Jan Burke - Free Library Land Online - Writing

Kelly - 03 - Dear Irene

Thu, 20 Feb 2003 14:01:48 +0200

From Publishers Weekly

Nearly recovered from the wounds she received in Sweet Dreams, feisty reporter Irene Kelly returns to her California newspaper office to be caught up in another intelligent tale of danger and vengeance. Among her accumulated mail is a letter from someone calling himself Thanatos, addressing her as Cassandra and promising that "Clio will be the first to die." Dismissing the letter as the work of a kook, she nevertheless pursues the mythological references: Thanatos is Death; Cassandra, a woman cursed with telling the truth but not being believed; and Clio, the muse of history. That night the body of a college history professor is found, her skull battered, in the peacock enclosure of the zoo. The next day Irene is phoned by someone who identifies himself as Thanatos, claims responsibility for the crime and threatens another. As the warnings and murders continue, Irene and her fiance, police detective Frank Harriman, find themselves caught in the web of police and press relations and the counter-pressures of Frank's desire to protect Irene versus her need for independence. Burke maintains firm control of her intricate tale, leading readers along a suspenseful path to a dramatic conclusion.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Newspaper reporter and amateur sleuth Irene Kelly receives an unsettling letter at work that uses mythology to warn her of impending death. A series of brutal murders follow, each preceded by a letter to Irene. Despite cautions from her detective fiance, Irene launches her own investigation. A follow-up to Sweet Dreams, Irene (LJ 2/1/94).
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

18

Sat, 16 Feb 2002 20:02:12 +0200

From Publishers Weekly

Jan Burke's 18 collects the shorter fiction by this Edgar-winning author (Bones), including "The Man in the Civil Suit," which won an Agatha Award, plus two stories written especially for the book. Edward D. Hoch provides a handsome introduction, while blurbs from the likes of James Crumley, Jonathan Kellerman and Marcia Muller testify with obvious sincerity to Burke's tale-writing talent.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Jeffrey Deaver Astonishing...wry...these stories are sure to delight.

Jonathan Kellerman A delightful collection of page-turners. at turns chilling, funny, poignant -- and always insightful. With these stories, Jan Burke's at the top of her game.

Kelly - 05 - Hocus

Thu, 20 Feb 2003 14:01:47 +0200

Amazon.com Review

Jan Burke's stories about a vulnerable and resourceful reporter at a Southern California newspaper called Las Piernas News Express all feature tense and thoughtful plots, writing that manages to be sharp and sardonic without calling attention to itself, and a dead honest picture of the world of small-market newspaper journalism. Her latest is no exception. When Kelly's homicide detective husband, Frank Harriman, gets a heroic write-up in her paper after arresting the apparent leader of a gang of murderous troublemakers that call themselves Hocus (in the sense of hoax, rather than magic), everybody at the paper and almost everybody at the cop shop thinks she's behind it. So when Frank disappears, and his blood is discovered in the trunk of his car, Irene doesn't get much help from the paper or the police. She has to track down the real secret of Hocus largely on her own--which she does in the completely credible and exciting manner we've come to expect. Burke's last book about about Kelly, Remember Me, Irene, is out in paperback, joining Dear Irene, Goodnight, Irene, and Sweet Dreams, Irene.

From Publishers Weekly

In Sweet Dreams, Irene (1994), Southern California newspaper reporter Irene Kelly was abducted while pursuing a story. Burke again examines the pain suffered by kidnapping victims as Irene's police detective husband, Frank Harriman, is taken by Hocus, a terrorist group. The "takers," as hostage negotiator Thomas Cassidy calls them, are Bret Neukirk and Samuel Ryan. Twelve years earlier, when they were 10, they were kidnapped with?and witnessed the murders of?their fathers. Frank was the policeman who rescued and befriended them in the aftermath, when the boys suffered elective mutism?refusal to talk except to each other. They never revealed that a tall, white-haired cop assisted their kidnapper, Chris Powell, who was murdered shortly afterwards. Now Bret and Sam seek well-planned revenge by keeping Frank sedated on morphine until Irene goes to Bakersfield, where their fathers were killed, and discovers Powell's accomplice. Her investigation leads to three close friends of Frank's late father, who was also a policeman. Switching between past and present, Burke writes a well-paced mystery with a heartrending climax, but her strength is the sympathy and depth with which she describes how the trauma of abduction haunts the victims. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Kelly - 10 - Kidnapped

