The Bitter Past combines old world espionage, a small town police force and the allure of Area 51. The story is told from present day crimes with links to the past, as the reader gets to revisit 1950's nuclear testing in the Nevada desert.

Hello Porter Beck, county sheriff and former Army intelligence agent. Beck finds himself summoned to a crime scene where a former FBI agent has been brutally murdered. When the FBI shows-up, he recognizes this is more than it seems. What begins is a action packed thriller, as Sheriff Beck uncovers clues leading to the KGB and nuclear secrets.

Simple dislike, the sexualization of the female FBI agent. Beck continuously kept referencing her attractiveness and his desires for her rather than treating her a professional in the field. But then again, maybe she used him for his wants as they did take a tumble in the sheets.

I look forward to future book in this series, Porter Beck.

Thank you St. Martin's Press / Minotaur Books for the complimentary copy.

I was hooked out of the gate. This book tells 2 parallel stories: One follows a Russian spy in the United States Cold War era in the 1950s working at the Nevada Proving Ground where nuclear bombs are being tested out in the open; the other follows County Sheriff Porter Beck, present-day, who has a body that was tortured for hours and no clue why until FBI Agent Sana shows up because this man was a retired FBI agent originally tasked with finding this Russian spy but never did.

Sheriff Beck is an instant favorite character - he's witty, smart, flawed, and dedicated. His sister Brinn, a spitfire weapons expert to the stars, is a close second. I normally have a trigger on anything having to do with dementia/Alzheimers - having lived it with my dad, but his dad was in very early stages and it was such a small part of the book that it was okay.

The plot had me picking up this book whenever I could. Lots of history, action, and a twist I would have never seen coming in a million years. I'm excited to see that this is the start of a new series as I'm on board to visit the middle of nowhere Nevada again asap.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press Minotaur Books for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

"Sometimes dead people can tell you things."

They can even tell you long ago secrets with world ending consequences. Reading and listening to the remarkable The Bitter Past by brilliant author Bruce Borgos was a perfect reminder why I started this review page. I want everyone to be aware of this first, in a hopefully never ending series, about Lincoln County Sheriff Porter Beck.

Beck, grew up in the small desert town north of Las Vegas, known for cancer victims, miscarriages, and birth defects, close to the nuclear testing sites of the 1950s. After years working deep undercover for Army intelligence he returns home to quietly care for his town and elderly father in the beginning stages of dementia.

But nothing is quiet after an older retired FBI agent is found brutally tortured to death in his home. Now the FBI is all over his town, though he can't complain about Agent Sana Locke, "Sure ask me tough questions while I'm staring at her beautiful face."

As this murder investigation takes twisty turns we are transported back to 1957 where few cared about the effects of nuclear testing, Russian spies try to infiltrate the site, and one man changes the course of history to save the world.

The performances by actor James Babson are nothing short of transformative as each character is brought to life. I never expected to be brought to tears at the end of this emotional thriller, to care about characters that are supposed to be the enemy, and to love Beck's family. The shocking reveal just about destroyed me. I had an inkling, hoped I was wrong but this writer made it real and honest.

The Bitter Past is thrilling, sensitive, historical, witty, sexy, and the reason I love to read.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Unfortunately, I wasn't a fan of this one. The plot was ok, but what really got to me was Sheriff Beck's attitude towards the female agent, Sana. So many unnecessary comments about her appearance, her figure, their potential future togethert (even though they'd literally just met). Anyone else who made those types of comments toward a female colleague would most likely be charged with sexual harassment. I understand it's a small part of the book but it bugged me and affected my opinion on the rest of the story.

Wow, how did I not know about Bruce Borgos and his crazy terrific crime drama thriller writing. The Bitter Past combines elements of almost true historical fiction, close to true police procedural with characters that smack even closer to true. I say this in the most complimentary way, Borgos had me channeling Steve Berry vis-a-vis certain Cotton Malone and Luke Daniels escapades.

