Alive After Friday by Rod Hoisington

Reviewed from print book

Blockbuster beginning to this latest of the adventures of Sandy Reid. Blocked in by an SUV and a truck, her little Miata convertible doesn't have a chance, nor does Sandy. She realizes too late that this isn't just a traffic jam. She is being abducted, blindfolded and ducktaped across her mouth. Meanwhile, her law partner and boyfriend Chip, are waiting for her to celebrate winning a very large lawsuit, $400,000 in fact, half of which is coming to Sandy. On the other hand, the abductors want to relieve her of all of that money.

Taken to the swamps of Florida, kneeling in muck still unable to see or speak, with a gun against the back of her head, Sandy is just waiting for the final moment. But it isn't her that will be killed if she doesn't get them the money, it is Chip and it is within two days. Rod Hoisington certainly knows how to get the reader's attention.

On her release from her captors it's off and running for Sandy as she frantically tries to round up the money with her law partner, co-recipient of the award, while at the same time trying to solve who "Dick and Jane", who take great care to not be seen, are. Of course, Sandy is one tough cookie, and she is determined to solve the crimes of abduction and extortion, but finds herself blocked in every direction. But getting the money and placing it in almost plain view is not the best plan in her mind, and soon it is clear it was the worst possible plan. Because there is now a dead body and the money is gone.

Warned off from investigating as usual, of course she will not leave it up to the law! This is too important, if "Dick and Jane" didn't get the money, Chip has only hours to live. Where first there seem to be no leads, soon she racks up too many in her panic. With her lawyer partner and friend Martin trying to keep her safe, he has his hands mighty full.

Rod Hoisington knows how to keep us on the edge of our seats. A unexpected and sudden loss, some hilarious confusion, dead bodies, and a little help from the police, all are packaged into a bundle of too many strings, but with her cop friends, Martin her professional partner, almost diametrically different in character, and her own out-of-the-box methods, one finally pulls the right string. Great surprise ending! Are there changes in store? I couldn't put the book down, and it's not often that I will read a book at one go. Intriguing 5th installment of the Sandy Reid series, one of the best.

Chasing Suspect 3 by Rod Hoisington

Our feisty protagonist Sandy Reid is back and about to face her most frustrating case yet. Excited to take on her first murder defense case, she is happy as a lark, but the sun sets too soon on this lark's happiness.

First she learns that faithful lover Chip may not have been so faithful.  She has found an intimate diary that describes far more about sex than she wants to know...especially since it is supposedly the extremely personal diary of Chip's "ex-girlfriend." From this point on everything goes downhill like a toboggan on ice, and learning that the woman of the diary is the sister-in-law of her client is the snow-bank Sandy crashes into. She finds it hard to focus on anything else.

In her usual go-for-it, sink or swim manner, Sandy is tackling a case that seems to commit itself to failing. Her client acts completely unaware of the trouble she is in, and half the time doesn't even appear to listen to what Sandy is asking or saying. Will this woman, in the midst of divorce with the deceased, be credible? Every time she opens her mouth something completely off-the-wall comes out. Is she delusional? Is she even aware that she is the prime suspect, possibly the only suspect?

Rod Hoisington has applied his heroine to a complicated plot and well-written story that covers more ground than one might expect; the case thought so simple swings around at a wild pace in different directions multiple times. Always intriguing, he brings in several new characters, some friendly, some dangerous, some you may want to wring their necks. Different jurisdictions play a part in the action, too. This is the fourth in the Sandy Reid series, each deals with distinctly different types of crime and villainy, and never disappoints. This one keeps its promise to the reader with a twisted plot and surprise ending. An entertaining and wild ride through the tantalizing legal world.

Such Wicked Friends by Rod Hoisington

Published by EnteraBooks
Cover Art by Mark Hoisington

Feisty, smart and sassy, Sandy Reid has traded in her whiplash field investigations for the courtroom...or has she? She has recently passed the bar and is now a criminal lawyer, but no staid lawyer is she. Retaining her voracious appetite for the truth, she turns the world of law on its ear.

