Trapped, by Becky Durfee

Okay, readers, I have a confession to make.  I have a guilty pleasure.  Once in a while, I have to take a break from the "meaty" books that I read to expand my mind, and I escape to the land of fun reading.  And when I do, my first choice is the Jenny Watkins series.  This series, by Becky Durfee, is self-published on Amazon, but can be found at other locations, including at least one Barnes and Noble store.  Although I love best-selling books an always have to read the "latest must-reads", I also like at least one self-published author, and I'm liking her more and more with each book.

I have to admit, at the risk of sounding biased, that Becky Durfee is a local author. She lives in the same mega-community in our Virginia suburb.  Although I had taught her incredibly nice and intelligent son, and her daughter takes classes at the same dance/arts studio as my daughter, I really did not know Becky Durfee at all.  I decided to pick up the first book, Driven, at a charity holiday fair at my daughter's school.  The first book started a little slow, but I read through to the end and was pleased.  I bought the next book, Betrayed, because I wanted to see where she took the characters, and loved it.  At that point, I became hooked.  I immediately bought Shattered (book 3) and Exposed (book 4), and devoured then both in a matter days. Exposed ended in a cliffhanger, so I (im)patiently waited for the release of Trapped, the 5th installment in the series.  It was well worth waiting for!!

These mysteries take us through the life of Jenny Watkins, a wife and teacher who suddenly discovers she has psychic abilities.  She can receive contact from the dead to help her to understand their lives, but she is also able to help law enforcement solve crimes.  Durfee takes us through some fascinating cases, that span many different periods of history, while also getting us enmeshed in Jenny's personal struggles and triumphs. I have found that with each book, not only does Durfee's writing get better, but I'm more attached to the characters. In Trapped, she did an excellent job of incorporating history in a story about a present-day serial killer.  She also tastefully addressed issues such as slavery and prostitution, in a way that made me think about both from a different perspective.  As a result, I can't wait to read the next book....

Bottom Line:  The best book, so far, in a fantastic mystery series, by the best indy-author I've read!

Rating: 90