|
Review Page! This webpage contains a few book reviews that have been written about my murder novels. Enjoy yourself and bookmark the page to come back to see more new reviews.
To visit my MurderNovels.com website to learn more about my 10 murder novels featuring the senior citizen sleuth, Jim Richards,
then: |
|
The Classmate Murders by Bob Moats Bob has invented a character that people will identify with as the boomers grow older. This character, Jim Richards, really grows on you! Sixty years old and unemployed, Jim lives with his eighty something year old parents and his dad’s health is failing. He surfs/plays on his computer, drinks beer (but only after 8 pm – max was 8 beers, cutting back to 6….) Then his life suddenly, but very believably, changes; he becomes involved in a murder investigation, leading to meeting his “GIRL” from high school from over forty years ago! It sounds corny, but it isn’t. Moats does the job. Well written. A good read! Reviewed January 9, 2010
BOOK REVIEW & INTERVIEW - THE CLASSMATE MURDERS by BOB MOATS By Lou Riddell on her blog, Feb 13, 2010 The Classmate Murders is the first in a series of books by author Bob Moats, featuring the oh-so-funny "senior citizen" Jim Richards. Richards, who has just quit his job as a security guard, finds himself embroiled in trying to solve a string of murders of cheerleaders he was in high school with. Investigating on his own, or with his trusty sidekick Buck, he sets out to try to catch a killer, while the local police are definitely not amused by his detective antics. Along the way, Jim falls in love and the race to find the killer, who is murdering women right under the nose of the police, becomes even more desperate. This book was a real page-turner as I couldn't wait to find out what would happen next. Who would the next victim be, and could Jim Richards solve the case before he ran out of time? If you enjoy a suspenseful read that is laced with humor and wild car chases, tinged with romance, then this is the book for you. Read it to find out! It also has a wonderful twist at the end. I'm certainly looking forward to reading all of Bob Moats' other Jim Richards crime novels to see what he gets up to next. You can find Bob Moats here : http://magic1online.com/NewBlog/MNBlog.html INTERVIEW WITH BOB MOATS, MURDER NOVELS AUTHOR Q. First, tell us a little about your books. A. They are a series of murder/mystery novels featuring a senior citizen sleuth named Jim Richards, who in the first book is involved in a series of murders involving classmates from his old high school. He goes out of his way trying to help the police find the killer and along with a friend, Buck, they eventually do solve the case after a number murders, kidnapping and wild chases. The rest of the series of books takes Jim and his new girlfriend, Penny, a childhood crush and the only survivor of the classmate killer's victims, along with Buck and a few other characters out to Las Vegas twice, to a magic convention and out to New York, finding murders along the way. Readers have told me they like the interaction between the characters, I try to make them human and have feelings. I have seven books so far and working on the eighth, slowly, which is making a few of my faithful readers mad as they want a new book. It usually takes me a month to write a book, but this last one, I'm taking my time. Q. What made you decide to write murder novels? A. I've always been interested in writing and wanted to be a writer, and wrote a number of short stories throughout the years. I even wrote a fantasy novella called "Crystal Prison of Kyr". I had the desire to be a writer but never did anything about it on a grand scale, to write a full blown novel, let alone seven of them. I even wrote a three act comedy play "Happily Ever After" that ran for sixteen sold out performances back in 1985 in Detroit. In 2009, I became unemployed and then one day, I was sitting at my laptop when a thought came to me, it was the first paragraph of the book. They say once you get the first line the rest is easy and it was. I wrote that book in one month and had a few friends read and comment, which were good comments, but one woman sent my book back to me with punctuation corrections on just about every page, I sat and did the corrections and printed the book out. I write crime stories because I love that genre of books. I read a couple of books a month in e-book form on my Palm TX. I've read just about every Alex Cross book by James Patterson and I've read all 30-something books of the "in Death" series by Nora Roberts writing as J. D. Robb about the futuristic police detective, Eve Dallas. My other crime heroes are Spenser, Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone in separate books by Robert B. Parker, Travis McGee books by John D. MacDonald and Harry Bosch books by Michael Connelly. Q. Who are the characters in your books? A. Well, Jim Richards is the hero, I guess you could say he's a lot like me; Penny Wickens is his girlfriend, who he lives with since the second book, she is a local Detroit TV talk show host until the third book when her show goes to national TV after a convention in Vegas. Penny loves driving Jim crazy with her antics of bringing home strange things from her show guests, it's a running gag through each book. Then there's Buck, Jim's friend and co-crime fighter, he's a big biker and adds a lot to the plots. Buck is based on a real friend of mine, he is much like his book alter-ego. Then