The Nurse Murders

This is not your “cozy” mystery. This is a hard core story along the lines of Dashiell Hammett and Elmore Leonard.

Set in Phoenix, AZ, during the Depression, the reader is immersed in a city dealing with corrupt cops, rival crime lords, g-men and familiar names known through history. In the midst of this, private eye Gene Hammond, finds himself on the hunt for a brutal killer targeting red headed nurses. Even though other cases intrude, his focus never strays far from this sadistic animal.

This is a thrill ride of the first order and the ending…well you need to read it for yourself. It is something else. I can’t wait for the next one!

Highly recommended!

Book : The Nurse Murders
Author : Jon Talton
Pub Date : 05 Dec 2023

Thank you NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, & the author for the opportunity to read and review this book.

There is a killer in Phoenix that is targeting red headed nurses and we follow Gene & Pamela as they try to outsmart a killer, solve and catch who’s committing these crimes.

This book is a wild ride. It absolutely is not your average mystery that is for sure! I started this book on the a long day of flights and man it sure kept me on my toes!!! By the time I finished this book I never had it figured out and my mind was blown. I am a huge sucker for detective mystery books. Be careful—you may get whiplash with the amount of twists and turns that this book brings.

I will be telling all of my book friends about this book. This would be a fun buddy read for sure!!!

I found this author many years ago when I stumbled upon his David Mapstone books. The Nurse Murders is his second book about Gene Hammons and they are also set in Phoenix but in the 1930s instead of nowadays. Jon Talton has a great way of weaving history with fiction and he sure knows Phoenix and that is one of many things I love about his writing. I saw that some readers out there reacted to his language in this series despite the fact that in the preface he explains why he choose to write the books this way. I for one love that the author goes the extra mile and makes the language true to the time they write in. The book in itself is a rather classic noir private detective story with many of the ingredients one would want in such a book. The only downside I can find with this series is the lack of more books to read. I can't wait to see what will happen in the next one. Talton is for sure one of my favorite authors. I am forever thankful to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for letting me read this great mystery I have loved this genre since before my teens and it will always hold a special place in my heart. Well done Mr. Talton.