And Let There Be A Hero by R.M. Kidwell

Dayton, Ohio, is stunned by a series of savage deaths.  Is it a vigilante murderer?  A heartless assassin?  Is it two different serial killers?  That is the dilemma facing Detective Kalen Gatt.  Added pressure comes from Chief Danforth, who was a personal friend of one of the victims.  The friend was an icon whose coattails the Chief planned to ride in order to fulfill his political aspirations  Kale does not need an even more disgruntled boss with all that is facing him.  An when he is unexpectedly drawn into a horrifying terrorist plt...it just may be too much for "Special K" to handle. (taken from the back of the book)

I admit it, I'm a mystery junkie.  This is definitely a series for my keeper shelf.  Well, it will be once I get the rest of them!  The first book in the series, The Wailin' Beaver, sets the stage for Kale to become the hero he's destined in And Let There Be A Hero.  Though I haven't read the first book, it wasn't integral in reading the second.  We start out with Kale returning to work after a horrible accident has disfigured him.  If you want to find out exactly what happened, there's an excerpt at the back of the book, but I suggest you not read it until after you've read the book.  In my opinion, it was more fun to read about Kale's 'adventures' and then go back and find out how he was disfigured.  Then again, those that have read the first book already know all about it.  But, I digress.

As characters go, this book has it all.  I'll  admit, in the beginning I found Kale to be a total jerk, but at least he was a jerk in a funny way.  Towards the end of the book he actually had me laughing out loud, and not exactly in appropriate spots of the story to be laughing.  You really become invested in Kale and his crack team as well as his family.  The outlying characters are forces to be reckoned with as well. I love that I wanted to climb into the book several times to smack the funk out of somebody.  

Since this is a mystery book, I have to rate that as well. And it gets 30 ladders high in the air!  Yeah, that doesn't make sense, but seriously, as mysteries go, this one is pretty high up there.  See, the book is separated into sections and each one is a different crime for Kale to solve.  Sometimes I had a clue who the culprit was, but more often than not I was completely stumped and found myself screaming, 'WHO KALE?  WHO?  COME ON!  WHO DID IT?'  Let me tell you, a fun read all the way through!  Just when you think you have a handle on who did what, the unthinkable happens and you have to readjust yourself.

Honestly, this is one of the most thrilling rides I've had in a long time.  I can't wait for A Day in the Darkness to be released.  In the meantime, I'm going to see if I can hunt down a Wailin' Beaver!  This is a must read for you mystery fans out there!