Cold Black Hearts

by Jeffrey J. Mariotte

While investigating a spate of recent murders on the land once known as New Dominion, the site of a massacre back in 1933, former police detective Annie O'Brien is haunted by the tragedies that occurred there as evil attempts to rise from the ashes. Original.

Genres: Horror, Thriller

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 26, 2009

About the author

Also writes as Jeff Mariotte

Jeffrey J. Mariotte is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than 70 novels, including the Cody Cavanaugh western series, historical western epic Blood and Gold: The Legend of Joaquin Murrieta (with Peter Murrieta), thrillers Empty Rooms and The Devil's Bait, supernatural thrillers Season of the Wolf, Missing White Girl, River Runs Red, and Cold Black Hearts, horror epic The Slab, and the Dark Vengeance teen horror quartet. With wife and writing partner Marsheila (Marcy) Rockwell, he wrote the sf/horror/thriller 7 SYKOS and Mafia III: Plain of Jars, the authorized prequel to the bestselling video game. His most recent release is the short story collection Byrd's Luck & Other Stories, comprising five "traditional" Western tales and five horror-Western stories, two of them brand-new for this edition.

He also writes occasional nonfiction, short fiction (some of which is collected in Nine Frights), and comic books, including the long-running horror/Western comic book series Desperadoes and graphic novels Fade to Black and Zombie Cop. With Marsheila Rockwell, he has published several short stories and is working on more. He has worked in virtually every aspect of the book business, as a writer, editor, marketing executive, and bookseller.

Learn more at www.jeffmariotte.com, and follow him at https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyJMari... and @JeffMariotte on Twitter.

Also writes as Jeff Mariotte

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well told horror/suspense novel set in a small town south of Lordsburg, a place I pass through almost every week on my commute to work.

[Pamela Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure how to review this. At times it was so riveting that I was looking up Mariotte's Amazon page so I could order the next in the series. Other times, I felt a little lost, as if I were watching a really good moving that had scenes that were dropped in. Necessary scenes, mind you, but scenes were I was missing pieces from.

My real rating is: First third of the book could be a 6 - really. Mariotte drew me in, engaged me, and delivered.

Middle of the book: Okay, dragged a little, not much.

Last third: I wanted more. I wanted to spend time in the village from the past. I wanted to know the people there. I wanted to experience it. When the old man is discovered in house, I want more reaction from the heroine. I wanted raw, naked fear. Then, from the family, I wanted a bit more angst about the life they were forced to live.

[William · Rating 1 out of 5]

Let me start with, I would not have finished this book if I had not bought it on audible. Giving your MC a disability they must deal with and overcome is good. But not for ten chapters. She loses her hearing or part of it, and it takes her 10 chapters to recover and who cares if you start to like her doctor. There is no pay off with that chapter. Its poor pacing and nothing in those chapters couldn’t have been done in a few pages and move on to nothing. I do not care and have no reason to care if this guy was innocent and needs out of prison or not. Nothing about him made me sympathize with his issue. The same with the people being killed in the town. This should have been my kind of book because the real reason the killings was to appease a demon, but the set didn’t pay off. I was so disappointed and again I would have DNF if I hadn’t paid for it. Do not recommend.

[B.J. Kurtz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an intriguing read. The beginning was a little slow, but it is a fun, quick read for anyone interested in a little paranormal with their murder mystery.

[Ben Wand · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book's premise was interesting to me - promising plot-twists and a creepy environment. Cold Black Hearts absolutely fulfilled this promise.

The book does start out with a slow build, but it still kept things interesting, and the author sprinkles in tidbits that fill out the story and does an awesome job of building suspense until the climactic final 100 pages, when things really pick up and the twists come fast and furious.

The cool thing about the twists and turns this story takes is that they don't appear forced or contrived.

I really enjoyed this book. It moved at a good pace and was suspenseful. The creepy, eerie feeling persisted throughout and the last 100 pages or so were almost amazing.

Excellent book, memorable story. Looking forward to reading more of Mariotte's stuff.

[Ruby · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I always try to find positive aspects of every book I read, I simply couldn’t do it with this book. I found it hard to like anything about this book. The plot seemed so interesting at first, but once I began reading, I realized that I really didn’t care what happened to the people of New Dominion, nor to the main character Annie O’Brien. There was not one character that made me want to hope that the townspeople could be saved, and I felt that the writer gave Annie a “gift” that seemed so over-researched (or maybe under-researched?) that it felt phony and stiff. Maybe I missed something, or maybe it is simply a case of this not being my type of read, but I would not recommend this book to anyone, even those who like this type of book.

[Sherry · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel that the author in this book didn't live up to the reviews he recieved for his other titles. The scenes in the storyline seemed jerky and there didn't seem to be a free flowing plot.

I did appreciate the main character Annie O'Brien and I loved the setting of the story in the American southwest desert and the plot did show original and individual thought. I will read more from this author but I don't think I would reccommend this particular title.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an intriguing mix of a police procedural and supernatural mystery. My problems were with the pacing. There were long stretches of not much happening, followed by hints of great things to come. The lead-up to the ending really had me engaged, but the last 10% was full of long expositional monologues that were very convoluted. Overall an entertaining read, but the "arrangements" (to put it in terms of music) didn't totally work for me.

[Mommacat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cold Black Hearts marks the end to The Border Trilogy. What an exciting finish it was. Something is going on in New Mexico and I don't think I want to be around those parts...reading about it is just fine with me. There's no turning back once you start this thriller - the writing is tight and intense, flowing from one chapter to the next like that river his first book is named for.

A highly recommended read!

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had no idea what to expect with this book, so it was a bit surprising. Starts out as a good, suspenseful murder mystery but morphs into something so nuts that by the end I thought someone had slipped me some LSD. If you're into supernatural jazz, then you'll like it.

[Dan Beaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cold Black Hearts was the first Jeff Mariotte book I read, but it certainly wasn't the last. Jeff has excellent pacing and great plots in all of his books. If you haven't discovered him yet, you shld.

[Cindy Kirkland]

I just don't know.