Hand Of Evil

Ali Reynolds #3

by J.A. Jance

With his hand trapped in the door of a speeding car, a man struggles to remain upright as he's dragged along a deserted stretch of San Juan Road in Phoenix's South Mountain Preserve. It's the perfect place to drive a man to his grave -- literally. Starting with a crime so gruesome even prowling coyotes keep their distance from the remains, a killer begins crisscrossing the Southwest on a spree of grisly murders.A hundred miles away, Ali Reynolds is grieving. The newscasting job she once delighted in is gone and so is the philandering husband she loved and thought she knew. When a member of the family who gave Ali a generous scholarship for her education decades earlier suddenly asks her for a meeting, Ali wonders what it can mean. Before she can satisfy her curiosity, though, Ali receives another startling a friend's teenage daughter has disappeared. Ali offers to help, but in doing so, she unknowingly begins a quest that will reveal a deadly ring of secrets, at the center of which stand two undiscriminating killers....

"Hand of Evil" is Jance at her best, weaving a masterful story of suspense that travels over generations, revealing two very different women with the same horrifying secret. Will Ali become a victim herself, or will she escape from a deadly deceit that no amount of security -- financial or emotional -- can cover up?

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

388 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 18, 2007

About the author

Judith Ann Jance is the top 10 New York Times bestselling author of the Joanna Brady series; the J. P. Beaumont series; three interrelated thrillers featuring the Walker family; and Edge of Evil, the first in a series featuring Ali Reynolds. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tucson, Arizona.

Series:
* J.P. Beaumont
* Joanna Brady
* Ali Reynolds
* Walker Family

Reviews

[PamG · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hand of Evil by J. A. Jance is the third book in the Ali Reynolds series. Ali had been a successful television newscaster, but no longer has that job. When a wealthy acquaintance asks for a meeting with her, she agrees. Then she receives a call from her friend Detective Dave Holman whose daughter has disappeared. On top of this, Kip Hogan, a friend of the family, has disappeared with her father’s vehicle.

Jance does a great job of characterization as always. However, Ali came across as arrogant and unlikeable at times. Several mysteries need to be solved and become entangled at times. Family relationships are explored and impact the mysteries. The pacing is somewhat slow in this novel. The motivations were well-drawn and there are a few plot twists and some action scenes, but I wanted more suspense. Additionally, sending someone back into a situation they ran from without understanding why they ran felt wrong.

Overall, this is an entertaining mystery and family drama that filled in a gap in the series for me. This story does have several trigger warnings that should be noted for it.

I received a digital copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date was December 18, 2007.
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My 3.41 rounded to 3 stars review is coming soon.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent story From J A Jance as usual. Sad how some people get stuck in a permanent path that ruins their whole lives. Ali is a likable character who has been through stuff herself. Lots going on in this one and I found it very entertaining even though it tackled some pretty big social issues. Well done!!

[🐥Erica 🐥 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really did not like Ali's character in this book. She came across as very judgmental and arrogant, and I don't remember getting that impression of the character in the 1st two books of the series. When Ali refused to return the diary and instead turned it over to the police with instructions to read it, I put the book down for a few weeks and considered not finishing it. Even though the action proved justified, there didn't seem to be enough evidence leading up to the action to justify the violation of privacy. I eventually decided to finish, but the book got worse. It seemed so inchoate that I wondered if it had been ghost written. I've not read enough J.A. Jance to really know the style of writing, but I've read through the 5th J.P. Beaumont and I've not picked up on any oddities in that series so far. I probably won't read another Ali Reynolds.

[Maven_Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hand of Evil by J. A. Jance – Review

Hand of Evil by J. A. Jance is the third novel in the Ali Reynolds suspense series, weaving a dark, gritty mystery that stretches across the American Southwest with chilling precision. The story opens with a macabre crime in the South Mountain Preserve near Phoenix, where a man’s hand is trapped in a car door and he is dragged to death along a deserted road, a violent act so grisly even coyotes avoid it. Meanwhile, former TV journalist Ali Reynolds is back in Arizona, still grieving her fractured marriage and lost career when a long‑ago benefactor summons her, and a friend’s teenage daughter disappears, pulling Ali into a tangled investigation that uncovers deeply buried secrets and two relentless killers crossing state lines. As Ali delves deeper, the killings and disappearances converge in ways that call every assumption into question, making this both a fast‑paced thriller and a psychological puzzle.

