Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book for Rosie’s Review Team.

This is a story set in the 1980s mostly in Los Angeles. The two main protagonists are LAPD Detective Nick Blaine and his partner, Phillips.

Faced with solving the crime of the murder of a young man who seemed to be loved by everyone, they’re led on a quest through the gay community of Los Angeles looking for any possible motive.  Blaine pretty quickly settles on a suspect or two, but kept an open mind for a while.

Blaine eventually enters into quite a cat and mouse game with the suspect he eventually settles on. The case takes him and his partner from Los Angeles to Chicago and even to Louisiana and Mississippi.

The story was interesting and held my attention. A couple of misused words threw me out of the story a few times, such as throws for throes and taught for taut.

Other than these small nits to pick, the story held up well and I liked the tenacity of the detectives in not letting the case grow cold as it so easily could have. They persevered and worked to find proof that their suspect was the right one.

It seems this will be a series (or it may already have earlier books) and I’m sure I’ll pick up the next one as well. An enjoyable, easy read.

Four stars

BLURB:

From the real life experiences of an award winning LAPD detective comes the riveting novel Measured Deception.

Justice doesn’t always come to those who seek it. Sometimes, in this world, justice is denied…

After twenty soul bending years as a detective with the LAPD, Sergeant Nick Blaine thought he knew evil. That was until he came across the murder of Ainsley Brown, a charismatic young gay man trying to live unapologetically in 1980s Los Angeles. Popular on the social scene, Ainsley was beloved by all but one man. The man who loved him so much he would rather see Ainsley dead than with another. Yet, the murders don’t stop with Ainsley Brown. Before he’s able to catch his killer, Nick Blaine will find himself taken from the streets of L.A. to the bayou of Louisiana and back again, all while hot on the heels of a killer.

Having suffered heart-breaking loss, Blaine must not only solve the case, he must also figure out a way to find comfort and solace in a world determined to let his demon chase him. With every step Blaine and his faithful partner in crime, Detective Phillips, find themselves falling deeper into a cesspool of murder, drugs, and sex. Will they be able to stay afloat?