there's Will Trapper, a police lieutenant and a funny guy if you understand his sarcastic humor. Barry Becker, a young, innocent police officer who has a good deal of plot action along the series. Coming in and out of the books are Deacon, a big cop who showed up in the first book and moves out to Vegas to be with Lynn Carter, a police lieutenant with Vegas Metro police who Deacon met during the "Vegas Showgirl Murders". I write in a good number of minor characters, that add a great deal to each book. Q. You made Jim a senior citizen, most writers stay in the younger vein, no more than fifty-something, why a senior? A. I'm a senior citizen. I get tired of all the good looking handsome hunks on TV and movies portraying detectives, so I wrote what I know, old age. Besides, all the baby boomers are now in their sixties, and they may enjoy seeing someone struggle with age while trying to chase criminals. Besides I like to frequently mention that Jim and Penny have a healthy and frequent sex life, who says old people can't do it. I've had a few people ask me to not promote Jim as a senior, but why not, we all get old and I make it fun in my books to see Jim occasionally realize he is getting old. Of course there was Jessica Fletcher from "Murder, She Wrote" who was a senior but I don't think it was made a big deal. Q. Do you have a favorite book of the series? A. They are all my favorites, but I like the plot and action of the fifth book, "Bridezilla Murders". Jim and Penny finally decide to get married and go back to Vegas for the ceremony, taking their family and friends with them, but get involved with a series of murders of Bridezillas. I got a little crazy with a subplot involving Trapper and Becker who pull frequent pranks on a police captain on Vegas Metro police. It's one of the books I like the most. Q. Two of your books take place in Las Vegas, but Jim and his friends are from Michigan, why? A. I lived in Las Vegas for about a year and a half, I loved it, but came back to Michigan due to my dad's health and my son and I were a little home-sick. I write what I know and I knew a bit about Vegas, enough to write about it. I may even have Jim and Penny move to Vegas in later books, but it is still open. Most of the Vegas Showgirl Murders explains a bit of my life in Vegas and what I went through out there, most of the things I mentioned actually happened. I use a lot of my life as a back story for my books. I hope maybe someday I can move back to Vegas, maybe when I start collecting social security so I don't have to find a job, if my books don't make me rich. I can dream. Q. Your sixth book was about magic and magicians at a magic convention, how did you come up with that premise? A. To explain, so people don't think I'm writing about spooky, real magic, I wrote about magicians who do "tricks" and I have a background in magic. I was a performing magician for over forty years and even had a magic shop near my hometown in Michigan and I did a good number of shows in Vegas. Every year there is a magic convention in Colon, Michigan and I went there years ago. I came up with an idea to kill off a few magicians while Jim was there helping a friend to receive an award. So the book was born. This book also has a sad ending, so have tissue handy. Q. What is your writing process? A. Honestly, I don't have one. Please don't take this as the right way to do it, just my way. Okay to explain, when I want to start a new book, I think up a title and premise first. Like "Magic Murders", I thought about my experiences in magic and the title followed. Then I sit down and write that first paragraph. I don't have any idea where I'm going (most people would agree), with the story, I don't outline or make a draft. I can't explain it, but the words and sentences just flows out of my head as I type. Most the time I don't even know who the killer is yet, I solve the case as I write and the plot follows, I make it up as I go. I will re-read a paragraph to see if I had any errors or confused statements, but that's about it. I run the thing through two spell checkers and a grammar checker on my desktop publishing program. I don't have the cash to pay a pro to edit so I let my readers check me. I write until I'm happy with it and I don't like changing my plot or story to please anyone. I've had a couple people comment about minor details, nothing that would change my story but just little things that are minor. Ever since I was young I would make up elaborate stories in my head, daydreaming, so I guess I had a lot of training. Q. Have any advice for writers? A. If you haven't done it, WRITE! Write a lot, all kinds of stuff. Just get the practice. Don't do like I did, and wait till you are sixty to start, I should have made the effort I put into my writing back then, that I do now. I was lucky and got on the social network bandwagon of Twitter and met some really great people who are writers and a few literary agents who have taken an interest in my work. It helps, and Facebook has been good too, to promote my books, but it is limited to your immediate friends, where Twitter has many links to others who follow you making your tweets read by a huge number of people. I'm not one to give advice, but don't wait around, do it, write. Just don't expect miracles, I'm not being mean, but not everyone has a story in them that they can put on paper, accept your limitations and listen to people's comments. Q. Any closing comments? A. Sure, buy and read my books.
