Ice

Ice

This mystery turns out to be so much more than advertised. (in a very good way) I love the book club aka the geezer squad! From the moment you meet them I was hoping things turned out the way they do in the end.

Looking into cold cases is their thing but when Chris their newest member is kind of reaccused of a cold case and keeps finding himself in the middle of current murders the squad gets busy. Throw in family, relationships, pets and old friends you know things get interesting fast. And don’t forget the ice storm! Really fun book!

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Gotta get book 2!!

This is one of the best cold case books I have read in a long time. Lauren Carr has a very good insight on the thoughts and behaviors of people, in general. She even has the animals down pat. I enjoyed the humor in the story, the mystery, the relationships. I especially enjoyed the relationship between Chris and his mother. The writing moves along so well that I just could not put it down.
I listened to the audiobook version of this and Mike Alger is fantastic! His narration style reminded me of Rex Allen, the narrator of some of the old Disney shows. (Yep, I am old. lol) That made me enjoy his narration all the more!
I highly recommend this book and I look forward to the next one in the series!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

NEVER a dull moment

Audio Book Review. Oh my gosh! This book was so much fun, and as I was reading it (with my ears), there were so many people who popped to mind and to whom I will be recommending the book, and each for a different reason. (Christena -- because of Sterling, the fabulous German shepherd; Lynda – who loves a good cozy that has sexy middle-aged romance; Kristi – who loves to see a spunky librarian like herself in the mix; and so many MORE.) I will be book talking ICE: A Chris Matheson Cold Case Mystery to anyone who will listen and will be grabbing other Lauren Carr books (there are TONS) to add-in to the reading rotation. I’m now a fan!

Where Carr really shines is in writing these amazingly realistic characters who become important to the reader and who truly jump to life from the page. Main character Chris Matheson’s mother, Doris (that spunky librarian), provides some of the best lines in the book, but Sterling the retired police dog is a sneaky little scene stealer. I swear, he should have his own spin-off series! The picture that’s sketched out of Chris and his family and their generations of life in this small West Virginia town feels comfortable and familiar, flaws and all. There’s a tentative and imperfect romance to give readers the flutters, there’s the Geezer Squad “book club” that gives us some laughs (and some lessons), and everything feels good…except for the horribly brutal crimes that seem to plague the town.

And the whodunit elements are PRIME. There is never a dull moment in Ice, and it has layers upon layers of story elements to keep readers engaged. So much is going on with the cold cases, new crimes, and an additional, low-grade little mystery behind Helen, Chris's potential love interest. Readers are led around and misled around with an abundance of suspects all who MUST BE THE PERP. (and yeah, none of them is!) Carr is really a master at deceiving her readers in the most delicious ways.

Audio book narrator Mike Alger earns high marks in all areas for his performance. His pacing is perfect, and he brings the appropriate emotions and attitudes to his voicing of the characters. I listened at 1.25x speed, but that was more because I was impatient to see how the story would end than anything else. I cannot wait for the next installment in this series and sincerely hope that Alger is back to narrate it again.

I highly recommend this book because it has something to appeal to nearly every reader (except aliens…sorry, Belle). Ice is a contemporary balance of mystery, family, romance, aging, and humor elements that will keep readers fully entertained for the duration. Thank you to iRead Book Tours and the author for providing me an audio book download in exchange for my honest opinion – the only kind I give.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Another hit from Lauren Carr

I am a huge Lauren Carr fan. I have read and listened to several of her books. I love her writing style. She involves, family, friends, and pets in all of her books. The books re basically clean reads, there are a few colorful words but not enough to put anyone off, and no sex scenes. She even cleans up some very grisly murders, by giving you just enough description to give you the idea but leaves the blood and gore out. Her books are to me re good for all ages above middle grade.

Ice is book 1 in her new New Series featuring Chris Matheson and Cold Case Files. Chris is a retired FBI agent. He and his 3 daughters move back to his hometown and back in with his parents after the death of his wife.

Twenty four years ago when Chris was young, Sandy Lipton and her unborn child disappeared. Everyone in town believes the child was his and he had something to do with the disappearance. Now 24 years later there are still some in the town who still believe he had something to do with the it.

After agreeing to go to a book club which he finds out is a bunch of retired Law Enforcement officers that call them selves the Geezer Squad. The Geezers all jump in to help Chris solve the case whether he is guilty or not.

There are several twists and turns with this book just as are will all of Lauren's books. I think I am really going to enjoy this new series. I love Cold Cases.

The book is narrated by Mike Alger. he actually narrates several of Lauren's books. I love the way he drags you into the story and keep my attention. He adds lots of emotion to the character voices as well as the story narration.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

One of Carr's Best

Retired FBI agent Chris Matheson lives with his mom (Doris) and his daughters (Katelyn and Emma) on a little hobby farm complete with dogs (like Sterling), horses (such as Chewbacca), and a bunny rabbit (Thor). His mom doesn’t think his life is complete, so she introduces him to the local murder mystery book club. However, there’s more going on in this book club, which is full of retired investigators, cops, emergency responders, etc. They (who shall be known as the Geezer Squad) want to delve into a cold case and Chris has one that is near and dear to his heart – Sandy Lipton went missing along with her unborn baby when Chris was in his early 20s. A new entanglement with this old case brings in Helen Clark from the West Virginia state police. She also happens to be Chris’s old flame.