Mon, 20 Feb 2006 14:01:56 +0200

From Publishers Weekly

At the start of Edgar-winner Burke's well-crafted 10th novel of suspense (after 2005's Bloodlines), sociopathic killer Cleo Smith has just murdered a graphic artist, Richard Fletcher, who was a member of a large, bizarre California family, but Smith's motive for the killing remains obscure. Five years later, Fletcher's adopted son has been wrongfully convicted of the crime, and Burke's resourceful and compassionate reporter heroine, Irene Kelly, has written a story about missing children that has prompted a host of inquiries from desperate relatives who have lost their own children. When more bodies turn up and further clues point to involvement of Fletcher family members, Kelly, aided by her police detective husband, Frank Harriman, puts her life on the line to exonerate the innocent prisoner and uncover the disturbing secrets at the heart of the Fletcher clan. The many plot twists should keep readers turning the pages, even if the windup is a little improbable. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Family dysfunction takes on new meaning in Edgar winner Burke's latest mystery featuring newspaper reporter Irene Kelly (after Bloodlines, 2004). Like the earlier installments, this one is set in the fictional Southern California town of Las Piernas. Multimillionaire Graydon Fletcher and his wife have devoted their lives to providing for the less fortunate. Unable to have children themselves, the couple opts to adopt--21 boys and girls in all. Though they are not bound by blood, there's something incestuous about the Fletcher clan; nearly all of the offspring attend the elite Fletcher Academy (founded and funded by Graydon), and even as they grow older, the siblings spend nearly every waking hour in one another's company. After one Fletcher son is murdered and another is imprisoned for the crime, Kelly and her homicide-detective husband, Frank Harriman, unearth sinister truths about stolen identities and stolen lives. Burke's writing is crisp, but her characters are predictable, and her plot convoluted at best. Readers fascinated by forensic science should be content to focus on the pivotal clues gathered through the wonders of DNA. Allison Block
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Kelly - 08 - Flight

Tue, 20 Feb 2001 14:01:51 +0200

Amazon.com Review

Jan Burke is best known as the author who gave life to Irene Kelly, the sassy, slightly hard-edged southern California journalist with a Pandoran penchant for getting herself into sticky situations. Her latest novel, however, perches adroitly on a tangential narrative branch: Burke focuses on Kelly's husband, Las Piernas Detective Frank Harriman, and in doing so turns her narrative color wheel several notches to the darker side.

Flight is really the story of two men, Harriman and Philip Lefebvre. Ten years ago, when businessman Trent Randolph and his daughter were murdered, Lefebvre was the officer in charge of the case. Moody and isolated, he became not only investigator but guardian angel to Randolph's young son Seth, left clinging to life after the attack. His colleagues and the community were convinced Whitey Dane, a local mobster with grand ambitions, was behind the murders, but when Seth was killed in his hospital bed and both Lefebvre and all the evidence against Dane disappeared, the department was left reeling in the wake of crooked-cop iniquity.

But now Lefebvre's apparently sabotaged plane has been discovered in the mountains, along with his bones. Frank Harriman must ease through a maze of anger and recrimination as he pursues the possibility of Lefebvre's innocence. But if this cop was innocent, that means another one wasn't--and that individual will stop at nothing to protect his guilty secret.

The novel's opening chapters, which place the original murders in stark relief and reveal the trap slowly closing around Lefebvre, are as good as anything Burke has written--maybe better. Their intensity is difficult to match, but Harriman's investigation still has plenty of surprises, including a nifty twist at the very end. Flight's solid writing, deftly nuanced relationships, and delicate bad-guy balance between chilling and camp are as on target here as elsewhere. Here's to Irene and Frank; long may they take turns at the wheel. --Kelly Flynn

From Publishers Weekly

Like Burke's Edgar-winning Bones (1999), this ambitious, if overlong, suspense novel focuses on an intense search for a pathological killer. In Las Piernas, Calif., newspaper reporter Irene Kelly, Burke's series heroine, takes backseat to her husband, prickly, tenacious homicide detective Frank Harriman. Ten years earlier, when brilliant police detective Philip Lefebvre disappeared in the middle of a triple homicide investigation, the cops believed he'd sold out to the suspected killer, drug lord Whitey Dane. When Lefebvre's 10-year-old corpse and sabotaged airplane are found in the San Bernadino Mountains, Frank reopens the case, suspecting that both Lefebvre and Dane were wrongly accused. Irene knew Lefebvre, but, except for a clunky plot device that places her in peril at the finale, this is Frank's book, as he exactingly unearths new evidence and uncovers a possible cover-up. Burke delves into the mind of the real murderer, still at large and unsuspected. The reader gradually identifies this frightening individual, but waits in suspense too long for Frank to do likewise. Burke's strength is her understanding of personal relationships and motivation, plus the memorable characters she creates, notably the murderer, who is so crazy he passes for sane. The author's thorough research is praiseworthy but it often slows down the story, and she isn't a great stylist. Unfortunately, that combination produces a book that takes too many pages to come to the point. Agent, Lowenstein-Morel. (Mar. 6)Forecast: The publisher is behind this title in a big way, with a 50,000 first printing and a 17-city author tour, and Burke's shelf-full of awards for previous books will draw many readers to this new one. This isn't the author's strongest outing, though, and in the long run, sales may not meet the publisher's expectations.

