Member Reviews
If you like police procedural novels then this is the book for you. It is a bit of a slow burner but that just helps to add to the building of the story. The main character is great and he is surrounded by an intersting cast to add depth
I highly recommend this book
Thank you NetGalley and Midnight Ink for the book in exchange for an honest review.
The first in a new series, HUNTING THE FIVE POINT KILLER is a mystery about a retired cop returning to his hometown when the local tv station hires him to investigate the deaths of 3 cops that happened 10 years ago. All 3 cops were investigating The Five Point Killer when they died. Could The Five Point Killer have killed those cops? Is the Five Point Killer still at large?
I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would when I first picked it up. At first, I thought the book had a few too many troupes, (the ex-cop who attracts all the ladies, a damsel in distress type reporter) but the characters started to grow on me, the plot started to pick up, and before you knew it I was fully invested in finding out who dun it.
Overall, this book could've been a bit shorter. There were some unnecessary investigations on the main characters part, but I would be interested in seeing how the rest of this series continues. Pick up this book if you are intersted in cop mysteries, serial killers, or if you're interested in starting a new series.
This is a great beginning to this new series, it has a warmth and heart that draws in the reader with ease. Arn, with his creaking bones, and bags of experience as a homicide cop makes a wonderful central character. I like him using a man bag, and he does not get fazed by the teasing he receives for it. I imagine that Danny and Ana will return as they serve as great supporting characters. I am sure their relationship with Arn will prove to be fruitful in future book. This is not as fast paced a read as some readers might like, but for me, it was perfect. A novel that I very much enjoyed reading
Ten years ago the Five Point Killer left behind a series of unsolved murders. Two detectives and their supervisor were also killed "accidentally" or by "suicide".
Arn Anderson has been hired by a TV reporter to look into those deaths. She thinks the Five Point Killer was responsible .. and she also thinks that he is back .. out of retirement, so to speak, the same as Anderson.
It gets personal when another lawman is killed ... and Anderson and the reporter are targeted. The killer gets close to kill them .. but doesn't. He likes playing cat and mouse games ... and he's very good at it.
This is a well-done introduction to a new crime series. The characters were well thought out and finely drawn. Anderson is a unique man, hard as nails on the outside, but soft and giving on the inside. It was fun having a front row seat and watching him take on a years old cold case, basically battling town residents who didn't want things rehashed ,ad not the police, who may have their own reasons.
The book held me enthralled from the very beginning. I look forward to reading the next story in this most interesting series.
Many thanks to the author / Midnight Ink / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
4.5 stars
This police procedural is set in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It is a fast paced story of the hunt for a serial killer. Am Anderson is a retired Denver police detective who was born and raised in Cheyenne. He is hired by a Cheyenne TV station to reopen several ten year old murders by the "Five Point Killer."
The local police are angry and initially don't cooperate. But Am and Ana Maria Villarreal, the tv reporter that is working the story rattle the killer who starts killing again. The book alternates between Am and the killer narrating. There were enough red herrings that I was not sure who the killer was until near the end..
One quote:
Huber smiled wide and Am could count the number of teeth on the toes of one foot."
Thanks to NetGalley and Midnight Ink Books for sending me this ebook.
Enthralling Thriller with Memorable Characters:
C M Weldelboe introduces us to a detective with a difference: Arn Anderson. A retired murder cop who served with the Metro Section of Denver PD.
This is an exceptional novel which mixes thrill with comedy to entertain the reader. Arn Anderson is an inspired character: as far from Jack Reacher as you can get but all the more realistic for it. He comes with the saying "Give Me The Headline".
Arn is called in as a consultant by the local TV Channel 5 to investigate the unsolved murder of Butch Spangler, also a cop, some 10 years previously. Butch had seemed close to resolving The Five Point Killer murders when he himself was murdered. But re-opening the investigation forces a killer out of retirement.
This is a truly thrilling read and contains twists and turns at the end deliberately to send the reader off in the wrong direction when guessing who the killer might be.
