Crime Victims, A Buck Taylor Novel

Crime Victims

Chuck Morgan

Charles E Morgan (2024)

ISBN: 979-8990422926

Reviewed by Kathy Stickles for Reader Views (06/2024)

5*- A Riveting Murder Mystery

“Crime Victims: A Buck Taylor Novel” is book 12 in the series that follows Colorado Bureau of Investigation agent Buck Taylor as he attempts to unravel another strange set of murders. While this is the twelfth book, I was very happy to realize that it can be read as a stand-alone novel for those of us who have not been lucky enough to read the other stories. I can assure you that I will begin rectifying that immediately because this was an excellent book, and I am sure that the other eleven are just as good.

As the book opens, a first responder named Victoria Talmadge and her cadaver dog Jasper are taking a desperately needed vacation in Colorado. As they begin hiking around the Grand Mesa, Victoria finds that her dog keeps stopping and sitting as they move along the trail which is his signal that he has found a dead body. Since it happens so many times, and each time next to a cross in the ground, Victoria quickly calls a friend who directs her to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and to agent Buck Taylor. It just so happens that Buck is currently in Grand Mesa on vacation as well, but it looks like this is going to be a working vacation for him.

Once Buck digs into one of the spots the dog previously found he determines that there is indeed a body there. As local police show up, it soon turns into a horror story as they find a total of 11 bodies along the trail that Victoria was hiking on. The investigation quickly gets underway. It looks like there is a serial killer out there and the rush is on for Buck and his colleagues from the CBI to find the killer before he strikes again. To do that, Buck is going to have to delve into the mind of a crazy man if he wants to stop him. Luckily, there is no one better for the job, it seems.

“Crime Victims” is a riveting murder mystery that I would recommend. The characters in the story are well-developed and interesting and that alone keeps the pages turning. Buck is very experienced in this type of investigation, which he proves over and over as he unravels the clues with the help of his team. He is very smart, extremely focused on the details, and seems to be a very relatable character that I can see being enjoyed by many readers. The plot of the story is intriguing and holds the reader’s attention throughout. It is very well thought-out, and the dialogue is perfect for the story. While there is some bad language and plenty of violence in the book, it is nothing that seems out of place or detracts from the reader’s enjoyment. It just makes for an even more true-to-life experience. I was very impressed with Chuck Morgan’s writing and the detail he put into not only the plot but into every single character. The emotions of each character are right at the front and the reader is able to see and feel right along with them, but they are not overdone or unbelievable in the story as a whole.

“Crime Victims” by Chuck Morgan is a definite page-turner that I would recommend highly to any murder mystery/crime fan out there. The book offers plenty of drama, action, plot twists, and just the right amount of humor. I will be reading more of the stories about Buck Taylor while I anxiously await the next book in the series.