4.5 StarsI read A Thin Dark Line some years ago (more than ten) and loved it, so when it was offered on an Audible Daily Deal I snatched it up. The audio just enhanced an already riveting mystery!Annie Broussard is a Deputy in Bayou Breaux Police Department hoping to make Detective. When a suspect in the brutal murder of Pam Bichon is exonerated on a technicality the community is outraged along with the Detective in charge of the case, Nick Fourcade. Annie already had ties to the murder because she was the officer who discovered Pam Bichon’s body, but when she crosses paths with Nick she gets dragged further into the case and the dark side of Nick. Annie is both fascinated and wary of him, and scared of the electric current of attraction they share. Annie is a newer cop with ideals, innocence, and determination that Nick sees as an asset to the case. The fact that Marcus Reynard, the chief suspect, is suddenly fixated on her doesn’t hurt matters either. Nick’s convinced Marcus is guilty, but as Nick and Annie team up and dig deeper, Annie’s not so sure. She doesn’t want to pin a murder on the wrong guy, she wants justice and she wants the truth. It’s evident that Annie is rattling someone with her investigation, because gory “presents” and more sinister threats start coming her way. The mystery as well as the internal politics Annie must navigate in the police force made for a captivating read. The romance was just icing on the cake. Nick and Annie’s relationship felt dangerous and passionate, and an element to the story made it sort of forbidden, or at the very least ill advised, but these two couldn’t stay away from each other. After finishing A Thin Dark Line this time I was impressed and haunted. I couldn’t stop thinking of the solution and how things turned out, while the romance aspect was everything I hoped for, I was very sad for a particular character, and I think the voice and inflection the narrator gave this character every time he/she had a scene made their predicament resonate with me deeper than it did with just reading the pages. I highly recommend the narration; Karen Peakes made Annie Broussard’s character come to life, and did a fine job with the male voices as well. The accents and the Cajun French were spot on! I was held in the spell of A Thin Dark Line all over again and I totally recommend it to any fan of romantic suspense/mystery! Fans of Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, or Lisa Gardner will gobble this up. There were a couple of issues that were a little too tidily wrapped up, and a couple of things I still had questions about by the end, but it didn’t impact my enjoyment. The mystery, while published more than eighteen years ago stands up well, and didn’t feel dated. As I said above, it had been years since I read this, so I totally forgot the identity of the murderer. I thought I remembered, but I ended up being completely wrong. Nice to be surprised twice! Story: 4 StarsAudio Narration: 5 StarsOverall: 4.5 Stars
At first I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book. It started introducing so many characters that I had a hard time following, but maybe around page 50 or so, it got better. Pam Bichon is a wife and mother who was murdered in the most gruesome way possible. Marcus Renard was arrested for the murder. He was stalking her, leaving her gifts, and taking her rejection as just a put-off because she was still married but in the process of getting a divorce. Nick Fourcade is the lead detective on the Bichon case and has claimed Renard's guilt from the very beginning. Annie Broussard is a deputy and is the one who found the body of Pam in a deserted house along the bayou. Because of her low man status in the police department, she has nothing further to do with the case. When Renard is released due to not enough evidence, everyone in town wants to make him pay for what he supposedly did to Pam. Nick takes it to the next level and makes it personal and Annie comes along as he is beating Renard bloody. She arrests him and the entire dept. turns on her because she turned on one of their own. Annie stands by the law and will stop at nothing to finding who killed Pam Bichon. With a series of rapes that occur after Renard is released, it looks like they definitely let a killer loose. Annie and Nick come to an understanding and work the case together even though he has been suspended until his hearing. With Annie being in the sights of a killer, this story will lead you down several paths where you believe the killer will be. The ending is truly a shock and is a must read for Tami Hoag fans!
What do You think about A Thin Dark Line (1998)?
Quick review:Cover: Fitting Rating: R Thumbs Up: 4.5Overall: Very well doneCharacters: Well WrittenPlot: Killer, rapist or one in the same on the loosePage Turner: Yes Series Cont.? Yes Recommend: YesBook Boyfriend: NickSUMMARY (55 words or less)My first Tami Hoag book and won’t be my last. Picked it up on a daily deal at audible and I don’t regret it. I had no idea this was the fourth book in a series. It read like a standalone. Maybe the series is a theme and doesn’t follow certain characters. Love it.For a full review and yummy pic, see my blog post at:http://www.mybookboyfriend.net/2015/0...Audio ReviewKaren Peakes did a wonderful job with the narrations. The voices she used captured the characters spirit, the dialect of each, and she kept them all pretty much separate. Great job.
—Terri ♥ (aka Mrs. Christian Grey)
Wonderfully read by Karen Peakes, A Thin Dark Line was originally published in 1997, however this audiobook version was released last fall, in September of 2014. The book is a long one, close to nineteen hours of listening. The reading by Peakes is very well done, with a unique voice for each character, male and female alike. Although not a Southerner myself, the dialects seemed right-on.This story is a who-done-it with a myriad of potential murderers. A female deputy is the first to find the remains of a brutally murdered realtor. The main suspect is released on a technical issue. Preventing another officer from vigilante justice is a move that results in the deputy becoming a victim of brutal hazing and shunning by the rest of the police department. A Thin Dark Line is one of Hoag’s earliest efforts and, in my opinion, one of her best. Add to this the fine interpretation by Peakes, and you have one of those books that has been improved upon with excellent audio narration, ergo a good book is made better.You’ll be hard pressed to pick out the ultimate murderer, as there are quite a few viable suspects. I’ll confess to hitting re-wind a number of times to re-listen, or jumping back a chapter or two occassionally as there are so many characters. I also fast-forwarded through some romantic scenes more detailed than necessary. There are only so many ways to ‘do it’ and I often find these scenes boring and gratuitous, no matter how well written. I was more interested in the next twist in the murder mystery, shoot me.A Thin Dark Line was penned in the mid-nineties, a time when women were pounding furiously on the glass ceilings of all businesses and in this case within the confines of a police department. The main character is a female deputy and victim of a good-old-boy sexist mentality that will make any sane person grind their teeth. But, I suppose, this idiotic behavior happens even today and Hoag has done a good job with airing the scum. A nice crime procedural. Enjoy!
—Samyann
I’m still not sure about this book. I read the entire thing, and I liked the story, but it felt long. I kept thinking, is this almost done? No? I’ve still got 200 pages left? Darn. But I kept reading.I liked the main plot of a supposed murderer that was set free on a technicality, a detective that won’t give up, and a headstrong female deputy that wants justice no matter the cost.I actually enjoyed the plethora of red herrings in this novel. It was done well, and kept the novel interesting as it ran on. My favorite part of the suspense storyline was that it’s easy to get ahead in figuring out the killer at the end. It seemed a bit unrealistic, but was entertaining and well set-up once you figure it out.The main female characters sexism storyline was slightly frustrating, in good part because the main male character continued to get treated like a king despite bad actions.3 out of 5. It was good, but not particularly impactful, probably due to the slightly dated situations.https://messycountersandflouredpaperb...
—Katherine