Kelly - 11 - Disturbance

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:01:54 +0200

**IRENE KELLY IS BACK . . . IN THIS HEARTPOUNDING SEQUEL TO JAN BURKE’S EDGAR****® ****AWARD – WINNING NOVEL *BONES***

Investigative reporter Irene Kelly risked everything in a near-fatal encounter with serial killer Nick Parrish—and broke a chain of deadly violence in Southern California when Parrish landed in maximum security. Now, life has almost returned to normal, both at the struggling *Las Piernas News Express *and, with the help of a good therapist, for Irene and her husband, Frank. But the terror is far from over. . . . Rumors among the Moths, Nick Parrish’s online fan club, suggest the killer has recovered physically, escaped with someone’s help, and he’s targeting the person responsible for his imprisonment: Irene Kelly. It starts with an unnerving prank, a clear message that someone wants her to be afraid. And when a young woman’s body turns up—naked, frozen, and decorated in elaborately painted moths—Irene must confront the twisted hunter whom she knows all too well . . . or does she?

### Review

“Burke is among the most reliable performers in the thriller genre. . . . She’s in top form with this shrewd blending of nightmarish suspense and taut police procedural.”**—*San Diego Union-Tribune***

"In *Disturbance*, Burke has written another nail-biting, adrenaline-pumping, heart-stopping novel that will have her readers wondering how Irene Kelly will ever survive this viper's nest."**—*Dayton Daily News***

"It doesn't get more suspenseful than this superb thriller. Jan Burke's villains, more terrified of each other than of anyone else, will stick in the reader's mind. Grade: A-"**—*Cleveland Plain Dealer***

“Burke shows a wickedly realistic touch in her villains—killer Parrish and his three sons, who all but define ‘dysfunctional family.’”**—*St. Louis Post-Dispatch***

“Tautly written and suspenseful . . . Irene [is] a strong, likable protagonist.”**—*Booklist***

### About the Author

**Jan Burke** is the author of a dozen novels and a collection of short stories. She is the founder of the Crime Lab Project and is a member of the board of the California Forensic Science Institute. She lives in Southern California with her husband and two dogs. Learn more about her at JanBurke.com.

Kelly - 04 - Remember Me, Irene

Tue, 20 Feb 1996 14:01:50 +0200

Irene encounters a homeless man and fails to recognize him as her former college instructor Lucas Monroe—a man who once seemed destined for a bright future. Now he's missing, and there are indications that he's been blackmailing some of the city's most rich and powerful men.

Irene's search for Lucas takes her from mean streets to fine mansions and ivory towers—and forces her to recall a part of her own past she'd just as soon forget.

Kelly - 06 - Liar

Sat, 20 Feb 1999 14:01:55 +0200

SUMMARY: Investigative reporting has its hazards, but trouble hits home for Irene Kelly when her estranged aunt is murdered--and Irene becomes the leading suspect. With the police hot on her trail, Irene sets out to find cousin Travis, her dead aunt's son, convinced he's the next target. But when Irene finds Travis, a camper-driving children's storyteller with suspiciously deep pockets, things blow up--literally. It takes several brushes with death, staying one step ahead of the law, and a few not-so-sweet reunions for Irene to untangle a complex web of family secrets and long-held grudges, and discover just who is killing off the Kelly clan--and why.

Kelly - 01 - Goodnight, Irene

Tue, 16 Feb 1993 20:02:11 +0200

From Publishers Weekly

Set in the fictional Southern California town of Las Piernas, this generally exciting debut mystery--the first of a projected series--brims with brutality, but is slowed at times by home and hospital bedside scenes. Former reporter Irene Kelly, now working in public relations, is shocked when her friend O'Connor is killed by a bomb hidden in a package. The only clue Irene can unearth is O'Connor's obsession with a long-unsolved crime involving an unidentified female body discovered in Las Piernas years before. Rehired by the Las Piernas Express , Irene teams up with ex-lover and homicide cop Frank Harriman to crack the case, but details of what O'Connor had learned about the killing are long in coming. Burke punctuates her too leisurely exposition with graphic, effective scenes of murder and attempted murder, although she depicts the menacing assassins more as machines than as human beings and provides a plausible explanation for all the violence only at her story's very end. Still, she writes with remarkable sensitivity about the physical and spiritual reactions of people terrorized by cold-blooded killers, and her gift for characterization somewhat compensates for her still-rudimentary pacing skills.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The bombing death of best friend and journalist O'Connor shocks Irene Kelly, herself an investigative reporter, into pursuing his last story--the as-yet-unsolved mutilation murder of a young woman back in 1955. Kelly collaborates with former flame Detective Harriman in her desire to identify the woman, but not without experiencing murder attempts, car chases, and a return of affection. Level-headed and unflappable, heroine Irene stands poised for a promising new series, despite the guessable villain and a lapse or two in dialog.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Kelly - 07 - Bones

