is murdered outside the office door, Luke suddenly sees the depth of town divisions over the land owners and DOT highway decisions. Representation of the landowners fighting the project are pooled against the developers in deep betrayals, murders, financial loss and gain. Luke must fence his clients into an unbreakable unit in order to succeed but he seems doomed from the actions of the characters themselves. Hints of payouts, spoiled son, aggressive law enforcement, and a new lawyer to break in become almost overwhelming for Luke and Kari, the firms paralegal and friend. Very twisting plot the will leave reader attempting to solve the villainy until last chapter. This was a free book to read and review. I have no connection to anything involved. I like the book, the plot kept me interested from first to last page. I had to reappraise some of the characters several times and was still fascinated by the end.
August 30, 2020
Won this book in the Goodreads Giveaways.
The story is about a lawyer, Luke Maxwell, who comes back to his small home town to work in the small law firm that his father and another lawyer had established. His father died awhile back and now the other founder has been murdered in the parking lot. Luke is struggling with his friend's death and doesn't know if he can keep the law firm going. He doesn't know anything about the partner's cases and it gets dumped on him. The big case involves some land owners fighting an eminent domain case where the state is trying to take their land for a highway enlargment. The partner's son is accused of the murder and Luke is trying to help him but he is not being cooperative.
Then another murder occurs, that of one of the land owners. Luke is trying to figure out who is the killer while juggling his other cases. His secretary/assistant knows another lawyer who can help and this person joins the firm.
There are lots of suspects including family members, people opposed to the highway project & others for it, a shady construction contractor and a politician. A P.I. working for the contractor is also involved. Several chapters are interspersed with what is happening with the contractor and the politician.
The story had an ok pace, the end seemed a bit forced.
The story is about a lawyer, Luke Maxwell, who comes back to his small home town to work in the small law firm that his father and another lawyer had established. His father died awhile back and now the other founder has been murdered in the parking lot. Luke is struggling with his friend's death and doesn't know if he can keep the law firm going. He doesn't know anything about the partner's cases and it gets dumped on him. The big case involves some land owners fighting an eminent domain case where the state is trying to take their land for a highway enlargment. The partner's son is accused of the murder and Luke is trying to help him but he is not being cooperative.
Then another murder occurs, that of one of the land owners. Luke is trying to figure out who is the killer while juggling his other cases. His secretary/assistant knows another lawyer who can help and this person joins the firm.
There are lots of suspects including family members, people opposed to the highway project & others for it, a shady construction contractor and a politician. A P.I. working for the contractor is also involved. Several chapters are interspersed with what is happening with the contractor and the politician.
The story had an ok pace, the end seemed a bit forced.
January 31, 2021
A good solid mystery in the Smokey Mts of North Carolina. This is the 4th book in the series but I read it as a stand alone and it was just fine. I liked the lawyer Luke and his paralegal Kari. Nicely interwoven stories with a satisfying ending.
July 8, 2022
Review of A Town Divided
I won this book from Goodreads after reading I am to review. This is the fourth book in the series. After reading this book I will have to read the other books. The town divided is about a highway that is coming through town.
I won this book from Goodreads after reading I am to review. This is the fourth book in the series. After reading this book I will have to read the other books. The town divided is about a highway that is coming through town.
July 26, 2020
What a great book! DR Shoultz did it again! I read the book in two settings and found it a hard read to put down. He always delivers a surprise at the end!! Keep them coming DR!!
August 30, 2020
An interesting story about murders and solving the cases.
February 17, 2022
Good
A book where a small town law office suffered the loss with the death of one of the lawyers who was murdered in their parking lote.
A book where a small town law office suffered the loss with the death of one of the lawyers who was murdered in their parking lote.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews