The Record Keeper  by Charles Martin

Another fabulous book in the Murphy Shepherd series. I read this book about as fast as I read any book. Did not want to put it down. As in the rest of the series, it deals with justice. This one also hits redemption and vengeance. In it we meet the head honcho who is behind the massive sex trafficking ring, the bombing of Freetown, the shooting of Murphy, and the burning down of Murphy’s island.

This book gives us a long backstory of the life of Bones. Who he is. How he became who he is. And his relationship to the evil man behind the sex trafficking. Some may find Martin’s technique of dropping these long expositions of Bones’ life in the middle of or just before heavy action annoying. It didn’t bother me and was fascinating enough to keep me going.

The action is typical of the series. Big boats, big guns, lots of bad people. And of course, Murphy, Bones and, team rescuing both boys and girls who have been stolen and are being trafficked. The story is another glimpse into the abhorrent evil that is sex trafficking. But in Martin’s usual tasteful style, as tasteful as a subject like this can be.

And like the other two books of the series, Martin has broad details about geography, boats, and guns. Maybe because it’s recent, but I also feel there was a lot more introspection from Murphy in this book. Heavy emotion.

Is this the last Murphy Shepherd? Not sure. Without giving away too much, the door has been left open. Martin is working on other projects, so we’ll have to see.

And like the other two, this is a clean read about a nasty subject. No profanity. No on page sex. No graphic or over the top violence.

A short review, but there isn’t anything to pick apart. It’s a fantastic book and it brings all the pieces together within the series.

Two for two this year. I’m going to put this as number one, so hopefully Mr. Ross won’t take that too hard.

1. The Record Keeper by Charles Martin
2. The Samaritan’s Patient by Chevron Ross

Commission earned