The Classmate Murders ~ A Review •April 24, 2010 Bob Moats is a man determined to write. He is one of the first true indie writers I have met. From start to finish, Bob’s books are his own, from writing, to publishing. Bob makes his own books, designs his covers and is his own PR and marketing department. Before reading his book, The Classmate Murders, I already admired the man based on his hard work alone. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put the book down. Jim Richards is a recently unemployed security guard, living with his parents and has just turned 60. While he wishes his life had afforded better opportunities, it is convenient living there so he can help his Mother with his ailing Father. One night Jim receives an e-mail from an old high school friend asking for him to call, that she needs his help. When he picks up the phone and calls, he is greeted on the other end by a police officer informing him his friend had been murdered. Jim is stunned by this revelation and wonders what is going on? He contacts his long time cohort, Buck who convinces him he needs to look into things. As things progress and Jim and Buck are still befuddled, another classmate is murdered! What is going on?? Who is targeting Jim’s classmates and why? Jim finally figures out the pattern of the killings and he and Buck go out of their way to protect the people they think are listed for murder. It turns out this is no ordinary murderer, but a very brave and cunning one, who will even make their kills with the police present. How can Jim and Buck protect anyone from such a brutal killer?? I really enjoyed reading The Classmate Murders. I love the senior citizen hero, Jim Richards and also like to see our love lives will not end after 40. I even snuck this book to work with me to read at lunchtime. One of my favorite things about the book, is that the character’s seemed so real to me, as if you could run into any of them on the streets and enjoy meeting them. A great combination of murder, thrills, romance and excitement. I highly recommend reading The Classmate Murders by Bob Moats. You can follow Bob on Twitter ~ @MurderNovels and check out this book as well of Bob’s other murder novels at www.murdernovels.com Posted in Books I love, Crime Thriller, Uncategorized Tags: Bob Moats, books, crime thriller, novels, writing
Surfing The Classmate Murders Review Written By Pat Pillars on his blog. 04/29/2010 I read, a lot. I like just about any genre out there but I always go back to my first love, the mystery novel. I like a good hard boiled detective story, a good murder mystery, a gripping whodunit. When I was a wee lad, I read the Hardy Boys, eventually graduating into Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie and then into Mickey Spillane et al. So when I got a chance to catch a new writer, a guy writing murder mysteries, well then I jumped at the chance. I ran into Bob Moats on twitter, he is @MurderNovels and being the net surfer I am I clicked on over to his website. With a moniker like Murder Novels, I figured it had to be good. I hit the jack pot. Checking out Bob's site I find out he lives just down The Great Road from me, about an hour or so south, a fellow Michigander. Reading the first story I know the places he talks about, the roads they travel, kinda neat really, not necessary to the enjoyment of the story, but well.. neat for me. Bob is an indie writer, but not only that, he prints, yes I said prints, his own books. His website is full of cool things to check out. But let us get into the good part, the review, shall we? Mr. Moats was kind enough to send me a pdf copy of The Classmate Murders and I opened it up with the intention of reading the first chapter or two before bed, then enjoying the reading over the next few days. That was three days ago and I finished the book yesterday. I did not read just a couple chapters, I had to stop around chapter 8 because I just could not focus anymore and totally lost track of time. You could say I was drawn right into the story, right from the first paragraph. Jim Richards, our hero of the story, is a 60 year old guy, a bit down on his luck. After losing his job, moving into his parents house to help his mom take care of his dad, and stuck in a small bedroom with a computer and beer as companions, you would think the guy is a big loser. Jim Richards, right off the first page tells you he is a big loser. Far from it, but it is the style, the self deprecating humor that draws you into his story. Jim Richards is an average joe who gets caught up in a murder mystery. When Jim gets an email from an old high school friend, he calls her number, only to have it answered by Trapper, the cop investigating at the scene. She has been murdered. Feeling at a lost, Jim calls his