We are introduced to some memorable characters: Arn, who I've mentioned above, but we also get to meet Danny, a homeless native Indian who provides the backdrop for some very funny scenes. There's also Erv the electrician.
A really enjoyable read.
When sassy local TV reporter Ana Maria Villareal stirs up interest about the cold case murders of three Cheyenne Police Officers, she enlists the help of old friend and retired detective, Arn Anderson. The local police don't take too kindly to an interloper, even if that interloper's roots lie in Cheyenne, looking at cases they failed to solve first time round.
Arn's return to Cheyenne opens up baggage he thought he'd disposed of years previously when he re-opens his old family home and alongside his emotions and the investigation it seems that Ana Maria is being stalked. Is her stalker the serial killer the three dead officers were investigating at the time of their deaths. has he come out of retirement after so many years?
With a cast of characters from a handyman with an assumed name, to a retired detective, a smart TV reporter, a dodgy mechanic and one of the victim's sons, there is an abundance of suspects.
So, what did I like about this book? Well I liked the fact that Arn isn't your typical youngish cocksure, impulsive, detective. Arn's dead pan observations about his past abilities in comparison to his current ones is appealing and the hint of romance threaded neatly in is quite engaging too.
The mystery of the Five Point killer is magnified through chilling sections written from the killer's viewpoint. This gives the story a sort of aura of impending doom.
An interesting four star read for me.
I thought this was a good start to a new thiller series.
It had a lot of twists and kept me interested.
Do you enjoy thrilling mysteries with head-shaking twists that you won't see coming? If you do, HUNTING THE FIVE POINT KILLER is the book for you.
This is the first book in a new series following a retired former Denver Policeman named Arn Anderson.
Arn left Cheyenne many years ago and had planned never to return. That was before he lost both his beloved wife and his mother. After their deaths he became the sole owner of the now dilapidated, but once regal home built by his great-grandfather.
After leaving the house boarded up for almost a decade, Arn has decided to renovate and to bring it back to its former glory. However, renovations are more expensive and much more difficult than Arn had anticipated. So, when an old friend, a reporter for the local news channel, offers Arn a job helping her to investigate a cold case, Arn reluctantly agrees.
Thinking that he may rattle a few feathers, but not caring in the slightest, Arn puts his investigative talents to work.
What happens next will put lives in danger as the serial killer becomes active once again.
Author C.M. Wendelboe has mastered the art of character believability. Arn Anderson may be a brilliant detective, but he is also human. He has flaws, and is due to these flaws that he comes across as so "real." As readers learn more about Arn's past, the reasons behind some of his actions and behaviors become clear, exactly as it is in everyday life.
The Five Point Killer is unlike any other serial killer I have read about in the past few years and everytime I thought I had pinned down his (or her) identity, something else would happen to change my guess. Even the ending was unexpected and as far as I am concerned, this is the earmark of a truly great mystery. I rate this book as 5 out of 5 Stars. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The main protagonist is Arn Anderson, a former Denver detective who has been hired as a consultant for a TV programme fronted by reporter Ana Maria Villareal with the aim of investigating a 10 year old cold case in Cheyenne – the Five Point Killer. Clearly the local law enforcement is not happy with this turn of events as it smacks of criticism and places them in a bad light. Arn quickly comes to believe that two other deaths are linked to the Five Point Killer.
This is a really well thought out plot, providing tension and puzzles to keep you guessing. I did guess the identity of the killer but had my suspicions on another character as well, so though no great surprise at the identity, it kept me intrigued. There is a love interest in the unfolding but I was never comfortable with this, not because it was badly done but because I wanted better for Arn. So clearly I thought Arn was an interesting character but my favourite character was Danny and especially the interplay between Arn and Danny. Arn’s return to Cheyenne leads him to return to his mother’s near derelict house with a view to fixing it up only he discovers a ‘homeless’ person has taken up residence – Danny. Although his intention is to throw Danny out somehow he becomes a feature of the house, he persuades Arn to let him fix up the house in return for lodgings. Oh how I wish every house had a Danny he is a real treasure. Needless to say that I found the characterisation in this book to be well thought out and well-drawn.