Borgos sets this story in Lincoln County, the high desert of eastern Nevada. It’s a place of rough terrain, tough people and grisly murders. The story opens on a violent murder crime scene which is described in minute detail. Within several pages there is no doubt that no one has any idea of what is going on. This is the start of a very interesting story that will travel back and forth in time, politics, and personalities.

Borgos conjures a scenario that reminded me of all the things we were taught to fear during the Cold War Era. A timely retelling of all those stories about the desert tests in the time of Robert Oppenheimer; the red communist threat and the importance of being first in the arms race. Scary stuff told with a clear eye and definitive voice, tweaked with some mild humor.

I now have another favorite character in Porter Beck to add to my, sometimes wise cracking, white hat heroes, of Cotton Malone and Luke Daniels. Many thanks to Minotaur Books / St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy.

The Bitter Past, the first in a new series, involves new Sheriff, Porter Beck, a lifelong resident of this small Utah town, except for a stint in the Army. He is dealing with the merging of two departments and mixed feelings arising from that when the badly mutilated body of a former FBI agent is found. While the agent had retired, it was obvious he hadn’t given up a case that obsessed him. When a non-local FBI agent arrives, Beck realizes that there is more going on than just the death of a former FBI employee. Interwoven with the current mystery is the story of Freddie Meyer, not his real name, who is a Soviet spy sent to obtain information about the heavily guarded and secretive Area 51 and the atomic testing going on there. The Bitter Past merges the past and the present in a thrilling, very page-turning, mystery.

I am a sucker for a well written mystery, but when you throw in a chunk of history that I’m ignorant of, I am one happy camper. Although I do have to say that my elation at learning new history in this case was tempered by the fact that it concerned unsavory dealings by the US government–which seems to be an ever-growing list. In this case, the alarming misdeed was knowingly subjecting people and animals to nuclear fall out to see what the consequences would be. Before I start a tangential ranting, I’ll stop right there.

The Bitter Past is well written with multi-faceted and interesting characters. Porter Beck is a well-thought-out and fascinating character who I would happily read about in future installments. His previous career in Army intelligence adds a significant layer to the story. As well, the secondary characters add appeal and quirk.

While knowing “who-did-it” is always half or more of the fun, the how-are-you-doing-to-catch-him in this instance was equally fun.

A good read.

Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Bitter Past by Bruce Borgos is a well written crime fiction novel that I enjoyed.

The story is told in alternating timelines. Historical mystery fiction and spies.

It is 1950'sand a Russian spy has disrupted a nuclear testing site.

I really enjoyed the characters and the mystery.

A story that takes you back in time while investigating a death in the present. Porter Beck the sheirfff in a small desert town North of Las Vegas thinks it is a death then a murder at first, until the FBI has an agent arrive. He then puts together that it is more detailed than that especially when the agent is from Wahington and not a local Vegas office. Turns out the victim has a past with the cold war and that could be the reason for his murder. The book will take you back as well into the fifties when the cold war was at its height. I like the story and the characters everything about this book was right up my alley and a really good read.

Mystery | Adult
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Another gritty mystery set in the sparsely populated western United States – ideal for fans for C.J. Box and Craig Johnson, and to a lesser extent, J.A. Jance. Porter Beck is retired U.S. Army Intelligence and a relatively new sheriff in a remote corner of Nevada where people go to hide and be left alone. When a retired FBI agent is brutally murdered (the detail is disturbing), Beck knows there’s a lot more behind the death than a mere druggie looking to score some electronics, which is what his deputy thinks. Then the FBI shows up, looking to find out who would be after one of their own, and soon Beck figures out the feds are hiding more than they are sharing. Flashbacks to the 1950s contribute to a plotline that involves nuclear testing, Soviet spies, a tragic love story, and a lot of lies mixed in with just enough truths to keep the reader fascinated. Borgos has developed a complex character in Beck, with a tantalizing backstory, a fascinating family, and the requisite high degree of moral certitude that characterizes these western lawmen dispensing justice. The remote and desolate Nevada landscape is as important a character as any human, and I look forward to reading more of these mysteries. Just hang in there past the description of the body in the opening pages…. The author’s afterword is a delight to read, by the way! My thanks to Minotaur Books for the digital reading copy provided through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
More discussion and reviews of this mystery: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61884882