good friend Buck, a biker with a colorful past. Jim tells Buck what has happened and Buck wants to know when they are going to start investigating. Jim and Buck are two average guys who worked security for a car dealership, not detectives, but with one old friend murdered and others on a list, they start checking it out. That my friends, is just a synopsis of the first chapter. Jim and Buck are great characters and the other players fit right in the story. Trapper, the tough cop, Penny, the damsel in distress, the bad guys, its all in there, all very real and very believable. I was hooked because it has all the elements of good murder mysteries but told in a different way. The characters are unique, well thought out and just plain interesting, even the bad guys. Now I am not gonna say anymore, it is a murder mystery after all, you'll have to read it for yourself. I will say this, I like it. That simple really. The Classmate Murders is a good mystery novel, a real page turner and has all the skill and elements you associate with a good mystery story. Heck I was not even sure who the bad guy was until the very last chapter when Jim and Buck figure it out, no kidding, and I pride myself on figuring out mysteries. The good news is that this is just the beginning, there are more Jim Richards crime novels to be had, and I will be buying them, no doubt about it. See here mack, it was a shweet ride and Moats has the goods see. So leg it over to his place and pick up a bindle of words on the cheap. Tell him Paddy sent ya. Posted at 12:36 PM in pBooks | Permalink
Bob Moats, Murder Mystery Writer Bob Moats has the best of both worlds. The Fraser native gets to play the bad guys in his crime novels, and then solve the mystery and save the day. Mr. Moats is the author of the Jim Richards Crime Novels Series and with eight available and number nine on the way, he is one busy writer. After joining the unemployment line in 2009, Bob took his life long dream of writing novels and made it a reality. Not only does he write the novels, he prints them as well. Bob does it all, he writes the novels, makes the paperback and does all the things a publisher does, right from his home. You can see how he makes his books, right here on his website. I ran into Bob Moats on twitter, and with a moniker like @MurderNovels, I just had to go check out his website. I love murder mysteries and I have been a life long fan of the genre. I found out Bob lives about an hour down the road from me and I was intrigued by a fellow Michigander writing murder mysteries. I read the reviews and contacted Mr. Moats, who was kind enough to send me a copy of The Classmate Murders. I was going to read a couple chapters and call it a night, but I could not put the novel down. I finally stopped around chapter eight, I was too tired to continue. First thing I did the next day, I dived right back into the story and finished it. Jim Richards, our hero of the story, is a 60 year old guy, and a bit down on his luck. After losing his job, moving into his parents house to help his mom take care of his dad, and stuck in a small bedroom with a computer and beer as companions, you would think the guy is a big loser. Jim Richards tells you that right on the first page in his wry, self deprecating humor. But Jim Richards is just an average joe, who gets caught up in a murder mystery when he gets an email from an old high school friend. He calls her number, only to have it answered by Trapper, the cop investigating at the scene and he is told she has been murdered. Feeling at a lost, Jim calls his good friend Buck, a biker with a colorful past and tells Buck what has happened. Jim and Buck are two average guys who worked security for a car dealership,they are not detectives, but with one old friend murdered and others on a list, they start checking it out. Jim and Buck are great characters and the other players fit right in the story. Trapper, the tough cop, Penny, the damsel in distress, the bad guys, its all in there, all very real and very believable. I was hooked because it has all the elements of good murder mysteries. The characters are unique, well thought out and just plain interesting, even the bad guys. Now I am not gonna say anymore, it is a murder mystery after all, you'll have to read it for yourself. The Classmate Murders is a good mystery novel, a real page turner and has all the skill and elements you associate with a good mystery story. Heck I was not even sure who the bad guy was until the very last chapter when Jim and Buck figure it out, and I pride myself on figuring out mysteries. The good news is there are more Jim Richards crime novels to be had, and I will be buying them, no doubt about it. For more information and how you can buy a copy, check out Bob's website.
