FAMILYFANS Books & Comics

THE LOST SHEEP

by Brandt Dodson

(Bethany House)

Reader Appeal: Adults, mature teens

Genre: Mystery/Suspense

Brandt Dodson, author of Original Sin, Seventy-Times Seven, and Root of All Evil returns hard-bitten P.I., Colton Parker, to the fray with his latest mystery-du-jour, The Lost Sheep. Continuing to craft an entertaining gumshoe series that mixes elements of faith, redemption, and self-forgiveness with suspense, excitement, and classic pavement pounding P.I. action, The Lost Sheep takes Colton Parker and readers down a deep, twisting rabbit hole that eventually leads to the light, but only after plunging to the depths of darkness first.

As The Lost Sheep opens, Colton Parker is frantic, beside himself with worry – and impatient over the seeming ineptitude of Indianapolis Police Force – because his daughter Callie has run away, leaving nothing behind but a fearful message on their answering machine that says:

“Daddy, please don’t try to find me. Please.”

Things had been looking up lately for Colton and Callie; old wounds from their mother’s untimely death and their estrangement had started to heal, business was picking up, they were more financially stable, and Colton had just begun to acknowledge and accept his developing feelings for former FBI partner and dear friend, Mary Christopher. Callie’s sudden disappearance throws everything into a tailspin; however, as he hunts with dread heart and angry vengeance whoever has abducted his little girl.

Dark, disturbing evidence leads to Las Vegas – Sin City – and a harsh world of pornography, prostitution, and drugs. Colton pushes doggedly on despite the forces aligning against him, but in order to save both Callie and himself, he must finally lay aside his gun and anger, and win the true battle within.

Once again, Dodson churns out another enjoyable mystery; Colton Parker is ever believable in his pain, struggling steps toward maturity, and lingering “Dirty Harry” panache. Think Mel Gibson from Payback with a message of redemption and growth, and you’ve got Colton Parker. Also, though Colton opens some doors spiritually in this novel, it’s unlikely this hard-knuckled P.I. will become soft and “kissy-kissy” in future novels.  Dodson has lots of room for character development, which is great: because that means lots more Colton Parker to come.

Visit the author at: www.brandtdodson.com.

FAMILYFANS RATING: A

--KL

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