I have listened to many Lauren Carr books and this is one of my favorites. There’s plenty of humor mixed in with the more serious scenes. While there’s a little romance in the tale, it doesn’t distract from the main plot. I especially liked the inclusion of the family pets as they provide much of the comedic relief.

The plot was pretty good on this one, having plenty of twists and turns. I liked all the little surprises as one mystery is solved even as it provides another mystery to tackle. About half way through the tale, it did become a bit obvious who was the father of Sandy’s baby. Other than that, there were plenty of surprises.

Every once in a while, things gets a little too cutsy, like saccharine sweet. But I know Carr’s works often do this just as I know such moments move on quickly. I did think Helen was a little silly for still being a little ticked about how things fell out between her and Chris so many years ago. Sounds like she never made peace with it. Otherwise, Helen was a good character on her own and good fit for Chris’s partner on this mystery.

Doris was a hoot! She and Sterling were my favorite characters. She makes her granddaughters try to guess her talent that won her a state beauty pageant when she was in her teens (which provided the tuition money for college). At the end, we finally get to know what that talent was – a talent she kept in top order and came in handy.

All told, this was a fun murder mystery that kept me engaged the entire time. 4.5/5 stars.

The Narration: Mike Alger makes a great Chris. I have listened to many Alger’s narrations and he continues to refine his performance with each audiobook. each character was distinct and his female voices sounded feminine. There were no technical issues with this recording. 5/5 stars.

Another Bestseller for Lauren Carr

What an entertaining and fun new book from Lauren Carr

You'll Love how author Lauren Carr manages to write with so much humor—including the antics of the dogs that are present—and still present us with a tangled, complex mystery that is hard to figure out. This one has a number of murders with suspects abounding. Former FBI agent Chris Matheson needs all the help he can get. His fellow book club members, his former (and perhaps future) girlfriend, and even his Mom, all play a part. Still the killer is very elusive.

Already looking forward to more of Chris and the excellent new series! I received a copy of this audiobook as part of the virtual book tour hosted by iRead Book Tours. You can read my full review on Mystery Suspense Reviews.

First Lauren Carr book - LOVED IT!

This was my first Lauren Carr book and it won't be my last. I really enjoyed it! Ice is the first in a new series, Cold Case Files. I can't wait for the next one!

The very beginning of the story had me hooked right away. I tried the entire time to solve the cold case myself and didn't come close. Ice kept me on my toes and just when I thought I had it solved, it turned or twisted and left me wanting more.

Chris Matheson left town after school and ended up in with the FBI. After the death of his wife, he and his 3 daughters move back home to his mother's house. Upon arriving at home, everyone starts talking about the past and Chris' involvement with his past girlfriend and her baby disappearance.

Chris' mother, Doris, urges him to join a book club of retired enforcement/judges/lawyers type called the Geezer Squad. He finds out all to quickly that reading books has nothing to do with this club. Doris urges him to adopt a police dog, Sterling. I absolutely loved Doris and Sterling.

His ex-boss at the FBI is on bed rest and asks him to help with a case she is working too. With the Geezer Squad's help, his mother's help, his ex-boss and Sterling, he is able to solve both cases.

The characters in Ice are so realistic, they seem to jump off the pages. I truly enjoyed Lauren Carr's firsts book in the Cold Case Files series, Ice.

Another good one from Lauren Carr

I chose to listen to this book after receiving a free audio copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

I've read quite a few of Lauren Carr's books but this is the first one with Chris Matheson. He is retired FBI and he and his three daughters have moved back to his childhood home. Even though he's retired, he's quickly involved in a couple of cases. One is a cold case that affected him years ago and the other is a recent case that his ex-boss has asked him to keep on top of because she's on bed rest.

ICE is a fast-moving novel. There are plenty of clues to both cases. Chris even has help from his dad's old "book club." Most of them are retired from law enforcement and they actually look into cold cases rather than read books. They're more than happy to help Chris with research on his cold case.

I like the characters in ICE. Chris is an all around good guy but my favorite characters are his mom and his dog. Chris's mom, Doris, is a force of nature. He recently got his dog, Sterling, who is a retired police dog. He's great! He can open a car door and change a radio station among other things. What a character!

If you enjoy a good mystery with twists, humor, and a little romance, you'll enjoy ICE.

Very Good Book!

The narrator does a good job telling this story. It has a great story line! Many times I hear myself saying "busted". lol. I would recommend this book for all ages. I look forward to listening to more by this author. Overall just a great book!