Pinkbagels's review Jun 20, 2010 at GoodReads.com Every now and again you stumble upon something wonderful on the internet. Bob Moats' Classmate Murders is an excellent blend of Elmore Leonard and Philip Marlowe sensibilities, with an unexpected hero well into his sixties, downsized from his job and forced into an early retirement he can't afford. The character is easy to relate to, the story itself a wonderful suspenseful ride with a cast of interesting characters, and damn if it isn't some great detective writing. If you like your crime novels gritty, with a touch of biker sensibility and a side of arthritis, you'll love Bob Moat's work. Bob Moats sells all of his stuff online--He's his own publisher, right down to his own homegrown printing press. He puts the 'In' in 'Indie'. The Classmate Murders is available as a free pdf, if you ask him for it nicely:
http://magic1online.com/NewBlog/MNBlog.html
Thursday, July 8, 2010 The Classmate Murders Book Review by Angie's Blog of @theladya I recently won in a Twitter contest the first 8 murder novels by Detroit area resident Bob Moats. Moats became one of the causalities of unemployment early in 2009 and had time on his hands to finally pursue a life long dream of writing a full blown crime novel. Thus was born the first book, "Classmate Murders". What followed was a series of 10 books starting with "The Classmate Murders" which introduces the main character, Jim Richards, who has to admit he has become a senior citizen, reluctantly. Richards, one day, receives an email from a childhood sweetheart asking for his help, but by the time he reaches her she has been murdered. His life turns around and he is pulled into numerous murders of women from his high school who he hasn't seen in 40 years. Along with a friend of his, Buck, a big, mustached biker, they go off to track down the killer before he can get to one former classmate, Penny Wickens, a TV talk show host who Jim has just fallen for while protecting her. The killer is also murdering the women right out from under police protection, driving homicide detective Will Trapper crazy, and he slowly depends on Jim to help. There's humor, suspense, wild chases across suburban Detroit with cops, classic cars and motorcycle clubs; murder, mayhem, a good amount of romance and a twist ending. Jim and his fellow crime fighters, continue in the other books, traveling to Las Vegas twice, back to Detroit and out to New York to solve murders involving dominatrix; mistresses; Bridezillas; magic; strip clubs and an ocean cruise. Previews and comments are available on his site. Book titles include Classmate Murders; Vegas Showgirl Murders; Dominatrix Murders; Mistress Murders; Bridezilla Murders; Magic Murders; Strip Club Murders; Made-for-TV Murders and Mystery Cruise Murders. My Review I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Classmate Murders. I instantly connected with each character as they were introduced. Being quite a bit younger than the characters, I felt like these were people my parents knew and hung out with while I was growing up. I loved the friendships and relationships each character developed with each other, especially Jim and Penny. The characters are constantly kidding around with each other, just like real friends would. The motorcycles and motorcycle gang being in the book takes me right back to a simpler time in my childhood when some family and neighbors of mine were in a motorcycle club and stopped by often to visit. Now my dad's gang have grown older and deal with classic cars so I can actually relate to most of the characters. My favorite character in the book is Penny, a TV Talk Show host who is still a knock out at nearly 60 and is as sassy as ever. She's smart, independent, and it may have taken her 40 years but she snags her high school crush who helps save her life. I love that these characters take the murder investigation into their own hands and actually do a better job than the police and end up saving Penny, and themselves, from the killer(s) who in the end leaves you surprised. All in all this was a great book. I have now started reading the second book in the series, Vegas Showgirl Murders.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Book Title: The Classmate Murders Middle age is when your old classmates are so gray and wrinkled and bald they don't recognize you. ~Bennett Cerf Jim Richards a sixty year old who lives with his parents and recently has lost his job as a security guard for a car dealership. He is an avid reader of reading and watching anything related to mystery; books, movies and television series. The book “The Classmate Murders” follows this older in body than mind, gentleman who leads a simple and somewhat boring life until he receives a disturbing e-mail from a high school classmate. She was actually an ex-girlfriend of his who was now afraid that someone wanted to take her life. Unfortunately, he receives that message too late and she is found dead with the message that there will be more murders to come. With his good friend Buck, Jim decides to use his learned investigation skills, no matter how limited, to try to solve the mystery before others are found dead. With team works so well together that the police seem to be one step behind them. Jim becomes an important part of the case, even with small matter he knows a little too much about the woman involved. He comes the conclusion that the women being threatened are cheerleaders from his high school. Who would want these women dead after forty years later and why. I must admit I didn't think that a story about a senior citizen wanna-be private investigator was going to be so entertaining, but was I wrong. This book proves that even an old dog can have a sharp mind to look at details and figure out leads to solve a difficult case. With its humor, and friendly banter between characters and with some steamy sexy scenes, this book packs a lot between its covers. Adults of any age would find the characters likable, the plot integrating, and will find it a great mystery. I liken it to a cup of tea brewed, not too hot and not too cold, sweet with a little honey with no need for the cream.
