Murder in the Ascendant

by: Desmond John Evans

Published by: Athena Press

Reviewed by Shawn Remfrey

It all starts with some real estate going up for sale. When the agent goes to look at the mansion, he feels like something is wrong and mentions it to his friend, Chief Inspector Jim Langton. When the Chief Inspector goes to take a look, questions start forming. The unsolved mystery of a young woman nearly sixteen years ago is brought to light, and the case is reopened.

When Inspector Langton goes to a local psychic for help, everyone starts questioning his tactics. Clues along the way lead the inspector to start hunting for the mysterious Scorpion Club, but will he find all the answers he needs from them? Who owns the mysterious mansion? What actually happened to Jane Wixman nearly sixteen years ago? Will the inspector be able to solve the mystery before any more people die?

I love this book! Usually mystery books are great through the first half and then you figure out what’s going to happen in the end, at which point you only continue reading the book just to make sure you’re right. This is not one of those books! I did not have a clue how it was going to end until it was spelled out for me at the end. The characters are so realistic that you either love them or hate them. You can hear their voices, see their faces, and suck in their emotions as if they were your own. I truly believe this is one of the best mystery books I have read in years.

Murder in the Ascendant is the second book in a trilogy being written by Desmond. Evans. The first book, Death is a Member, introduces us to the Chief Inspector (CI), and this one continues eighteen months later. I’m impressed not only with Evans’ amazing storytelling abilities, but by the fact that he started writing at the age of 81. He also served in WW II and spent his life working in insurance.

I cannot wait for the third book to be released!

(Read Desmond Evans’ story on our site in Reader’s Place as he explains how and why he started writing at age 81.)

Armchair Interviews says: Truly a 5-star read!