Thomas Kies’ first Geneva Chase mystery, Random Road, came out in 2017. There have been two others in the series since, and a fourth, Shadow Hill, is scheduled for release on August 10. After Sourcebooks bought Poisoned Pen Press, they’ve been reintroducing readers to some of the series by changing the covers and releasing the first in the series again. Random Road, the first Geneva Chase Crime Reporter mystery will be out again on August 13. Saying that, it’s the perfect time to reprint my original review of Random Road.
When I like a debut mystery, it’s because the characters have depth and come alive. Meet Geneva Chase in Thomas Kies’ Random Road. Geneva is almost forty, back on her hometown newspaper on Connecticut’s Gold Coast. And, she’s back because Geneva has almost hit bottom. She’s an alcoholic whose choices are disappearing, just as newspapers are.
She’s just lucky she’s the only reporter covering a mass slaying in an exclusive concave. The Sheffield Post‘s article will read, “Six people were found brutally murdered, their nude bodies mutilated, in the exclusive gated Sheffield community of Connor’s Landing.” Geneva relates the story of her crumbling career, the stories she covers, and the meeting that will change her life. While her primary story will be the slaughter of three couples, she also has to cover the sentencing of a young man who killed a woman in a hit-and-run accident, the young man who receives a slap on the wrist because his wealthy father has influence. There’s the interesting story of a blind woman who thwarted a burglary. The police have an on-going case involving burglaries done by the Home Alone gang. And, it’s a trip to hunt for ghosts that will tie everything together in Geneva’s mind.
While many writers can tell an interesting story of a reporter investigating murders, it’s the rare author who can bring the sleuth alive in a debut mystery. Geneva’s itch for the next story is almost as big as her urge to take the next drink. But, a reunion with an old friend from grade school, a fellow alcoholic, becomes important to her. Kies’ story of damaged people coming together is an essential element of the novel. It reveals the depth in a woman who, on first glance, comes across as a hardened alcoholic reporter.
Looking for a compelling story with a complex investigator? Pick up Thomas Kies’ debut, Random Road.
This special First-in-a-Series edition includes: A New Introduction by the Author; A Reading Group Guide; A Conversation with the Author; An Excerpt from Darkness Lane, the Next Geneva Chase Crime Reporter Mystery
Thomas Kies’ website is https://thomaskiesauthor.com/
Random Road by Thomas Kies. Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press, 2021. ISBN 9781464214707 (paperback), 384p.
Author of the Geneva Chase Mystery Series, Thomas Kies lives and writes on a barrier island on the coast of North Carolina with his wife, Cindy, and Lilly, their shih-tzu. He has had a long career working for newspapers and magazines, primarily in New England and New York, and is currently working on his next novel.
Just what I need, another new author, right? But it does sound like something I should try,
Oh, Jeff. We all need to discover a new author now and then. (smile)
What Jeff said. (And what Lesa said!). I will be taking a look at Geneva.
Then maybe it isn’t so strange that Sourcebooks is reprinting the first in some of their series, Kaye and Jeff. It catches the attention of readers who might have missed the book and the series the first time around.
I have a pad where I write down books by authors I haven’t read but that I want to at least try, and I don’t know where exactly I got it from, but the Kies book was already on it. So since I finished the Peter Robinson yesterday (and please, DROP the trafficking stories), I had no other pressing library books (the Paula Punier is in transit), and my library has a Kindle copy, I borrowed it. I guess we’ll see.
That’s funny, Jeff, that you pleaded to drop the trafficking stories. I wrote a review yesterday of a book that comes out in June, and I complained that every crime fiction author seems to think they need to do a trafficking story. Just as they all seemed to think they needed to write about the Mexican drug cartels in the last few years. OK, I know they exist, and so does human trafficking. But, NCIS did it four or five years ago, and I don’t want to read about it anymore.
Jeff, was the Peter Robinson worth reading? I really enjoy the series, but was not as interested in the new story line of the past couple of books. Sounds like this is more of the same….
Jennifer, it is a little better than the last couple (IMHO) but it is still mostly wrapping up (at last!) the ongoing trafficking storyline with Zelda. I wish he’d get back to his old style.
Paula Munier – note to self: PROOFREAD
Lesa, thanks for the recap. I missed the Kies debut when it came out in 2017. And a nice surprise: Netgalley/SOURCEBOOKS just granted my wish to get the reissued ARC last week, so it’s on my list to read this month.
Oh, it’s good to know they’re putting the reissues into Netgalley. Thanks, Grace!