Basically this is a police procedural but with a difference as it combines Ana Maria’s desire to sensationalise the outcome and reveal what happened through her TV reports. Each discovery or snippet of information Arn gets leads him further into danger as the Five Point Killer seeks to silence him.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.
Hunting the Five Point Killer promises to be the start of a good new series. Arn Anderson, a retired police detective from Denver is called to consult with a friend, a TV producer doing a ten year relook at a cold case involving the death of a police man. The assignment takes Arn back to Cheyenne, his hometown, and a place he never planned to return to. The reporter, Ana Maria Villarreal, becomes a main supporting character as Anderson looks into the case, and discovers that three cases involving the deaths of police men are not what they seem, and are indeed linked through evidence and a secret 'calling card' that wasn't picked up with before. Now, as the investigation gets closer to the truth, the serial killer takes up his game again, and more police deaths occur.
I liked the well-developed characters of Arn, Ana, and Danny, a homeless Indian who had been squatting in Arn's broken down home and helps him renovate it in exchange for a place to stay. The interactions of these three were interesting, felt real, and at times even comical. Friendships are being born.
I thought the story line was interesting and the author's background shows through in the details and realism of this police procedural.
What stopped me from rating it higher is that I felt it was too long in places and almost seemed as if we were revisiting the same thing (or same stuff, different body) over and over again, like Groundhog Day or a record that just replays over and over. At one point I actually called out, "Please, just get on with it!", which caused my husband to look up and question what I was talking about!!
Still, this first book in what I hope will be a series is interesting enough to make me want to read the next book.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Midnight Ink for approving me to read and review this book.
1.5 stars
I've been on a thriller reading kick lately, and most of them have actually been good. This one not so much. It wasn't horrible but well it sucked.
The main character is actually quite likeable. His name took me back to my redneck roots..Arn Anderson.
Yes, I just cringed when I realized how old I am.
The characters in this book are not the problem because this book has really good characters and could have really worked...and it did for most readers until I came and had to write a bad review.
The story is that Arn comes back to town because he has been hired to look into a police officer's death from ten years ago. A reporter named Ana Marie that Arn saved from a Koo-koo wants Arn to help her solve his murder along with several others. The others were killings that were chalked up to a serial killer that the press called "The Five Point Killer" due to the fact that he left one of those plastic police badges that kids got behind at the scenes.
That's not all the murders though..the police officer and his co-workers seem to tie into the murders also.
IKR?! Makes your head hurt already. But then it gets even worse. There is soooooo much repeating in this stinking book that I swear I could repeat half of it by heart...and I'm dumb. It got old really quick. I felt like the author thought I was stupid and he needed to repeat all the 'clues' over and over so that I would see how smart it was when it all came together.
I kept reading it to figure out if the killer (whose identity I screamed at the book about half-way through it) would just put everyone in the story out of their misery of being in this book.
I'm sad for the characters. Arn, Ana Marie and the "homeless" guy Danny deserved so much better.
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.
One of those small town mysteries that keep you guessing and hold your attention. The writter is definitely strong at setting a scene allowing you to feel as though you stepped into the book and his mind!
