The Letter by Jo A. Hiestand

 

The Letter: A McLaren Mystery Prequel by Jo A. Hiestand
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Letter is the story of Barry Grady’s life. Barry is a character in the McLaren series, and this story tells us about his life before he graced the lives of Melanie and McLaren.

But this is much more than my little explanation. What this turned out to be for me was one of those stories you can’t put down. I found out that Barry had another life before I met him in McLaren’s world. He lived and worked another real life, well, ok, book life:) and a tragedy changed his life forever. I knew Barry in his “grown-up” life, but I wanted to know how he got here. Did he run away? Leave his family? Did he have a career, an education? Doesn’t sound like a little story of a single character, does it? It isn’t.

Jo Hiestand seems to bring out all these emotions in what is a fairly short read, 200+ pages. I was amazed that what is called a prequel could contain such a rich storyline full of events in Barry’s life and of the characters he met as he moved through each of his days. Every moment of it held my attention. Maybe it was the character Barry and how he lived his life, or maybe it was how much the author loved Barry, and her creation of him came alive in her writing of his story.

I don’t think you need to be familiar with the McLaren series to enjoy this book. I do think you’d be foolish to miss the chance to read such a good series.

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Storms by Jo A. Hiestand

 

Storms by Jo A. Hiestand
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’m a big fan of this author’s series, McLaren. This is one of the stories of the lives of her characters. The first story is about Michael McLaren. It’s a prequel called The Swim. This story is about his current lady love, Melanie.

Hiestand is incredibly good at writing series and each of her books can be read as a stand-alone. She creates wonderful characters and makes certain you know a little about past major events in their lives. That way the reader has a whole picture.

But this is the story of how Melanie got to be who she is today. I really enjoyed it. She endured a lot of trials, and each one affected her, created her fears, and built her strength.

There can be no question I want more McLaren series books, but I really enjoyed reading a bit about a character’s beginning and how she came to meet McLaren.

A quick read. Well done as are all the books in the series.




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The Swim

 

The Swim: A McLaren Crossed Paths Prequel by Jo A. Hiestand
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Swim is a prequel telling us about the life of one of my most favorite characters ever…Michael McLaren. The McLaren series is crafted around Michael McLaren, an ex-cop, moody, and yet tough and caring. He’s a solver of crimes and an advocate of justice. He isn’t disliked by cops by any means. He did something they all wished they had done, but he sure suffered for his actions.