Maddie Richards Gift Set: Two Mystery Novels
David Bishop
- Maddie
- Richards
- is
- an
- efficient
- and
- resourceful
- detective
- with
- a
- secret
- wish
- that
- she
- could
- handle
- her
- messy
- personal
- life
- as
- well
- as
- she
- handles
- her
- work
- life.
- As
- a
- homicide
- sergeant
- for
- the
- Phoenix,
- Arizona
- Police
- Department,
- she
- has
- one
- of
- the
- highest
- solve
- rates
- in
- America.
- Her
- success
- leads
- her
- chief
- of
- police
- to
- assign
- her
- a
- serial
- killer
- case.
- Some
- sicko
- the
- press
- calls
- the
- Beholder
- is
- killing
- beautiful
- women.
- Her
- chief
- describes
- the
- case
- as
- “a
- career
- maker
- or
- breaker,
- get
- me?”
She
- has
- an
- ex-husband
- she
- still
- cares
- for,
- but
- who
- was
- bad
- for
- her
- and
- her
- ten-year-old
- son.
- Her
- widowed
- mother
- who
- lives
- with
- her
- is
- both
- a
- blessing
- and
- a
- trial.
- And,
- oh
- yes,
- her
- ex-husband
- has
- married
- an
- extremely
- wealthy
- and
- politically
- connected
- woman
- who
- cannot
- give
- birth.
- So,
- Maddie’s
- ex
- is
- filing
- a
- motion
- to
- obtain
- permanent
- custody
- of
- their
- son,
- citing
- the
- risks
- attendant
- to
- Maddie’s
- police
- work
- endanger
- the
- boy.
If
- that
- were
- not
- enough,
- the
- brother-in-law
- of
- the
- chief
- of
- police
- is
- using
- his
- position
- as
- an
- administrative
- assistant
- to
- sexually
- harass
- Maddie.
- She
- could
- file
- a
- formal
- complaint,
- but
- the
- good-old-boys
- network
- in
- the
- department
- is
- watching
- how
- she
- handles
- the
- situation.
Further
- complicating
- Maddie’s
- life
- is
- two
- love
- interests:
- Gary
- Packard,
- a
- hunk
- who
- recently
- moved
- in
- across
- the
- street,
- and
- Lincoln
- Rogers,
- a
- confirmed
- bachelor,
- who
- lives
- thousands
- of
- miles
- away
- and
- works
- for
- the
- FBI.
As
- the
- case
- develops
- Maddie
- learns
- that
- the
- victims
- all
- wore
- the
- same
- bra
- size.
- She
- must
- decide
- if
- this
- is
- merely
- a
- coincidence
- or
- a
- criterion
- the
- killer
- uses
- when
- selecting
- his
- victims.
- She
- also
- finds
- that
- each
- of
- the
- victims
- is
- somehow
- connected
- to
- the
- Phoenix
- police
- department.
- This
- realization
- isolates
- her
- further
- as
- she
- must
- pursue
- the
- killer
- without
- disclosing
- this
- theory
- to
- her
- department
- because,
- if
- her
- suspicion
- is
- correct,
- the
- Beholder
- would
- learn
- she
- is
- closing
- in.
As
- the
- story
- races
- toward
- its
- climax,
- Maddie
- is
- betrayed
- by
- those
- closest
- to
- her,
- and
- she
- begins
- to
- believe
- her
- own
- name
- may
- be
- on
- the
- killer’s
- list.DEATH
- OF
- A
- BANKSTER
Maddie
- Richards
- finds
- herself
- in
- the
- middle
- of
- a
- case
- which
- starts
- with
- the
- sights
- and
- sounds
- of
- just
- another
- murder
- investigation.
- A
- woman
- claims
- her
- husband,
- a
- banker,
- was
- murdered.
- Later,
- Maddie
- learns
- that
- the
- woman
- had
- begun
- divorce
- proceedings
- the
- day
- before
- she
- claims
- a
- bullet
- had
- taken
- her
- husband
- from
- her.
- The
- murder
- greased
- her
- path
- to
- not
- only
- ending
- her
- marriage,
- but
- negating
- any
- need
- to
- divide
- their
- marital
- property.
- Then
- the
- wheels
- come
- off
- and
- nothing
- about
- Maddie’s
- case
- is
- what
- it
- seems.
Ryan
- Testler,
- last
- seen
- in
- David
- Bishop’s
- novel
- The
- Woman,
- guest
- stars.
- Maddie’s
- son,
- Bradley,
- and
- her
- mother,
- Rita,
- return
- as
- the
- stable
- underpinnings
- to
- Maddie’s
- life.
- On
- her
- day
- job,
- Maddie
- continues
- to
- work
- her
- strange
- and
- twisting
- investigation.
- At
- night,
- she
- is
- increasingly
- taken
- with
- the
- most
- unusual
- and
- fascinating
- man
- she
- has
- ever
- known—Ryan
- Testler.
- On
- his
- day
- job,
- Ryan
- carries
- out
- his
- latest
- mission
- in
- his
- usual
- over-the-line
- style.
- Along
- the
- way,
- the
- sparks
- between
- Maddie
- and
- Ryan
- get
- hotter
- and
- hotter
- while
- they
- struggle
- to
- resolve
- their
- conflicting
- views
- on
- justice
- and
- whether
- the
- end
- can
- justify
- the means.