Oh this book. I am so mixed up about it. I really enjoyed the different timelines. The sections in the past where by far my favorite. I liked putting the past and present together. I liked most of the characters. Unfortunately, the two main characters just irked me. The way they behaved was completely inappropriate and ubelievable when it came to their relationship. I would have had them edit that part completely out. It was just bad. There were a few predictable “twists” that I don’t need to go into. Just say, there was one character right off the bat that just seemed all wrong. And nobody did even a crusory check. This is the first in a series. I may read the second to see if it gets better.

The Bitter Past is a masterful blend of mystery and historical fiction, engaging readers with its vivid descriptions of the Nevada desert and its secrets. Borgos' ability to intertwine past and present seamlessly adds depth and complexity to the plot, ensuring a thrilling and unpredictable reading experience.

With its compelling characters, well-researched historical backdrop, and a plot filled with unexpected twists, this novel is sure to leave readers eager for more of Sheriff Porter Beck's high desert adventures.

I loved this book and I hope the author turns it into a series! I can already picture this as a television show. This had great characters, especially Porter Beck, the sheriff of a very large county in Nevada and a small staff of deputies to cover thousands of miles. This story flips back and forth between a horrific murder in current times and the bomb testing during the fifties. The many layers of the main characters are peeled back revealing more of their personalities, experience and abilities. The ending was exciting and honestly, I couldn’t read this book fast enough. Bruce, please write another one!

Thank you to St Martin's Publishing and NetGalley for providing a digital copy of the book. All opinions expressed are my own.

After recently reading biographies and historical fiction, it was nice to pick up a killer "who done it."

The book follows Porter Beck who followed his father as county sheriff in a sparsely populated area of Nevada. The location was where the government performed nuclear tests in the 1950's. The story weaves together some history of the nuclear arms race, espionage, and local sheriff trying to do good. There are enough twists to keep the reader engaged. It is not a complicated read, just a good summer read. There was enough interest for me to look for the second in the series to see how the character develops.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy.

While I thought the setting and plot of this book were really interesting, the overall story just didn't work for me.
We get to timelines, and I didn't really find the one from the past holding my attention. Porter Beck seems to be the best Sheriff ever, and with any problem that comes up he either already has it figured out, or knows someone that can help right off the bat. I also hated every interaction he had with Agent Sana. There are some great action-packed moments and some interesting things at play. but over all this book just isn't for me.

A good mystery/thriller that will keep you turning the pages.

Honestly, I had to walk away after reading the first page and think the author didn't need to get quite as descriptive, but I get he was going for shock and using it to build the tension and danger that would come later.

Porter Beck, the lead character, took a bit to grow on me. He's kind of a jerk and slightly arrogant (slightly being on the nice side). I'm kind of tired of the pissing matches in books and movies between law enforcement agencies, especially when it's right out the gate as it was here. Sana Locke, the lead female/FBI agent was written in a manner that made me think the author was sexist, not that the agent was inept...so I think that could have been done better. However, Beck's sister, Brinley was totally fascinating and made me rethink the "sexist author" issue. Other side characters added charm and depth to the story (Tuffy, the Greens, Arshal).

The dual timeline was interwoven well, deepening the mystery between the past and present. I found myself just as interested in how things panned out in the past for those characters as they would in the present-day story and for Beck and Sana.

Overall, it was a good mystery/thriller/spy novel that kept me engaged (although, I did figure out who the Russian was hunting but that's nothing new) with lots of twists and turns.

Wow, what a spy thriller! I loved this story of a modern day sheriff investigating the death of a retired FBI agent. The setting is near the site of a nuclear testing site from decades the 1950s. Soon the investigation sends him on the hunt for a Russian spy from decades ago.

