Everyone enjoys a good crime thriller. But an author has to be careful not to create an untouchable cop who can solve every bank robbery, save every little child from peril, and catch the uncatchable serial killer. This is exactly who our protagonist is in Eden's Scarecrow.

So how do you make a plot about a super cop interesting? Author J. Parham Saunders has found the formula. Jack Helton, Detective, has been accused by the authorities who used to live in his shadow, of brutally murdering a security guard. This story flips the archetype of the perfect official on its head by accusing him of exactly the same heinousness that he has spent his life opposing.

In this short work of fiction we follow our main character who struggles to gain his colleagues', and our, trust. Helton has only 72 hours to solve this crime and to clear his name. And not only that, but the entire case hinges on an unsolved theft in the early '90s of a priceless work of art, and a recently orphaned daughter who has a new fear of the police.

Saunders is a great story-crafter, and you'll spend the entire story on the edge of your chair as you wait to see what is around the next bend. Is Helton being framed by a rival tired of living in his shadow? Is there a master thief at large playing a game with Helton because he is the only one up to the challenge the robber can supply? Or have years of being leaned on by the force in the most detestable crimes Philly can supply finally caught up to him?

I look forward to the future as Saunders continues to reevaluate the written paradigms as he has done in Eden's Scarecrow. Don't read this book unless you are ready to give up your free time until you come to the story's end. It is an exchange you won't regret.

Want to find out more about book reviews, then visit Todd Rutherford's site about book reviewers.

About The Author

Related Pages

Connect With Ubscure

Print This Article