Blog Tour: Promissory Payback and Unrevealed

Since this is a double review I'm doing things a bit differnt. At the bottom look for a character overview as well as a content rating for both books. =) 

Promissory Payback (A Jane Perry novella) by Laurel Dewey, 2011. Published by Story Plant. Source: Partners In Crime Tours for review.

Laurel Dewey’s Detective Jane Perry is quickly becoming one of the most distinctive, dynamic, and unforgettable characters in suspense fiction today. She’s rock hard, but capable of extraordinary tenderness. She’s a brilliant cop, but she’s capable of making life-altering mistakes. She’s uncannily talented, and she’s heartbreakingly human.

In PROMISSORY PAYBACK Jane is called in to investigate the gruesome murder of a woman who profited greatly from the misfortunes of others. The case leaves Jane with little question about motive...and with a seemingly endless number of suspects.

First sentence:

Detective Jane Perry took another hard drag on her cigarette.

So Promissory Payback was the first thing that I have read by author Laurel Dewey, I wasn't to sure what to expect since it was a novellette rather than a full novel. While I did find it to be enjoyable and an extremely quick read, I did have a couple of problems with the book which I'll cover later on in my review.

The way the plot is laid forth in Promissory Payback kind of plays out like an old who-dunit in that the further you read the more suspects and suspects with motive appear. That being said, I liked how there were many different layers to the plot, which helped to pull me in and kept me turning the pages even when I considered not finishing due to the language. I just had to know who did it and if I was right...which I was.

Ms. Dewey definitely knows how to weave a plotline that will keep you on your toes and entertained till the end.

What I really did enjoy about Promissory Payback would have to be the actual mystery behind the murder of Carolyn, and how there was so much motive to why some one would put an end to her. I thought the way it unfolded was pretty brilliant, and almost as well done as some of my favorite mystery novels.
     The one thing that really bothered me while reading Promissory Payback would have to be all the swearing, which was prelavent from pretty much page one. Now I'm not one for swearing at all, so I don't really enjoy when it crops up in the books I read.

Promissory Payback earns 3.5 out of 5 pineapples.

Unrevealed (A Jane Perry novella) by Laurel Dewey, 2011. Published by Story Plant. Source: Partners In Crime Tours  for review.

In UNREVEALED, Dewey gives us four indelible portraits of Jane Perry:

ANONYMOUS: One of Jane's first AA meetings leads her to an encounter with a woman in need of her detection skills...and a secret she never expected to uncover.

YOU CAN'T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER: Forced by her boss to speak at a high school career day, Jane meets a troubled boy and finds that his story is only the beginning of a much more revealing tale.

YOU'RE ONLY AS SICK AS YOUR SECRETS: An early-morning homicide call introduces Jane to a mystery as layered as it is unsuspected.

THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS WHAT THEY SEEM: Jane finds herself sharing a 2:00 am conversation at a downtown bar with an old acquaintance. Will the bloody night that proceeded this moment complicate Jane's intentions?

First Sentence ("You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover"):

I want to be up-front with everyone reading this.

 Generally I'm not the biggest fan of short stories, so it was a pleasant surprise that I enjoyed Unrevealed as much as I did.

What I really .liked about the short stories mentioned in Unrevealed was that with each one you got to know Jane a little more, and that you got to see different sides to her personality that you may not see in full novel. although I cannot be sure on that account since I've only ever read a novellette and some short stories featuring Ms. Perry.

The one I liked best was "You Can't Judge a Book By Its Cover" because it had a slightly haunting quaility to it. I loved the odd connection between Jane and the little boy, bit what makes this such an interesting read is how a typical speaking engagment at a high school takes a turn towards the weird. It was both chilling in that what happened isn't too far fetched and bizarre in how the truth was finally made known.

Again, the only downside to this wonderfully written set of short stories would have to be the language. If there had been considerably less it wouldn't have been so badm but there was so much that at times I lost the thread of the story.

Unrevealed earns 4 out of 5 pineapples.

Character over view (both books):
Jane Perry, was way different from what I had expected her to be. For one I was kind of suprised by her age, I was thought that she was going to be in her late twenties, and while I was not surprised that she was...slightly damaged I was not prepared for jsut how broken she was. In Unrevealed Jane is in AA and has been sober for a few months, while it was interesting to see that she was trying (maybe not by her own design) to clean up her act I thought the most interesting part of that storyline was how it tied into one...no, two of her cases.
While Jane may not be roll model material, I really enjoyed how she put so much of herself into the work that she does.

Content (for both books; will contain spoilers. Highlight to see
Language- My gosh did Jane have mouth like a sailor. There is a ton of swearing in both books, almost too much where I was left feeling like there could have been a better way to express ones feelings without being so foul mouthed. Let's just say Jane took the Lord's name in vane as well as hit alot of the big swear words, and used them on multiple occasions.
Violence- If I were to give the books I rating, like, a movie, I would say that the majority of it was a strong PG-13 to R at times. Ms. Dewey does not really pull any punches when describing a couple of the murders mentioned in both books.