by C.A. Asbrey
Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Suspense
Format: Kindle, Paperback

Innocent Bystander: The Innocents Mystery Series: Book Three by C.A. Asbrey

Synopsis:

Pinkerton Agent Abigail MacKay’s willful sister, Madeleine, is going to be the death of her yet. That is, if Madeleine doesn’t get herself killed first! After running off to marry a widower whose wives mysteriously die—leaving behind a great deal of money each time—spoiled, beautiful Madeleine is unaware of the danger she’s in. Though no doctor has been able to establish a cause of death for any of the women, Abigail is sure they were murdered—and that her younger sister is going to be next. The only person who can help her save Maddie is the charismatic criminal, Nat Quinn—and Abi left him cooling his heels in jail at their last meeting.

As Fate would have it, Nat and his partner, Jake Conroy, were the last to see Madeleine before she disappeared. She happened to be on a train The Innocents held up—but she was alive and well when they parted ways. And Madeleine is the least of Nat’s worries, now that he’s discovered that Abigail has lied to him about one very important thing—she’s married!

When Abi risks all to ride into the outlaws’ deadly hideout and ask for help, there’s no doubt she’ll get it—but nothing’s free in Ghost Canyon; here, everything has a price. With a new understanding in their relationship, Nat agrees to help her prove David Bartholemew is a cold-blooded killer before he can murder Maddie.

With Jake in charge of Madeleine’s welfare, all hell breaks loose when two competing reporters get involved in the case, along with an old nemesis of Nat’s coming into the mix. One thing is certain: David Bartholemew is a murderer. But how is he doing it? In a race against time, will Nat and Abi be able to figure it out before Jake runs out of ways to protect Maddie from her evil husband? Or will each of them become an INNOCENT BYSTANDER?

Review:

In a rustic and rural 19th century Wyoming setting, takes place a thrilling and impressive story of Agent Abigail MacKay and outlaw Nat Quinn. They join forces to help save Abi’s gorgeous, yet unruly sister, Madeleine, from her crooked husband who has questionable behavior that is rumored to murders as well. The last person to see Madeleine alive and well was Nat and his partner during a train robbery. Abi knows he can help her in finding her beloved sister.

Asbrey really describes her characters and settings well. With every turn of the page, I felt completely thrust back into a simpler yet exciting and even dangerous period of time of Wyoming in the 1800s. The reader is carried back in time and taken on a wild ride of action, murder and intrigue. Along with the suspense of multiple murders and the romantic tension between Nat and Abi, readers will surely be completely enthralled by this exciting romance/mystery story.

The characters are fully developed with interesting personalities, flaws and strengths, making them very relatable. The descriptive writing is vivid and full and had me on the scene watching on as the story unfolded. Innocent Bystander is the very first book that I have read in C.A. Asbrey’s “The Innocents Mystery Series.” Written with a complete backstory included, I was able to follow along and understand the storyline fully. This is one of the best books in its genre that I have read in a long time. I couldn’t put it down and flipped the pages quickly, as the suspense increased, to find out what could possibly happen next.

CA Asbrey has woven much history and forensics into this story, making it a completely fascinating and thoroughly entertaining read. She either knows her history and forensics well, or had put a ton of research into Innocent Bystander. Overall, Chick Lit Cafe gives Innocent Bystander a two thumbs up and highly recommended it to all suspense, romance and murder mystery lovers.

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