When The Dead Speak

Rating:
Summary: A GREAT READ
Review:

WHEN THE DEAD SPEAK is a fast-paced, topsy-turvy ride that mixed with humor and a little loving along the way will keep you enthralled all the way through the book. I really liked the fact that mixed into the pot is some Native American Culture, which made the book even more tantalizing. I can hardly wait for the next Sam Casey mystery to come out. Expect great things from this author.





Rating:
Summary: Great police procedural with a twist
Review: Fifteen miles from Chicago near Chasen Heights, a semi plows into a support pillar, which begins to toss off away pieces of cement before revealing a corpse. Police sergeant Samantha Casey examines the body using powers inherited from her mother, a powerful Sioux medicine woman. She touches the remains, finding various clues that she provides to fellow officers Frank Davis and Jake Mitchell.

The police have a two-decade old murder mystery on their hands. The victim is Harvey Wilson, an African-American who reportedly went AWOL during the Korean conflict. Harvey held a gold pin in his hand. The lightning bolt-shaped jewelry is identical to that owned by Sam's father and a state senator. As the clues pile up and the case turns into something much more complex than simple murder, the police get closer to the resolution. However, someone wants the investigation ended and will do anything to deflect it.

WHEN THE DEAD SPEAKS, the debut Sam Casey novel, is an action-packed mystery that will garner much attention from fans who enjoy a police procedural with a twist. The characters make the novel. Sam is a fine investigator whose extra talent aids her on her cases and cleverly provides readers a glimpse into the life of the victim. The support cast augments the non-stop action by bringing depth to the story line. Readers need to provide adequate time to complete this tale in one sitting because NOTHING ELSE MATTERS except finishing S.D. Tooley's first novel.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Interesting new heroine
Review: From the fast paced opening scene of a truck swerving into a concrete pillar disclosing a mummy to the gambling party at a politician's house, to the security guards at the same party, this debut novel takes you on a ride.

Sam Casey, half native american medicine woman, police sergeant in a Chicago suburb, loves her job and does it well. She receives images from objects handled by the dead, or about to be dead. In this case, the corpse is clutching a lightning bolt shaped pin, the twin of which is in the safe of the politician hosting the high stakes gambling party. The man has been dead for 20 years, but he had gone missing in Korea, 20 years before that. What is the connection between the corpse in the pillar, the politician, and Sam's own past?

The characters are fun and the pace is fast. If you like to be entertained and don't object to a little mysticism, try this book.

Rating:
Summary: Mainly 2-d Characters without common sense or personal ident
Review: I was hoping for a lot more from this book based on the review ratings and was somewhat disappointed. How Sam Casey ever made it through the police academy is beyond me. She doesn't think anything through. The villains are smarter than she is. Jake seems more interested in Sam's mom Abby. The chapters are broken out strangely and there are some horrible grammatical errors. The overall idea of someone being able to speak to the dead is a fantastic one, but little is done to flesh out the concept other than some minor(and very typical) "psychic" touching of objects stuff.

Rating:
Summary: Very confusing and lacking in suspense
Review: I was hoping for better from this book, but it never materialized. There are too many characters, not enough development of main characters, and it is never explained why the dead man is found in a concrete pillar. It is all tied to the Korean War, too far back in history to elicit a strong response from me. I won't be looking for more from this author.

Rating:
Summary: A Fast-Paced, Topsy-Turvy Ride
Review: It started with a wreck in Chasen Heights, a mainly blue collar town on the Southern border of Lake Michigan just fifteen miles north of Chicago. A corvette cuts off a semi on the expressway and causes the semi to hit the center medium and jack knive, exposing enough concrete all the way up to the cement pillar where it connected to the overpass. Enough concrete had broken away to expose mummified remains, perfectly preserved.

Jake Mitchell and his partner Frank Travis get the case, along with their new partner Detective Sergeant Sam Casey who is not the usual police officer. She has inherited a gift from her mother and grandmother. Sam's mom Abby is a Sioux medicine woman, and they both have the ability to speak to the dead. Sam knows facts that no one else knows.

The body that was encased in cement was that of a solider from the Korean War who was reported AWOL and in his hand was a lighting bolt pin, which when Sam touched, she saw dozens of lighting bolt shapes. She also saw body parts lying in a field. Sam felt a cold wave go up her body and the hair raise than the vision ended. Sam remembers that she saw another lighting bolt pin in a safe of State Representative Preston Hillard when she was under cover at his home. Hillard claims to know nothing about the pin and never knew the dead man. Sam finds out that her dad had one in his jewelry box. What do the solider and her father have to do with each other? Sam must uncover the facts even though her own boss Murphy has closed the case for good.

WHEN THE DEAD SPEAK is a fast-paced, topsy-turvy ride that mixed with humor and a little loving along the way will keep you enthralled all the way through the book. I really liked the fact that mixed into the pot is some Native American Culture, which made the book even more tantalizing. I can hardly wait for the next Sam Casey mystery to come out. Expect great things from this author.

Rating:
Summary: A great new series!!
Review: Sam Casey is a new character to keep your eyes on. This book is great, with a strong lead character, good plot and mystery, and just enough Native American mysticism to make it really interesting. Strong secondary characters really help carry this book through to the end. If you enjoy Thomas Perry, then S.D. Tooley needs to go on your to be read list.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointed. Expected more based on other reviews.
Review: Sam Casey is a wonderful character! The story was interesting, the characters (Jake, Abby, Alex, Frank) were deep and fascinating, the mystery held your attention until the last page. The narrative did tend to be a bit disjointed at times to smooth over jagged bits of the plot, and some of the secondary characters were sketchy, but all in all I'd say this one is a must have!!!

Rating:
Summary: Very Highly Recommended.
Review: When The Dead Speak by S.D. Tooley will hold the reader's attention riveted until the last page is turned. With a foundation of Native American mysticism blended with a solid murder mystery, Tooley creates a masterful tale of love and murder. A freak accident where a semi swerves to collide with the concrete columns of an overpass in Chicago. As chunks of concrete fall away, a body is revealed encased in its concrete tomb. In his hand is a gold pen shaped like a lightening bolt, and a clue that spans the world reaching into Korea and the racism that American soldiers perpetrated against their own. The corruption of the evil done in Korea has spread on American shores to the highest levels, and even ties to Sam's own deceased father. Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey has a gift inherited from her mother, a Sioux medicine woman. Using her hands, Sam can hear the voices of the dead. When she touches the mysterious golden lightening bolt, she witnesses the ravaged, bullet ridden bodies, and she smells the blood and gunpowder. From a corpse dead twenty-one years, Sam hears the screams of battle and senses the fear and terror. If you enjoy Alex Matthew's series with the heroine Cassidy McCabe, then you will find Sam Casey equally satisfying and yet uniquely different. When The Dead Speak is a rocket paced, addictive novel that is impossible to put down. The heroine is sexy, gifted, and imperfect, with just enough vulnerability to keep the reader hooked. While it reaches a satisfying conclusion, When The Dead Speak also leaves just enough untied and interesting loose ends to lead into the sequel, Nothing Else Matters.

Cindy Penn, Reviewer