Updated Book Review: DEAD WRONG - Just Released!!!

By: Connie Dial

From the Back Cover:

Captain Josie Corsino has selected Kyle Richards, a trusted and talented sergeant, to supervise a burglary task force in Hollywood division.  While working that special detail, Richards is involved in a fatal shooting.  He's reluctant to be candid about his relationship with the man he killed and that leads not only to uncovering his mysterious past but exposing Josie's division to notoriety and a fiery assault.

As detectives investigate the shooting, Josie's loyalty to her sergeant is second guessed by her bureau chief, civil rights activists, and even a few of her police officers.  Was the shooting justified or did Sergeant Richards have another reason for killing the unlikely burglary suspect?  Before that question can be answered, there's a brutal murder in Hollywood in which Richards appears to be the most likely suspect.  Josie wants to support her supervisor but finds herself questioning his actions and his motives.

Josie joins forces with Detective Red Behan and Lieutenant Marge Bailey to help solve the murder and determine if there is a link between the man Richards shot and the homicide victim.  The trail leads from a boxing gym in East LA to LAPD's office of the chief of police and finally back to Hollywood where Josie discovers corrupt cops thriving within her police station.

At home, Josie is becoming impatient and distant with her husband and her son who continue to make demands on her time.  She also finds herself drawn to Sergeant Richards, creating even greater domestic turmoil.

My Two Cents:

Strong female cop in charge, works hard to exonerate a fellow cop while struggling to believe he did not intentionally shot another cop, all the while fighting the urge to have a fling with him.  I liked the mystery, but was able to figure out the 'whodunnit' as the key players were introduced.  The ending was more of a "I knew it," and less "wow, that was a cool twist."  The relationship between Josie and her husband, Jake, was very touching, and I got the sense of a lifelong commitment, and the struggles that come up in any marriage. The love triangle never really materialized for me, and seemed underplayed.  I never really got the sense that Josie was all that close to crossing the line.

A good summer read, with an interesting mystery.

I give it    and a