In the Belly of Jonah, by Sandra Brannan

So I wouldn't disturb my sleeping husband, I crept back out to my living room late last night to finish this book. I also may...have turned on every single light, locked the doors, and begged both my dog and cat to come out with me and sleep on the couch with me while I read.

Liv Bergen is a young woman working as a division manager for a successful quarry in Colorado. When one of her employees is discovered murdered, surrounded by bizarre objects and gruesomely mutilated, she becomes involved in the case, suggesting possible explanations for the FBI's unanswered questions of how and why the killer may have done what he did, all the while wondering if her suggestions are absurd. When an old college friend, now an FBI agent, visits Liv's town to work on the case, she becomes even more involved, presenting plausible answers for the most confusing aspects of the case.

While a serial killer is frightening, the manner in which he is killing is even more disturbing. Liv's employee is discovered with a window cut cleanly into her body, a perfect rectangle with everything that would be in that section of her body completely removed. What could cut a body like that, and who would do it? Who could do it?

Sandra Brannan's first installment in the Liv Bergen Mystery Series is a serial killer story unlike others. Peppered with wit, self-deprecation, and moments of stunning brutality, In the Belly of Jonah magically captures the intense paths of both the serial killer and the one in which to stop him. This killer is freakish, elusive, but generally "normal," inasmuch as someone who likes to kill, can be. Liv is honest and real, innocently figuring out each step of the puzzle to its frightening conclusion. Liv is a smart chick who can easily hold her own with the best of them - whether they are part of her quarry-mining team or with the FBI, she's not one to back down. And in this story, she can't back down because whether she likes it or not, she has a serial killer to stop.

If you like Harlan Coban and Patricia Cornwall, you should probably rush right out to get this one for your bookshelf.

Happy Reading,

Coffee and a Book Chick

About the Author

After living in Wyoming, Washington, D.C., Washington State, and Colorado, Sandra Brannan returned to her hometown in South Dakota, where she is surrounded by family. She enjoys working with relatives in the mining business; living in the Black Hills with her husband, Joel; smiling with pride over the journeys taken by her four sons; doting over her three grandchildren; and appreciating all of life's blessings, too many to count. Sandra's forthcoming titles in her Liv Bergen mystery thriller series are Lot's Return to Sodom, Widow's Might, and Noah's Rainy Day.

Get frequent updates by visiting her Facebook page or following her on Twitter.