Publication Day Review: The Girl from Devil’s Lake: A Brady Novel of Suspense by J. A. Jance

 

The Girl from Devil’s Lake: A Brady Novel of Suspense by J. A. Jance is one of those books where the reader knows the identity of the killer almost from the beginning. This is done by way of alternating chapters from the killer’s point of view. The book opens in Fertile, Minnesota, in 1956 where a child hears voices in his head and eventually kills. That prologue is followed by numerous chapters detailing the point of view of the killer that strikes again and again. Eventually, the killer relocates to Bisbee, Arizona, and continues his work, undetected, while becoming a pillar of the local community in a variety of ways.

 

The same Bisbee, Arizona, where in the time of the main storyline, November 2023, Sheriff Joanna Brady just recently won reelection. Her department is under intense strain due to the political climate, things at the border, jail over population, being short staffed, and other factors. Her tenure as the Sheriff for the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department will continue. As a result, her daughter, Jenny, who is about to graduate from the Arizona Police Officer Academy, will be accepting a job to go to work in Pima County. Sheriff Brady not only will be in attendance at graduation to see Jenny graduate, Sheriff Brady will be giving the main graduation speech. So, it is a big event for all involved.

 

A lot of things have changed since Sheriff Brady graduated decades ago after her first election in the wake of her first husband’s death, but hazing and sexism is still a huge problem. While noting that and calling it out, she also notes in her speech the fact that in the decades since she graduated, the world of law enforcement has gotten darker and more violent. That the border, drug trafficking human smuggling, and the cartels are just a few of the reasons that things are more difficult and dangerous now that they were when she first started out. Now she not only has to worry about her safety and the safety of those under her command she also, like any other parent, has to worry about her daughter as she takes her first real job in law enforcement.

 

A few days later, just after Thanksgiving, as the rain pours down on Bisbee and the surrounding area, Sheriff Brady gets a call that pulls her away from the family and their delayed Thanksgiving celebration. Floods are happening and her people are on it and handling everything well. But, a highway worker trying to clear debris from a local bridge so that the flood waters could move through unimpeded has found a duffle bag wedged in a debris pile. Inside that bag was the body of a young child.

 

The waters of the San Pedro River originate somewhere in Mexico before crossing the border and making their way to the bridge near St. David. So, though the body was recovered here, the young boy probably came from Mexico. She knows Captain Arturo Peña, head of the Federales unit in Naco, Sonora, really well and has worked with him many times. That will come in hand as the case is complicated and crosses both sides of the border.

 

It is also the first death in the here and now of the main storyline as the walls begin to close in on a local serial killer who has killed for decades.

 

The Girl from Devil’s Lake: A Brady Novel of Suspense by J. A. Jance is marketed as the 21^st book in this long running series. As such, it does not break any new ground with these long-established characters. Not that it was expected as that would be out of form for the series and this author.

 

As a reader, I personally find chapters from the point of view of the nutjob killer, in this case one who has gotten away with it for decades, tedious and completely unnecessary. In my opinion, it is clichéd writing that almost does nothing expect pad word and page counts. However, it must work for many readers as authors continue to write it and publishers release books with it right and left. So, if you like it, you will be happy here as there is a lot of it.

 

Overall, despite the caveats mentioned above, The Girl from Devil’s Lake: A Brady Novel of Suspense by J. A. Jance, is a good read and worth your time. If you are new to the series, you could easily start here as previous events are only touched on briefly if mentioned at all.

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4lUbG5L

 

My reading copy came from the publisher, William Morrow, through NetGalley, and with no expectation of a review.

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2025