I really enjoyed this dual timeline thriller, the questions of what if a Russian spy had infiltrated the Nevada test site and has been living in the community for decades, the police procedural and all the family twists that came to light for the Sheriff.

Great debut!

This is a test!

In the tradition of Craig Johnson and C. J. Box, Bruce Borgos's The Bitter Past begins a compelling series set in the high desert of Nevada featuring Sheriff Porter Beck…

Porter Beck is the sheriff in the high desert of Nevada, north of Las Vegas. Born and raised there, he left to join the Army, where he worked in Intelligence, deep in the shadows in far off places. Now he's back home, doing the same lawman's job his father once did, before his father started to develop dementia. All is relatively quiet in this corner of the world, until an old, retired FBI agent is found killed. He was brutally tortured before he was killed and clues at the scene point to a mystery dating back to the early days of the nuclear age. If that wasn't strange enough, a current FBI agent shows up to help Beck's investigation.

On the high deserts of Nevada the US performed open air testing of nuclear bombs. It was closely guarded activity, and a ripe target for espionage from our enemies, particularly the Soviet Union. The Bitter Past is set in current day as a rural Sherriff and his team search to solve a murder. Soon joined by a federal agent it becomes a man hunt for a former Soviet spy that had infiltrated the testing site, pulled off the biggest heist ever in the world at the time, and ultimately betrayed his country. For years he was presumed dead, but recent information informed the Russians that one of their greatest traitors was alive, and they are out for blood.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced with some flashbacks to the past to fill in gaps and develop the entire back story. The characters were well developed, and I actually cared for them. I also loved the setting, in the remote deserts of Nevada. The setting is almost another character in the story with the history it holds, as well as the barren and hostile landscape.

As an added bonus, the cinematic film Oppenheimer will soon be released. I suspect it will dovetail nicely with this book.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an advance reader copy in exchange for my thoughts and opinions.

"My whole life is not what I thought it was", muses the main character towards the end of this excellent new novel of suspense and mystery from Bruce Borgos. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this upcoming release.
Porter Beck, Beck to one and all, definitely has a lot to unpack as we travel through a mysterious case, one which has its roots in the Cold War and Nuclear Testing of the 1950s, but has taken root in present the present day, when a former FBI agent is found murdered - and in a most gruesome way.
The FBI sends one of its own to oversee the investigation, and it quickly becomes apparent that secrets from the past are coming home to roost.
Not only was the agent killed investigating the possibility of a Soviet spy somehow involved in a past terrorist event, but also the near certainty that there are operatives in the present trying - with devastating results - to find him and bring him back to Russia.
We are taken back to America's past and the Nuclear Proving Grounds in Nevada and fast-forwarded to the future where it rapidly becomes clear that the present danger is closer than Sheriff Beck knows.
All of the characters in this gripping story are well-drawn, and the author shows an in depth knowledge (thanks to much research, I'm sure) of what went on in the 1950s and how it has ramification even today - although this IS a work of fiction, it is also believable on many levels.
Death by torture, kidnappings, chases through the desert... all of these lead us to a startling conclusion, and one that even Beck could not imagine.
Recommended

CW: torture, misogyny

Lots of names to keep track of, a shifting timeline, point-of-view changes...there are things to work at in this read, as well as a graphic account of torture and aftermath. They are all necessary, not just stylistic choices.

What I liked the best about the read was the melding of police procedural in the present with espionage thriller in the past told with a good leavening of snark. This is a read that agreed with my desire to be involved in a story not just a passenger on a train to a known destination. The publisher's comparisons to C.J. Box and Craig Johnson are apt. I'm a sucker for a series set in a place I don't want to go, and that included all deserts...especially irradiated ones! I could *feel* the dryness as I read along.

I found the polygamous-Mormons subplot to be tacked-on and found it contributed nothing to my experience of the read.