Official Review: Dead on Ice by Lauren Carr

lady_charlie · Post by **lady_charlie** » 05 Jan 2013, 09:33

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Dead on Ice" by Lauren Carr.]

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Dead on Ice by Lauren Carr is a murder mystery set in modern times on the border of West Virginia and Pennsylvania. The two main characters, Josh and Cameron, are "lovers in crime" who have solved other mysteries together and will continue to do so. I found it helpful that the author included a list of characters at the beginning of the book with a short description of how they are connected to each other. This is always nice when there are a lot of characters that may or may not be familiar to someone who has read other books in a series, and especially as this was my first experience reading an entire book directly from my computer rather than my e-reader. I had a few issues with things like font size, turning pages and finding my place when I had to stop and go back, but it wasn't so bad that I wouldn't try another book in this format.

We have recently been on a mystery kick at our house, from Murder She Wrote to Perry Mason to P.D. James to Sherlock Holmes to Agatha Christie to NCIS to Scooby-Doo to Clue, and this story has everything it needs to keep us intrigued right up until the end. A well-written mystery leads the reader to a logical correct conclusion, but not too soon; Dead on Ice is among the best kind that let you figure it out just about the time the main characters do, but with a few questions left that the main characters can then explain to your satisfaction. The ending was not predictable and I did feel satisfied with how everything turned out.

The best books in general are also the kind that make me go and read something else, either because they mention a book or author I haven't read or they leave me curious about a topic. I must say this book had me researching some things that I had never thought about before, and I actually stopped reading to "google" some things I won't mention but I will say led me to some things I now wish I hadn't seen! Even Jessica, who spends a lot of time at the library, and Sherlock, who conducts his own experiments, would have gone looking for the answers to these questions. I just said "ew" and went back to reading anyway.

My main concern with this book is Cameron. I wasn't exactly sure who she was, and in comparison to some amazing southern ladies I actually know, I wasn't sure how or why she ended up in law enforcement. She could have been a little tougher without hurting her relationship with Josh. I found it a little off putting when she "screamed" and "shrieked" over things that seemed sort of minor to me. The animals added little to the story for me, although they could be a cute addition in a movie version. The other characters were believable and well-written enough for the format and length of the book that I was satisfied with the ending and intrigued enough to read the entire book.

I give Dead on Ice a rating of 3 out of 4 stars.

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