Description:
Murder came in with the tide . . .
Edisto Island is a paradise where people escape from the mainstream world. Yet for newly sworn-in Edisto Police Chief Callie Jean Morgan, the trouble has just begun . . .
When a rookie officer drowns in a freak crash in the marsh, Callie almost dies herself trying to save him. Her instincts tell her it wasn't an accident. Suspects and clues mount, and Callie's outlandish mother complicates the investigation. Callie's long-time friendship with Officer Mike Seabrook takes a turn toward something new-but is shadowed by the unsolved mystery of his wife's death. Everyone's past rises to the surface, nobody on the same sheet of music, entangling with death that ultimately cuts to the bone.
The roar of the surf made Callie's steps soundless, her thoughts louder. Two and a half weeks on the job, and she'd lost an officer. Edisto hadn't sacrificed an officer in its entire history, and the first female chief had to be the one to break the record.
She sniffled. Salty breezes began to clear her sinuses, but nothing could assuage the guilt clinging to her like the muggy air
Sarah lived. Francis died. And somebody had to be disappointed at that freakish turn of events, because she suspected it was meant to be the other way around. Crime was for people who lived across the big bridge on the mainland. But whether the natives liked it or not, the brake lines were cut on Edisto. She didn't want to go down that path, but one of them might be a frustrated, unfulfilled killer.
Brief description: C. HOPE CLARK has a fascination with the mystery genre and is author of the Carolina Slade Mystery Series and the Craven County Mysteries as well as the Edisto Island Mysteries, all set in her home state of South Carolina. In her previous federal life, she performed administrative investigations and married the agent she met on a bribery investigation. She enjoys nothing more than editing her books on the back porch with him, overlooking the lake, with bourbon in hand. She can be found either on the banks of Lake Murray or Edisto Beach with one or two dachshunds in her lap. Hope is also editor of the award-winning FundsforWriters.com.
Review Quotes:
An engrossing mystery with a beautiful backdrop. -For the Love of Books Review
Echoes delivers a riveting ride with irrepressible characters. -Rachel Gladstone, Dish Magazine
Benjamin Franklin wrote, "Either write something worth reading or do something worth reading." C. Hope Clark accomplishes both, in some manner, as her passion for mystery-her art imitates the raw and gritty lives of her real-life readers in Echoes of Edisto! I absolutely did not expect to resonate with the main character; Edisto Police Chief Callie Jean Morgan and her perceptions of love, life and leadership in middle of actual combat as well as the psychological combat our families of origin and our hometowns can seemingly and so naturally serve up to us over our lifetimes. Clark offers her readers a thesis statement of sorts that sets the tone for Chief Callie's inner struggles of leadership that truly echo her personal life lenses of tragedies and recent traumas; "Good thing Edisto had so much sand, because residents stuck their heads in it on a regular basis..." Clark truly assists her readers to examine their personal pathologies to include those they discover they are surviving life and dreaming dreams with. I already know I need a sign for my counseling office with her explanation of the components of grief. And I hope I get to hang it close to my own Edisto Beach. Lisa Northway, Amazon reviewer
Every "loose end" neatly wrapped up... with surprises at nearly every turn of a page. Don't deny yourself the experience of seeing Edisto Island as only a local can. C. Hope Clark leaves one with only one choice... book 4! Onward! -Jim Great Elk Waters - Author, Amazon reviewer, and reviewer for WeWan Institute and Society publishers
C. Hope Clark's latest novel, Echoes of Edisto, is such a fast-paced, exciting story that I kept thinking, "This needs to be a movie," as I ready it. Echoes of Edisto is that good. Clark's characters are multi-dimensional. The plot is filled with unexpected twists and turns with the suspense building throughout the book. As for predicting how it would end, forget it. Clark surprised me and I love being surprised. -Elaine Thomas, Amazon reviewer