Sun, 20 Feb 2000 14:01:49 +0200

Amazon.com Review

Nobody writes better than Jan Burke about the real world of print journalism, and that aspect of her latest Irene Kelly mystery is as strong as ever. The tensions of being the wife of a cop and continuing to work as a crime reporter in the Southern California desert city of Las Piernas have increased with each big story Irene covers: it's almost as though her associates are waiting for her to make some mistake, to fumble a story. When an edgy, rebellious teenage girl asks her to look for her missing mother, Irene crosses the path of a very dangerous serial killer--Nicholas Parrish. He is one of those totally anonymous but enormously gifted and resourceful villains found only in fiction. Parrish kills women who happen to look like Irene (and his abusive mother), and attracts devoted disciples to his grisly cause. Because of Irene's involvement, several more lives are damaged or endangered, and the strain takes its toll on the reporter's mental stability.

Burke is such a fine, realistic writer that she can tread her way carefully across territory already well covered by Patricia Cornwell, Jeffery Deaver, Thomas Harris, et al. and still find something new to say about ritual murder and forensic science. But her real talent is bringing to full, instant life a remarkable woman--and the city she lives and works in. --Dick Adler

From Publishers Weekly

In her seventh outing (after Liar, 1998), journalist Irene Kelly is part of the investigative team on the hunt for serial killer Nicholas Parrish's many victims. Their graves are in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, and Parrish, having entered a plea bargain, is there too, leading the team to the women's corpses in exchange for a life sentence instead of the death penalty. But Parrish has planned a surprise or two. When a grave explodes, most of the team are killed, Irene flees, and the killer escapes. Back home, Irene continues to work at the behest of Gillian Sayre, the daughter of one victim. Her hunt for Parrish is made considerably easier by his growing obsession with her. A cunning psychopath with a calm demeanor, Parrish heavily resembles Hannibal Lecter. Rather than eat his victims, however, he tortures and dismembers them. Burke spends the first third of the novel overbuilding Parrish's reputation, so by the time she actually depicts his depravity the horrors are a bit anticlimatic. Later, the killer's mysterious accomplice, "The Moth," will be too easily identified by readers, especially after Burke unsuccessfully labors to mask his/her gender. And Parrish is only generically, not memorably twisted. Though Irene and other characters are well wrought and realistic, too many red herrings are introduced, all meant to distract the reader from the true evil, which, once fully revealed, just isn't quite evil enough. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Kelly - 02 - Sweet Dreams, Irene

Wed, 16 Feb 1994 20:02:10 +0200

From Publishers Weekly

Politics and murder mix in the second mystery, after Goodnight, Irene , to feature Southern California newspaper reporter Irene Kelly and her homicide detective lover, Frank Harriman. Jacob Henderson, teenaged son of a district attorney candidate whose mudslinging race Irene has been covering, asks her to prevent his father's opposition from announcing that the youth is a member of a satanic cult. Sammy, Jacob's girlfriend, tells Irene that the group is pagan but not satanist. She admits, however, that she and others in the group, most of whom live in a youth shelter, fear the man in a goat's-head mask who is their new leader. That night, Frank's elderly neighbor, founder of the shelter, is found murdered, with a rough drawing of a goat's head left on her front door. Then Sammy leaves Irene a message that she has run away from the shelter, which is run by the murdered woman's grandson. After another gruesome murder and mutilation, Irene is kidnapped and taken to a remote cabin where she is systematically beaten. Graphic torture scenes and Irene's cunningly crafted escape give the tale a jagged, somewhat unexpected edge.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The sequel to Goodnight, Irene ( LJ 2/1/93) depicts this reporter in the newly minted relationship she enjoys with Las Piernas (California) homicide detective Frank Harriman. Now covering the dirty politics involved in a local district attorney's race, Irene Kelly investigates slanderous allegations of Satanism and witchcraft against one candidate's teenaged son. The cultlike murder of Frank's elderly next-door neighbor, meanwhile, complicates both Irene's job and her relationship with Frank. Generally well written, a little fanciful, and lighthearted in tone. A good choice.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Bloodlines ik-9

Tue, 11 Nov 2014 14:14:43 +0200

Tried

Sun, 18 Nov 2001 17:46:13 +0200

With a brand-new short story featuring Tyler Hawthorne from The Messenger, plus three stories from Eighteen, this is the third of six e-short story collections from New York Times bestselling suspense author Jan Burke.

Goodnight, Irene ik-1

Wed, 11 Nov 1992 15:54:24 +0200