Rod Hoisington's latest mystery all begins with a more or less routine phone call from a woman to Martin, her partner, the lawyer she "rents a desk from". He passes the arranged meeting with the client over to Sandy to deal with. Martin likes his cases to be simple and civil and meeting an unidentified woman with husband troubles after dark wasn't something he wanted to take on. Unfortunately, when Sandy finds the woman, she has a bullet hole in her forehead. From that moment on, matters go from bad to worse as she is taken away, cuffed, by the police. No residue is found on her hands, but Sandy sees a fair-sized blood stain on the back of her hand, wondering why no one has mentioned it. It makes her feel connected somehow to this woman she only met in death, as though it is a plea for help. Apparently she is the only one who can see it. She must also admit to touching, in fact to picking up an envelope from the woman's lap, and though she immediately put it back, she knows this is going to go badly for her. Sandy just can't keep out of the way of her old nemesis State Attorney Lawrence Moran and his ongoing vindictiveness toward her. She made the unforgivable mistake of proving him wrong when they first met. Now, on what should be a misdemeanor, he is going to do everything in his power to have her disbarred, and power is something he has in spades. On the other hand, Sandy has a few tricks up her sleeve, too, including Martin, who is well-versed in the law, and her current beau Det. Chip Bogard, with all his police knowledge, background and friends.

Enter the perennial party-goers Jenna and Brad, long-time friends of Martin, and he is introduced to Prissy, a dressed-down somewhat shapeless but nice-looking woman who zeroes in on him with lust and moneybags in her eyes. Though these people do not appear to have anything to do with the murdered woman, you just never know about people. What it does provide at this point is romantic entertainment for Martin, and the timing is right because he has just hired a caretaker for his father suffering from Alzheimers, giving Martin some worry-free freedom.

As it turns out, this seemingly innocuous "marital dispute" death, simple and sad, is more than it seems and will have global ramifications. Sandy will have proven herself once again, getting shot up in the process, one tough cookie, but fun as well. As Sandy might say to Moran "Put that in your pipe and smoke it!", or probably not quite in those words. Another great Sandy Reid mystery from Rod Hoisington. He just gets better and better. This story was very fast-paced, thrilling, sexy and funny by turns. I really enjoyed it.

The Price of Candy by Rod Hoisington

Published by EnteraBooks

The cover of this book is a portent of things to come. A good man walks from the light into the dark side, where man becomes fool. A story of opposites, complications, passion, action, threat, going from confusion to comprehension. Opening with the dead body of a naked woman on the beach, with two male witnesses to the accidental death, the story takes a sudden turn to our heroine Sandy Reid, met in "One Deadly Sister", Book 1 of the series. She is studying to become a lawyer. She receives a phone call from an "old acquaintance" the caller tells her. However, there are two reasons why Sandy is unsure about this caller who wants to get together to talk over old times. The caller, identifying herself as Abby Olin, her married surname, a name not known to Sandy, and she calls her Sandra, although Sandy has never been known as Sandra to friends and acquaintances. Yet Sandy becomes curious and decides to meet with her. A grave mistake which brings back some old memories and also traps her in a whole web of trouble.

Rod Hoisington has put together another fast paced murder mystery with a strong protagonist in Sandy. The book is filled with a wide variety of unique characters from her nemesis State Prosecutor Moran, to Abby and her assortment of odd acquaintances. Moran is once more his harassing self, unjustly aimed at Sandy, actually putting her under arrest to destroy her chances at graduating law school at the very least, or blacklisted for the bar at the worst.

Once again Sandy is involved in a high-profile case, plus two other cases that may or may not be connected. She must try to solve everything while she is out on bail and before Moran finds something he can use to rescind her bail. He is planning to charge her with conspiracy to commit murder. Wonderful story-telling as it weaves its way throughout the book, even to a possible kidnapping the mother won't report. These are but a few of the strange happenings she stumbles upon. Fortunately for her, Sandy has many friends in law enforcement and her personal lawyer. Between all of them, and unexpected help from Abby's ex-husband, the net begins to gather all these facts and possibilities, crimes and perpetrators into a loose net, not convinced fully whether they are related cases or not. Rod Hoisington is very good at keeping the mystery going and bringing surprises along the way. My attention was held through to the surprising ending.