I love a good series. It’s great when you have multiple books with characters that you already love, and storylines that you want to continue. That’s why I was glad to see Warn Me When It’s Time (Charlie Mack Motown Mystery #6) by Cheryl A. Head.
In this book we get to revisit many of the characters we have come to know and love from the earlier books including Charlie Mack and her girlfriend Mandy who are now living together in their new home with their dog Hamm. There is also Don and Judy who are partners with Charlie at Mack Investigations. And we can’t forget Charlie’s mom Ernestine Mack who has a new boyfriend named Gabriel Constantine.
This book has a very serious subject. Mack Investigations becomes involved with the FBI and the local police in trying to stop a hate group (or two) that has been causing havoc in the Detroit area with fires, robberies, and most recently an explosion at a Mosque that kills an Imam. It means danger for them all, but especially Don as FBI agent James Saleh returns to help Don and the agency infiltrate the hate group and stop them before they do even more harm.
The reader gets to see the story through the eyes of several characters including Mack, Don, and a couple of the bad guys in the hate groups. This made the story especially intriguing and often creepy when we were in the minds of those who wanted to destroy, hurt and kill. The mystery and suspense is well done. We know who some of the bad guys are, though there are a few surprises for the team before the tale ends. What kept me reading was how successful the hate groups might be. I couldn’t put the book down until I knew.
The pace of the book is a bit slow at the beginning, but keep reading. It gets very exciting the more you get into the story. Be aware that the subjects of racism, bigotry and misogyny are discussed in this book. There is also violence. I know this is obvious since the book deals with violent hate groups, but I just wanted everyone to know this up front.
If you love to read a good mystery and suspense novel, then I believe you will want to read this book. It would be possible to read this novel as a standalone simply for the intrigue. However, my recommendation would be to read, at the very least, the first book in the series as well. The best scenario would be to read all of the books in order. They are well worth your time.
I received an ARC from Bywater Books for an honest review.
Rainbow Reflections 