August Wainwright

A well written mystery introducing a new detective with an excellent eye to detail. She has a sidekick who is dealing with issues of his own and whom she is trying to heal and make whole. It is interesting how she solves the case finding or noticing the little clues that the police officers working the case overlook or do not think is that important. She keeps a lot of her ideas to herself but keeps pushing her police counterpart to keep looking and thinking.

The case starts in modern day Washington, DC but goes back in time to explain how the victims and the accused came to that point that led to the crime. Then Remy tells us what clues led her to the suspect that is arrested. A very interesting story twist to me.

I look forward to reading the other two Remy books that have come out. She and Jay make a good team and I hope that they continue to work together. If you are a Sherlock Holmes fan then Remy fits the bill of that type of detective.… (mer)

If you like modern mysteries with thoughtfully developed characters, unpredictable events and carefully plotted story-lines, you’ll enjoy reading the Remy Moreau series. The books are short – St. Mary’s Cipher only took me about an hour to read – and I’d love to see it in full novel length, but I’ll take what I can get!

Remy is a Sherlock Holmes/Lisbeth Salander sort of character – smart, a bit aloof, and very intuitive. She’s obviously carrying around a lot of baggage from her early years, but the reader does not yet know just what makes her tick and why. Her roommate and sidekick, Jay Watts, is a bit easier to understand – very much like Watson in Sherlock Holmes, but with a very different back-story.

In St. Mary’s Cipher – the second book of the series – Jim Fairfield comes to Remy with several coded letters that his wife had received. Fairfield’s wife is scared and paranoid, but try as he might, she will not tell her husband the reason for her fears, why she insisted that they move from their home to a new city and a new life, and why she is unable to shake away the past. When Jim finds the coded letters and emails, she becomes very nervous, begs him not to become involved, but still refuses to tell him what they mean. Frustrated and concerned, he hires Remy Moreau.

The story moves quickly, as Remy struggles to break the code and unearth the mystery – but can she discover the hidden meaning before it’s too late? You’ll have to read this top-notch mystery to find the answer.

Highly recommended!

I was honored to have been given a copy of this book by the author in exchange for agreeing to write a fair and unbiased review. I have never met the author.… (mer)

This short story follows on from the first novel in this new series "A Study in Sin". A husband is concerned that his wife is receiving strange coded messages and is terrified of someone or something. The enigmatic Remy Moreau with her flatmate Jay Watts in tow must crack the code and solve a mystery before it's too late. A well paced story,the author builds the suspense right to the end and resolves the puzzle neatly. Looking forward to the next installment of the series and finding out more about the intriguing, multi-faceted Remy.… (mer)