From my perspective, what kept me fully engaged was how Jance blended personal vulnerability with suspenseful plot turns: Ali is not just chasing clues, she’s navigating loss, loyalty, and the unexpected impact of her own past while danger creeps ever closer. The layered storytelling, with intersecting mysteries and characters whose motives blur between ally and suspect, pulled me through each chapter with growing tension and real emotional stakes. While at times the multiple subplots felt dense, the way Jance revealed truth and deception against the stark Southwestern landscape made the journey feel richly textured and thrilling.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

[Sfdreams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book of JA Jance's Ali Reynolds series. I had forgotten about this series, but I have JA Jance marked as a favorite author at the library, and they automatically reserve all her books for me. I don't know why I forgot about this series, because I REALLY enjoyed this book! (As I tend to do with ALL her books--although I thought until I read this book that her Joanna Brady mysteries were my favorite!)

Ali Reynolds is a former news broadcaster that in the first book was fired from her job, and divorced from her husband. She went home to Arizona to be near her parents. As a process of her coping with the turmoil in her life, she starts a blog: cutlooseblog.com where she can vent, and in the process gains many fans and friends.

In this current book, she helps a friend, local homicide detective Dave Holman locate his missing teenage daughter, and in doing so becomes enbroiled in a local homicide case.

If you've never read JA Jance's books, I suggest you do so!! She is one of my all-time favorite authors, and her books are always a great read.

[Jerry B · Rating 3 out of 5]

We're huge J.A. Jance fans, having read every single one of her Beaumont and Brady books, as well as her non-series thriller novels. When this new series started, featuring Ali Reynolds, we immediately saw it as an attempt to feature a more "modern" leading lady, who spends much of her time on the internet, blogging and so forth, the descriptions of which we soon found tiresome. While the mysteries per se were decent enough, as one would surely expect of veteran Jance, to be blunt we just did not find ourselves relating at all to Ali, which is perhaps unusual given our fondness for Joanna Brady and many other leading ladies across the mystery/thriller spectrum. Having pretty much felt the same way about "Edge of Evil", the debut novel in this set, we've decided to pass on the future offerings featuring this character...

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third in the Ali Reynolds series. Hand of Evil picks up pretty much where the second book left off. Ali's ex - husband's estate is being settled and Ali is still coming to terms with everything that happened. Out of the blue, Ali is contacted by an old friend that set up a scholarship fund for Ali years ago. Ali agrees to meet with her not knowing why she's been summoned.
Ali has been asked to read a diary that proves her old friend was an incest victim. But before she can pursue those issues, two things happen that keeps Ali on the move.
First, Kip, a man Ali's father is helping to put his life back together, disappears. Second, Ali's good friend, Dave, gets a phone call from his ex - wife telling him their daughter has run away from home. When Crystal calls Dave, he is hours away from his daughter's location, so he ask Ali to pick her up. Ali quickly learns that Crystal is a very troubled teenager. Crystal is in deep trouble and Ali tries to unravel the mystery.
Ali still blogs, but not as much as she did in the second book. I'm glad the author toned that down a little this time around. I was a little slow warming up to this series, but after reading this one, I find myself looking forward to future installments. Overall a B+

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hand of Evil by J.A. Jance.

This was my first Jance book so I am new to this author and this series.

I found the story had some parts that kept me interested in continuing on and many that were totally unnecessary. The unnecessary parts made focusing on the issue of the identity of the murderer pushed to the back of my mind. The beginning of the story and the ending I found exciting...the middle not so much.

[Charles Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

THREE STARS

Was a little impressed with this first time author for me. The story was a fast past read basically involving incest and murder and some stupid detectives who probably could’nt find a hole in a box. Since I jumped right into this third part of the series it will take me to read another book in this series to embrace the main character Ali Reynolds and the authors writing style.