Thursday, November 25, 2010 Bob Moats, author of Classmate Murders, discusses his book, his promotions, and self-publishing on Kindle.
DAVID WISEHART: What can you tell us about Classmate Murders?
DAVID WISEHART: What did you learn from your first novel that helped you to write the sequels?
DAVID WISEHART: How do you develop and differentiate your characters?
DAVID WISEHART: Who do you imagine is your ideal reader?
DAVID WISEHART: What was your journey as a writer?
DAVID WISEHART: What is your writing process?
DAVID WISEHART: What authors most inspire you?
DAVID WISEHART: What one book, written by someone else, do you wish you'd written yourself?
DAVID WISEHART: How did you create your covers?
DAVID WISEHART: How have you marketed and promoted your work?
DAVID WISEHART: Why publish on Kindle?
DAVID WISEHART: What advice would you give to a first-time author thinking of self-publishing on Kindle?
DAVID WISEHART: Thanks, and best of luck with your books.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 The Classmate Murders is a fun and clever mystery. The story is written mostly in narration style, which works perfectly with this main character. You can almost hear the character’s voice as he tells the story and adds his own brand of humor. Jim Richards is a regular guy, who is mature, divorced, and living with his parents to help take care of his dad. When he finds his long-ago high school classmates are being murdered, he and his friends step in to try to find the killer and protect Penny, his new-found love. I have read many books with female civilians getting caught up in a murder mystery, but this time it is a man who noses his way into the action. The cops don’t like it – until he comes up with some interesting clues. I enjoyed the variety and personality differences in the characters. It is also fun to read about people closer to my age. It is a reminder to younger people that love can bloom at any age, but I thought the romantic antics started to get in the way of the mystery. Eventually it got back on track and came through with a satisfying wrap up to the case. I especially enjoyed the last part of the book that sets the stage for the following books. This is an enjoyable and distinctive kind of mystery. Great prices on these books, too. Print versions can be purchased at http://murdernovels.com/ and ebooks can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and other e-book sites.
Posted by Linda at 6:15 PM
Book Review for 'Classmate Murders' by Bob Moats Classmate Murders by Bob Moats was published in 2009 by Magic 1 Production, and can be purchased from http://murdernovels.com/ Someone is killing the cheer leading squad from Jim Richards' high school. When a pleading email from a high school friend reaches Jim, he immediately calls and finds that the sender has been brutally murdered. Jim and his friend, Buck quickly begin to sleuth out the killer before any more classmates are killed. But Jim and Buck are just one step behind the killer and several more high school friends are murdered in rapid succession. Jim and Buck finally catch up to Penny Wickens who is now a TV talk show host, and convince her that she is in danger and they want to help. What follows is a race to save Penny from the attempts on her life and if she and Jim happen to fall in love in the meantime, well so be it. Classmate Murders is the first in the Jim Richards Crime series and Bob Moats has a winner. This book is written in an easy style and keeps you riveted as Jim and Buck help the police in an all out battle of wits with the bad guys. Moats' quick humor and laid back writing will keep you turning the pages all the way to the end. Jim Richards is a hero for the older set and you will surely enjoy this book. I am giving Classmate Murders a 4-spider rating and I recommend this read to anyone who loves a good crime novel! DJ Weaver
Thrillers Rock Twitter Blog
