Deaf Row

It was good overall. The characters were interesting and it had some great dialogue. I did struggle a bit with a great detective who can’t seem to understand basic everyday things.

Set in a small Colorado mountain town with a group of old-timers who call themselves “Deaf Row,” the story focuses on a decades-old murder and a retired urban cop who, with the help of his septuagenarian cohorts, begins to unravel the details of the crime. The pacing is steady and suspenseful, the aging characters developed with depth, compassion, and admiration, and the winter mountain setting drawn with such skill that the reader may reach for a blanket. Franscell’s vivid, textured, and witty writing captures the inevitable slide into invisibility that is growing old, the increasingly urgent nature of the crimes and the need to catch a killer, and the rejuvenating power of a team effort which shows that these old men may yet have more to contribute than one might expect. Deaf Row is a rollicking good read with a villain distilled from the likes of Kemper and Gein, enriched with a liberal infusion of the author’s extensive true crime genre expertise. Really hoping for a sequel!

This is my first book by this author.....but will NOT be my last. Wow! Loved the characters, loved the story, (okay, there were parts that were a bit gruesome....but), loved the idea of a retired cop working to solve a cold case to put his friend's dementia-ridden mind to rest. This was one I "thought" I'd figured out.....but......nope! Great ending! Highly recommend this book!

Author Ron Franscell is SUCH a masterful storyteller! Follow along as he introduces readers to Woodrow “Mountain” Bell and the gang of old men who are navigating the final chapter of their lives together. When Bell, a retired detective learns of a local cold case that haunts a friend, he sets out on one last adventure to solve the mystery. But it’s not an adventure, it’s a nightmare in which he learns that monsters are real!But reader beware! When you start this book you won’t want to put it down. It will drag you up snow-covered mountain roads, through gruesome discoveries, and keep you guessing until the bitter end.

Loved it all until the very end and the killer was revealed. Reminded me of a book I read years ago and didn’t like some of that subject matter either. Because of that this is the only book of his that I didn’t care for as much as the others. He is still my favorite author and I look forward to his next book