[L Cherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely loved!!!!
This series covers the blogger, Ali Reynolds, and the unexpected murders that keep happening around her. The story was great and the characters were unforgettable. I look forward to #4 in the series.

[Chade66 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm so sorry to give any Jance book a one star review. I love Amanda Brady and JP Beamont (sp?) but I can't stand the whiny, poor little rich girl, judgmental Ali Reynolds. This is my third attempt at a Reynolds book, but I can't get behind an uber rich woman living in Sedona, especially being so harsh with a kid that really needs help, not to be called a prostitute, especially when its not her own kid.

And let's talk about texting the bad guy and leading him straight to the hospital where the guy he already tried to kill is unprotected because she's running around like a fool instead of doing what she needs to do. Yeah, just no.

[Cathie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another mystery whodunit where the woman (an ordinary citizen) can't keep her nose out of other people's business, and plants herself right dab in the middle of not one, but 2 different murder investigations (with a total of 8 bodies ~ at least I think it was 8; I stopped counting!) plus a child molestation case.
The book kept me interested right up to about 3/4 of the way through and by that time I had invested enough energy and time in the read that I wanted to finish it.

I finally was ready to chuck it, I rolled my eyes, muttered "no way"; thank gawd the ending was there.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read, but not great. Was not that crazy about the main character, Ali, but the side characters I liked a lot, especially the crazy old rich lady. Ali writes a daily blog, and has a lot of followers, and one of them is an old lady who is the daughter of a benefactor of Ali's, who paid for he college expenses. But all this the blog and the rich lady are side stories to another story of a man who worked for her father, Bob, as a handy man and is missing. This makes things a bit hard to follow at times. But still worth the read if you have the time.

[Kerry · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would've liked to have given this book a higher rating but the writing . . . ugh! The dialogue was just painfully, wretchedly, horribly bad. And the author has the annoying habit of repeating herself, saying the same thing in nearly the exact same way just a short time later as if it were a whole new thought. I sometimes wondered if she had short term memory loss!

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really did like this installment of the series. If I had a complaint it would be that there were several times when an adult should have been notified about what was going on with the minor child. Ali makes decisions sometimes that leave you scratching your head. She also does insert herself frequently into things that are not her business. I am looking forward to reading the next installment.

[Betsy Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoy the Ali Reynolds books. Like the ay they are written - both character and story development. I like not knowing the final twist until the last chapter or two. I will definitely keep reading J.A. Jance!

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE the Ali Reynolds books, and this one was even better than the first two. Fast paced and well written, fun to read.

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good mystery! I didn't figure out "who did it" until just before it was revealed in the book. Amazing!

[Alma Alfaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This was a great read if you’re into mystery/crime novels! It had great plot twists that I want expecting at all, there’s multiple crimes happening at once that will keep you entertained 😬
The story does have several trigger warnings that you need to be aware of before reading,

Characters:

💻📝🔫 Ali Reynolds - To be quite honest annoyed me a LOT of times, the way she was handling the situations was totally with no logic what so ever, she is a mom and done of the things that were happening I didn’t understood why she wasn’t speaking up until she was pretty much forced to and the things that she could of just let go she kept training to insert herself🙄🙄
She did kind of redeemed herself at the end but the whole time I wanted to get into the book and slap her with some common sense 👋🏼🤬

👧🏼📱🧑‍🧒Crystal: ugh poor girl, I felt so bad for her, she was truly lost and I hostility feel she didn’t know better, she is a 13 year with literally nowhere to turn for help,
There was some parts that were too much I had to literally take a break and count to ten, sometimes she was a brat and doing things that just kept putting her in danger but again she is just a kid. 😔

👵🏻🔪🦜Arabella: There’s literally no words for her, she was evil but I feel like she was justified 😩😩

One thing that wasn’t great was how many characters this book had, I understand that the crimes were happening in different cities but it was a little bit hard to follow who belongs where with who 😣