To be honest when this one came across my desk, I groaned. As I mentioned on the stream, I'm not a huge fan of amateur sleuthing, especially in the senior citizen bracket. I like my investigators hot and knowledgeable. Top of their field. I am far more of a 'procedural' girl (evidenced clearly by Plain Jane). So I can honestly say I was not just pleasantly surprised by Bob's "Classmate Murders" but downright shocked at how engaging and entertaining a read this book was. He threw my pre-conceived notions about what a senior citizen sleuth could be out the window and made me sit up and pay attention. I was immediately drawn in my his beautifully honest lead character, Jim Richards, who is putting up one heck of fight against aging, while of course solving crimes that hit a little too close to home. From Richard's deep relationship with his old co-worker (without a hint of any weird, latent, homo-eroticism) to his complicated feeling for his own aging parents, I can say that Jim Richards is as interesting as any hunky C.S.I. professional. Would I like to have seen smoother dialogue and Bob to trust his reader enough to not lay in so much description? Yes. Do I want to read more of Jim Richards adventures? Heck Ya! Again, if you love amateur sleuths, you've got to check out "Classmate Murders." But honestly, even if you are like me and a little iffy on the sub-genre, I am telling you that this book packs a big bang for it's buck! (and yes, Bob, that pun was intended :-) Find "Classmate Murders" eBook on Smashwords and Amazon. Until next time!
Melanie's Book Addiction review by Melanie Vautour, Canada Blurb from Bob Moats' website: Jim Richards has reluctantly turn sixty and has just quit his job as a security guard. He describes himself as "I live in my old bedroom in my parents house, lousy credit score, over-weight, balding, gray beard, I drink at least 8 beers a night, I'm now unemployed and I just became a senior citizen, I'm such a loser". One day he receives an email from a childhood sweetheart he hasn't seen in over 40 years, pleading for help but he doesn't get to her in time. A killer is now stalking and killing his old female classmates (while they are under police protection) for unknown reasons and Jim, along with his only friend Buck, a big, mustachioed biker, are trying to stop the killer before he gets to one woman Jim is falling for and before the class of '67 has lost any more of it's female alumni. ********** My thoughts Jim Richards isn't the typical hero you usually find in crime novels: he's an unemployed senior citizen living with his parents. From the first few pages, I liked this character. He's funny, caring and intelligent. He even does a better job than the police! There's a bit of romance in this book between Jim and Penny, the girl who had a crush on him forty years ago, which I find very cute. It proves that you're never to old too fall in love. :) This is a fun and easy-to-read book full of suspense. This is the type of book that you could easily read in one sitting. It's a must-read for every fan of murder mysteries! From the very first pages I was interested. Lots of entertainment from the beginning to the end. From bikers to a TV talk show host, there's a great variety of characters which makes the reading more fun. Bob Moats wrote an amazing novel. Classmate Murders is a great start to a series that I'm sure is wonderful. With titles like Vegas Showgirl Murders, Dominatrix Murders, Mistress Murders, Bridezilla Murders, Magic Murders, Strip Club Murders, Made-for-TV Murders, Mystery Cruise Murders, Talk Show Murders, Sin City Murders and Black Widow Murders, it ought to be awesome. I can't wait to read the rest of Jim Richards adventures. I think I just discovered a new favorite author! :) I give this book 4 stars!!! ********** Please check out Bob Moats' website here. He's offering a free e-book copy of Classmate Murders. So what are you waiting for? Go check it out! You can also follow him on Twitter @MurderNovels
Confessionsofabooklover.blogspot.com Review "The Classmate Murders" by Bob Moats is reminiscent of the hit television show "Murder She Wrote". The story follows Jim Richards, security guard turned amateur private investigator, as he tries to solve the serial murders of his high school classmates. Lucky for him, he has a band of bikers, the police, and an old high school flame to help. Jim Richards is a lovable character. I found myself rooting for him in love, life, and solving the murders. There is plenty of humor though at times I would have loved to see it in dialogue rather than narrative. The plot seemed to go just as expected until the very end when an unexpected ending arrives. If you loved "Murder She Wrote", you'll love "The Classmate Murders". Posted by Latoya Alloway at 6:29 AM
|
|
About my personal life outside of writing books
I'm not going into detail here, to find out more about me visit my other websites:
|