Deadly Pursuit  by Elle Gray

The second novella of the year for me. This one features justice and sets up vengeance. The redemption has already occurred for Pax Arrington. This novella is a prequel to the Pax Arrington series, of which I’ve read book one. You can read that review here. I enjoyed that novel and recommend it.

I find Pax Arrington a fascinating character. He’s from a wealthy family but has given that up, as well as the heir to the family business, because of his wife. Instead, he’s become a Seattle police officer wanting to help make things right in the world.

This novella shows us the background of Pax, his days with the Seattle police department. In the novels, he’s a private detective.

Unfortunately, I feel Ms. Gray rushed through this novella. It could have been a novel. It could have been number one in the series. The case that Pax finds himself involved in revolves around corruption in the police force. Plenty of material to work with. I feel Ms. Gray did an info dump of who Pax is, why he’s a cop, his relationship with his wife, and other background material. In writer’s parlance, there was a lot of “tell” and not a lot of “show”.

The tension in the story for me is that I know what’s going to happen eventually, having read the first book, so I’m waiting for that shoe to drop. For the reader coming to this first, what I’d say is breeze through this to get the background, then pick up I See You, the first Pax Arrington book. It’s much better written than this novella.

A few instances of mild profanity, but none of the big words. No on page sex and no gratuitous violence. Overall, I’d call it a clean read.

Important background of Pax Arrington to set up the novel series. But disappointing in its presentation. Too rushed. Too much telling. I’ll rank this number seven of those read this year. Even this one gets a three-star rating, so not a complete dud.

1. The Record Keeper by Charles Martin
2. The Samaritan’s Patient by Chevron Ross
3. The Maid by Nita Prose
4. The Dark Wind by Tony Hillerman
5. A Vanishing Act by Edwina Kiernan
6. Cali’s Hope by John Matthew Walker
7. Deadly Pursuit by Elle Gray

Commission earned