*****

One thing that I want that I want to communicate with this book is that it talks about how easy is for the wrong person to lure kids to them, if you have kids please make sure you’re keeping an eye on them, you never know who is watching them and what their intentions are. Sometimes we get caught up on “they need their privacy” or “she/he is smart” that we don’t really pay attention😥

If you or anyone is going through anything like this please reach out for help, if you don’t feel safe with the people around you, talk to the police or a neighbor a friend, you’re not alone! Ask for help 🫶🏼

Trigger warnings:
- Sexual abuse
- Family issues
- Murder / Violence
- Child abuse
- PTSD

This was a giveaway by Gallery publishing but it is 100% my honest review 📝

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ali Reynolds is summoned to the Ashcroft residence, a family that gave her a scholarship that allowed her to go to college. Mrs. Ashcroft is being extorted by a relative and she wants Ali to help to write the story. At the same time Ali's friend's daughter disappears. Ali is dragged into both events that puts her in danger.

[Momma-Bear · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good reading. Entertaining and suspenseful with fast twist and turns that keep you reading. Enjoyed it so much that I'm starting her next one right away: Cruel Intent

[Pam Herrmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ali is dealing with a lot of changes. Her husband died and she found out he was cheating on her. She lost her tv newscaster job. Then she receives a message from the family that gave her a college scholarship that sends her world into a tailspin with murder, kidnapping, arson and underage sex. I was surprised there were actually two story lines that connected through lots of twists and turns.

[Zoann · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book suffers from an all-too-common malady--not being able to sustain quality over time and with repetition. I cared more about the characters than the plot, which is good for a series but not good if one is just looking for a thriller and a little escape.

[Maurean · Rating 3 out of 5]

An engaging soft-boiled mystery. Apparently the third in a series, it held up well on its own. I really enjoyed the pacing, and the style of the writing, worth the reading time.

[Nolan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has one of the most memorable prologues you’ll read. You’re flung into a circumstance in which a driver of a car shuts his passenger’s hand in the door of a moving vehicle. The car drags the body attached to the hand; the body is outside the vehicle. As the car drives down roads and across speed bumps, that body becomes something that resembles raw hamburger. It is a creepy memorable prologue by every measure.

Alison (Ali) Reynolds lives in a small Arizona community with her adult son and near her parents. Her folks run the local café. She, in previous books, lost her job and her philandering husband. She gained his money, but she must use some of that to care for a woman with whom he had an affair and the child that resulted from that affair. Since she’s not on camera anymore in Los Angeles, she turns to blogging. When the call comes in that she needs to meet with an aging woman in her community, she is surprised. The woman’s mother gave Ali a scholarship to study journalism. That scholarship made Ali’s news career possible. Now the surviving daughter of the wealthy family that funded Ali’s college education wants her to appear at the old home.

Ali learns that the old woman’s nephew wants her dead, and the old woman insists that Ali take possession of a journal that the woman kept as a nine-year-old. The journal details the sexual abuse the girl experienced at the hand of a stepbrother. This is something Ali understands all too well. Her friend, Dave, a local cop, has a stepdaughter who has fled her Las Vegas home and has given a blow job to a middle-aged driver in return for a ride to Arizona. She just wants to live with her dad.

These plots come together nicely, but you may predict a bit early how this comes out. So, while this may not be the strongest book in the series, it’s not worth giving up on the series. I suspect subsequent books get better.

[Percontation Points · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the second of Ms. Jance's novels that I've read. I was just about ready to not finish it, but I pressed on anyway.

I think that my main problem with this book, along with the other book of hers, Fire and Ice, was that there was way too much going on. I don't mind murder mystery/suspense novels where we get a peek into the live of whoever the hero is, because it makes the protagonist seem like an average person. (Oh my gosh, Ali likes sweet rolls a coffee! I do, too!)
What I don't like is when there's so many sub-plots going on, and at times, I forget that certain plots even existed.

