Another great installment in the Jessie Cole series.

Thank you #netgalley and #thomas&mercer for the eARC.

Thank you to #NetGalley for this ARC of #Deranged

This is the third book in the Jessie Cole series. Ragan provides sufficient background that it can easily be read as a stand-alone but as with most series, it benefits the reader to start from the beginning of the series to get a comprehensive catalogue of the characters.

Private investigator Jessie Cole lives in Sacramento and was recently saved from a serial killer by her friend and investigative crime reporter, Ben Morrison. Coming off the cuffs of committing murder to save his friends, Ben begins to question his past. A past he can’t remember due to an accident that left him with amnesia. As Jessie helps Ben dig deeper into his childhood and the years leading up until the accident, she gets push back from everyone she encounters and a description of a man she doesn’t recognize as her friend. Is Ben really the family man he portrays himself to be or are the strangers of his past giving a better account of him as a man with dark, violent tendencies? And when new threats emerge to threaten Ben’s friends and family, will he be able to keep himself together?

While the story was told from multiple vantage points, Ragan still held a tight plot and was able to keep the story suspenseful. The character development for this book was focused on Ben more so than anyone else. For readers looking for a deeper character profile it would be recommended to start with book one of the series. This is a great, quick read. Good for a weekend getaway. 4 stars

This is the third in the series featuring Jessie Cole, a private investigator in Sacramento, California. It's a good one, but I do strongly suggest reading the other two first. In large part, that's because all the recurring characters have storied (and very troubled) pasts; with so many in the mix here, it helps, I'm sure, if readers already have a leg up on what's happened in the past. I read the first, and I have no doubt I'd have enjoyed this one more if I'd had the second under my belt as well.

At the epicenter here is Jessie's friend Ben Morrison, who is an investigative reporter with a past he can't remember, courtesy of an auto accident. But while Jessie believes in him, plenty of other folks from his past claim he's got a mean, sadistic streak that he's trying to hide. That includes Ben's father, who's in jail for murder (in fact, he insists Ben is "deranged"). Other early-on characters include Jessie's teenage niece Olivia, who lives with her aunt; Jessie's assistant Zee Gatley, who needs meds to control her schizophrenia but is nonetheless colorful and fun; and Colin Grayson, a local homicide detective with whom Jessie has an on-again, off-again romantic relationship.

To kick off the action, a young woman turns up dead in a barn; just as that investigation gets underway, Zee agrees to take on the case of a man who's looking to prove his wife is having an affair (Jessie eschews domestic cases, but Zee wins this battle, in large part because the firm can use the hefty retainer). Meantime, Jessie is trying to uneath Ben's real backstory; she sees him as a friend, but could it be that he really does have a history of violence? Speaking of violence, I must mention that while it doesn't bother me, there's some super-salty language and [brief] descriptions of lewd sexual acts here that might be offputting for those who may be sensitive about such things.

Other murders follow, leading to the suspicion that a serial killer may be at work. Throw in the coach of an athletic team on which Ben's daughter plays; Ben thinks he's up to no good, putting him at odds with his wife and daughter, both of whom think he practically walks on water. Ben's father, Lou, threatens his psychological counselor at Folsom Prison in an effort to get out of jail free. Chapters shift from the perspectives of several characters (plus from that of the killer, whoever he or she may be). While I'm not a huge fan of this technique, it's done well enough that I have no complaint at all.

But the big question is, do any of these goings-on relate to Ben's past and the person he really is? If so, how? Those questions get answered for the most part, with plenty of fodder left for the next book (said to hit the presses early in 2019). Overall, this is an enjoyable, fast-paced read - and I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to review an advance copy.

What harrowing ride from start to finish. I was so worried about things after the way the second book ended. Even in this book the author still puts you through the ringer until the very end.

This is edge of your seat suspense at it best. Cant wait to see what's next.

This is Book 3 of 4 in Jessie Cole (4 Book Series). I highly recommend starting with the very first book. This book 'can' be read as is, but there are a lot of details that will not be here.

PI Jessie Cole is helping her friend, Ben Morrison who was an investigative reporter. An accident left him with amnesia ... he remembers nothing of the past before that accident.

While Jesse tries to help, Ben is having what he thinks are flashbacks ... and they scare him beyond belief. No one who remembers Ben is willing to talk to him about his past .. not even his own sister. And those who do—including his father, imprisoned for a shocking crime—are stirring disturbing memories given up for dead.

Jessie has also been hired by a suspicious husband, Easton West. Normally she doesn't do 'cheater' cases, but her assistant took on the job in her absence. But things really turn deadly when the wife and her lover are found murdered. . They bear the trademark wounds of an elusive serial killer who’s now leading Jessie down a chilling path—one that’s about to put a dangerous twist in the search for Ben’s identity.

There are more secrets to be uncovered .. putting them all at risk. Highly suspenseful, this well written novel keeps the reader riveted to the fast-paced action. Bodies drop and they all have one thing in common .. but it takes a Homicide Detective's new partner to figure it out.

I love the personal relationships that take place behind the scenes. Jessie's niece, who she is raising, has become a teenager, with all that entails. Jessie and her off-and-on again boyfriend, a detective, seem to be moving their relationship a little further. Ben is an engaging character ... hard to picture him as a killer .. but is he? And Zoe .. one of my favorites. She's Jessie's assistant ... a schizophrenic on meds to keep the voices as bay ... someone who's trying to be normal. She's funny .. and has a knack for being in the investigation business.

This has been a terrific series and I look forward to the finale .... BURIED DEEP.

Many thanks to the author / Thomas & Mercer / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.