When a young and beautiful journalist recruits a retired cop to help her find the killer behind the murders of 3 cops decades earlier, will they find the killer before he finds them? It was a great book, I found most characters very well written and I welcomed the way Ana Maria, Arn, and the killer give their point of view of some events back to back. I have to say that I did not see the last twist coming, it had me at the edge of my seat, couldn't put it down towards the end. All in all a good book to make you look over your shoulder and check under your bed for a few nights. Thank you to C. M. Wendelboe, Midnight Ink, and NteGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
When Ana Maria Villereal, an old friend of Arn Anderson, calls and asks Anderson if he wouldn’t mind coming back to Cheyenne as a consultant for her while she is doing an investigative report on her local news station regarding the decade cold case dubbed "The Five Star Murders" and in which he accepts. He's a retired homicide detective from Denver who has worked with Villereal in the past and hasn't been back to Cheyenne since his mother's funeral. Anderson doesn't have a lot of fond memories of Cheyenne, but he has a few loose ends that he needs to tie up while he's there as well as working with Villarreal as sort of a liaison with the Cheyenne Police department. The local police are not helpful at all regarding this case where two men were brutally murdered, they think they have the killer nailed just not enough evidence to charge him. Anderson is met with the blue wall when he tries to get additional information regarding the murder of the lead homicide detective in charge of the case. Not long after the lead detective’s murder, his two partners while working the case died mysteriously. After these three last deaths, the killing has stopped, the main suspect was having an affair with the lead detective's wife who also was killed in an accident. There is nothing mysterious about these deaths as far as Anderson is concerned. Since Anderson isn’t getting much cooperation from the police department, he needs to attend to the other business that brought him back to his hometown. He still owns his mother’s house which has sat vacant for several years and it’s a total mess. The elements haven’t been kind to it especially with all the snow and arctic-like temperatures. When he approaches the house, he hears music and then sees a long extension cord coming from a neighbor’s home that’s providing the power to his old house. Anderson discovers he has a very crafty squatter, Jerry. They work out a deal since it’s freezing out and Jerry looks like he’s made himself a nice little place that he can stay if he agrees to help Anderson renovate the house so he can either sale it or move back into the house. Since his wife passed away he has nothing keeping him in Denver. They have a pretty good deal going unless Arn tries to ask Jerry too many questions regarding his past. As the nightly show progresses Villereal finds that she is doing exactly what she wants, she’s drawing the killer out of seclusion and finds herself in real danger. They are both up to their necks in danger and more people are getting killed as they get closer to the killer. This mystery is a true case of cat and mouse, it’s like the killer is playing with Anderson and it’s getting very deadly. This is a great new series and I can’t wait for the next book to be released. I found it to be very fast paced with a lot of subtle hints as to who the killer could be. It kept me guessing right up until the end. I would like to thank Midnight Ink Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this e-galley in exchange for my honest review.
This book would make a great cable tv mystery series. It made me fell like I was in the West.
Wendelboe's background and expertise in law enforcement is put to excellent use in this procedural involving a retired detective helping a tv reporter work on a cold case in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Arn Anderson has his issues, including grief and too much debt, but he works well with Ana Maria, who is not his love interest. They're chasing a serial killer, who also has a voice. No spoilers but this is a nicely atmospheric and well written twisty mystery that should keep you guessing. Thanks to Netgalley for this page turner. It hits several sweet spots- serial murders, odd couple investigators, Wyoming- and does it well.
Former Denver homicide detective, Arn Anderson has been called back into duty. This time around he’s moonlighting as a consultant for a TV news program, hired to look into a cold murder case. TV reporter Ana Maria Villareal believes that the unsolved murder of a former cop is linked to the Five Point Killer cases that happened in Cheyenne ten years ago.
Once the killer gets wind that the investigation is back open, he decides to come out of retirement as well and starts to hunt down any and everyone who might know anything about the previous cases. Each time Arn and Ana Maria think they are ahead of the curve and onto something, the killer is right there to try and stop them from learning any new information. Cheyenne just happens to be Arn’s hometown and he’ll have to deal with some past ghosts as he works to solve the case. The killer has Arn and Ana Maria in his crosshairs. Will they be able to solve the case before they become a victim?
Wendelboe delivers a unique take on a police procedural in HUNTING THE FIVE POINT KILLER by using a former detective turned consultant and the lead character. The reader is able to follow along with Anderson’s excellent detective work and gain a glimpse into the news side of an investigation at the same time through Ana Maria. I was confident that I had cracked the case early on, but with each new chapter I found myself second guessing my hunch. In the end I turned out to be correct, but the journey to the truth was a brilliant ride with twists, turns, and red herrings enough to earn almost every Cheyenne resident a seat on my suspects list. As the temperature outside begins to cool down, take a step into a Wyoming winter and join Arn and Ana Maria in the race to find the Five Point Killer!
Thank you to C.M. Wendelboe, Midnight Ink, and NetGalley for providing me a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
A good thriller with many twists and turns. Keeps you enthralled right through to the end