The prologue of the book starts out with a man being murdered and then a woman finding him the next morning. Okay, neat. Murder mystery.
Lol, guess again, because now, we're going to get into the head of this sad, middle-aged woman who was first fired from her job, and then her soon-to-be ex-husband was brutally murdered. ...Um, okay? And since the book spent so much time focusing on Ali and the multiple stories that were going on around her, by the time that the book bothered to get back to the murder that was introduced on the very first page, I'd completely forgotten all about it.

But, somewhere around the half-way point, things started to slowly come together, and while everything (more or less) connected at the end, I still stand by my original statement that this book had waaaay too many sub-plots going on: the murder/crazy old lady, the story with Kip and his family, Crystal and the two pedophiles... And those were only just the ones that might be considered "suspense". The story was also packed full of little, personal dramas, like a really minor sub-story about an old lady that Ali knew who had cancer.

All in all, it wasn't a horrible read, but I'm not so sure if I'm going to be picking up any more of Ms. Jance's works again in the future.

[Genie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book in the series featuring former L.A. TV news anchor Ali Reynolds. Ali is in a bit of a funk as she recovers from the murder of her ex-husband. She has a good support group; her parents, her son and her old high school friend, police detective Dave Holman. Out of the blue, wealthy recluse Arabella Ashcroft sent a request to Ali asking her to meet with her. Since Arabella’s mother was responsible for bestowing Ali with a much needed college scholarship, Ali felt obligated to agree to the visit. Arabella has been reading Ali's blog, cutlooseblog.com, and wants Ali's help in writing a memoir. During the meeting Arabella claims her childhood was troubled and indicated that her late stepbrother, Bill, was the major cause of the problem. Bill’s son is unhappy about her decision and has made threats on her life if she follows through with writing the book. In order to explain the issues Arabella wants to discuss, she asks Ali to read her diary. Ali soon discovers a tale filled with sexual abuse and murder. As a sub-plot, Dave's daughter Crystal disappears from his ex-wife’s Las Vegas home. Dave and Ali are soon on Crystal’s trail. As it turns out, Crystal has her own tale to relate which leads to the trail of a couple of child molesters whose actions were enabled through use of the internet. Both plots lead to psychopaths who have left a number of victims in their wake. This is not the best of J.A. Jance's work but is an OK read. It helps if you have read the two previous books of the series.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this, the third of the Ali Reynolds series, the theme is child predators. In two separate cases that Ali is involved with, a child predator is involved. One is with a young girl, recently taken advantage of, and the other is an older woman who was victimized in her youth and illustrates the terrible consequences of what happened to her because of her circumstances. Also involved in all of this is a serial killer who is paying back all the people who have offended him in some way.

Since there really is no connection between the three cases except for a few coincidental people, it was kind of hard to keep track of, and I kept wondering, "What does this have to do with the guy who was dragged to death on the first page?" You eventually find out, but it was like there were three books in one. Eventually it all gets wrapped up and there is closure, but a lot of it felt like it was kind of invented as a way to clean up the loose ends.

I want to read the whole series, but if the next one doesn't feel right, I'm giving up. Mostly it was okay.

[Rayni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I jukmped into the Ali Reynolds books when I unknowingly picked up #4 in this series. I liked it & wanted to start at the beginning. I went to the library & only found this in the Ali Reynolds series.

This was a fantastic read. I was so involved in the book for once, I didn't go to the end of the book to see how it ended. Of course, since this is #3 & I had already read #4, I knew a couple of things from the get-go, but I HAD to find out. I stayed up til 4 a.m. reading & then had to get up at 7 a.m. for work. I know now why I stopped reading. I can't put a book down, if it's good, once I've started.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great!

I just love J A Jance. this series with Ali Reynolds is really clever, Ali is not a detective, or a criminal just a good person who seems to get caught up in these incredible mysteries. I love how this author is able to mix several mysteries in one book, it keeps you on your toes.
Being that I'm such a fan I'd probably never rate anything of hers under a 5, I think you should give one of her books a try.
The Ali Reynolds are kind of a series probably best read in order, or should I say, more fun read in order but they are stand alone books too.
you'll be glad you made the purchase!