Thursday, July 14, 2011

Pattern of Wounds by J. Mark Bertrand

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Pattern of Wounds
Bethany House (July 1, 2011)
by
J. Mark Bertrand




ABOUT THE AUTHOR:





J. Mark Bertrand lived in Houston, where the series is set, for fifteen years, earning an MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Houston. But after one hurricane too many he relocated with his wife Laurie to the plains of South Dakota. Mark has been arrested for a crime he didn't commit, was the foreman of one hung jury and served on another that acquitted Vinnie Jones of assault. In 1972, he won an honorable mention in a child modeling contest, but pursued writing instead.







ABOUT THE BOOK





It's Christmas in Houston, and homicide detective Roland March is on the hunt for a killer. A young woman's brutal stabbing in an affluent neighborhood bears all the hallmarks of a serial murder. The only problem is that March sent the murderer to prison ten years ago. Is it a copycat -- or did March convict the wrong man?



Alienated from his colleagues and with a growing rift in his marriage, March receives messages from the killer. The bodies pile up, the pressure builds, and the violence reaches too close to home. Up against an unfathomable evil, March struggles against the clock to understand the hidden message in the pattern of wounds.


My Thoughts:
"Find the book and I'll find the killer." (p. 17)

I'm sure Detective Roland March wishes locating killers was as easy as locating a book by the end of this story!! This rather eclectic man is searching for a lot of answers in this story that don't come easily nor readily. The reader will amass clues, but they don't lead to the person that you think they should lead to! Or do they?

Mark Betrand has further developed Detective March's character in this second novel, and the reader can't help but like him and hope that he will eventually find the peace he is looking for. (although he doesn't realize that that's what he is searching for) The murders in this story are disturbing for many reasons, but for March they recall events that he would really rather move away from. But can he?

I had the honor of interviewing Mark Bertrand this week at the International Christian Retail show in Atlanta, and I will be sharing what I learned very soon. It was a real pleasure to meet Mark and learn more about his writing and the stories that are dear to his heart. I am happy to recommend Pattern of Wounds!

If you would like to read the first chapter of Pattern of Wounds, go HERE

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