Detective Madison Knight is back in the fight of her life
It felt like the day would never come. After many trials and challenges Madison Knight and her fiancée Troy Matthews are finally ready to get married. With family and friends in attendance the scene is perfect until the wedding is crashed by officers from the Braybury PD. Unannounced and uninvited the officers from the neighboring town swiftly arrest Troy and unceremoniously haul him back to their precinct. Accused of the murder of a high school friend the day before the wedding, Troy is detained and questioned. With her special day in shambles and completely unaware of this part of Troy’s past, Madison attempts to get information. If she knows anything, it’s that her fiancé would not murder a person in cold blood, especially the day before the biggest even in their history. She attempts to grill Troy’s sister Andrea for intel, but when the prime suspect in a murder is not only a cop, but also the brother-in-law of the Stiles PD chief of police the Braybury detectives are not freely sharing information. Stemming back to a rape and murder 24 years prior, Troy and his buddies were character witnesses for the defendant. Now, decades later it appears that all involved in Emily Kane’s murder are being picked off one by one… except for Troy Matthews. And with evidence mounting against him at each new crime scene, Madison knows she must act quickly to get to the bottom of this and free Troy. But with the case outside of her jurisdiction and having explicitly being told not to interfere there is little she can do without facing discipline or worse. True to her bulldog moniker, Knight begins to investigate outside of the law (or maybe in the grey areas). Finding flaws in the other department’s hasty handling of the evidence she begins to close in on a suspect. But with the perp having revenge on his mind, Madison has also caught his eye as his next victim.
Murder at the Lake is lucky 13 in the long running Madison Knight series of novels by author Carolyn Arnold. At the beginning it seems as if Madison and Troy will finally get their happy ending, but that is not to be when Troy is arrested for murder. Things go swiftly downhill from there as more details emerge and even Troy’s attempts to clear his name backfire in the worst possible way. At times it seems as if the deck is stacked against Madison and Troy, but the evidence lines up too perfectly and in Madison’s experience that almost always means a frame up. Murder at the Lake had a bit of a different feel to it than the previous books in this series. Typically, Madison and her partner Terry are chasing killers, and the victims are unknown to them but in this installment the action is personal. From the opening scenes when their wedding is crashed, Madison and Troy had their privacy invaded and their sense of security shattered. At times while reading through this book I felt a sense of despair and urgency as Madison continued to defy her superiors and delve into the case in very much a lone wolf fashion. I can’t say that I blame her though, it’s a tough situation to watch someone you love suffer and even worse when you know they’re being set up.
While part of a series Arnold has structured these books, so they do not need to be read in order. If you are reading this book “out of sequence” there will be situations mentioned that are part of prior installments, but they are covered in a way that the reader does not feel as if they are missing any important information. If you are a fan of police procedurals, books with a strong female lead character or both, I highly recommend not only the Madison Knight series of novels but also the Detective Amanda Steele series also by this author. Carolyn Arnold excels at the genre, you will not be disappointed.
Full disclosure – I was provided an advanced reader’s copy of this book by the author or their representative but have voluntarily provided a review. All opinions are my own.
Jennly Reads 