The Drowning Pool: Book 2

by: Jacqueline Seewald

Published by: Five Star

Reviewed by Stephanie Boyd

Police detective Mike Gardner and research librarian Kim Reynolds are still trying to work out their personal relationship (from Seewald’s earlier The Inferno Collection) as Mike tries to rein in his feisty New York transplant partner, Roberta “Bert” St. Croix and solve two murders.

A man’s body is found floating in the pool at Kim’s apartment complex–and he wasn’t a well-liked man. Lots of people with good motives want the man dead. And Mike has a tough job trying to wade through all the potential suspects with his partner Bert, who has moments that she is a help and moments that she lets her attitude hinder the case. And at home, Mike wants to marry Kim but she has doubts, his fourteen-year-old daughter has a boy friend that Mike isn’t fond of, and then the bad guys make the mistake of threatening Kim and Mike’s daughters. That was not wise.

I love the characters of Mike and Kim and the parts of the story where their relationship is going well–but Kim’s doubts make me nervous for the success of this relationship. The murder mystery is twisted, complex and well done, although it does drag a little in the middle. I enjoy it when Kim is able to offer insight or just the right soothing persona to help Mike deal with some of the tricky people in this story. We know from book one that Kim has some abilities to see ghost but I had to wonder why she didn’t try to use that part of her gift sooner in the book to help Mike out. Kim is still really stuck on denying her unique psychic abilities.

If you like tricky, complex murder mysteries with a touch of romance, then you will enjoy The Drowning Pool. If you haven’t read the first book, The Inferno Collection, you will want to read it first. It is not necessary but the foundation for the relationship of Kim and Mike is built in book one. I sure hope there is a book three on the way because I want to know what happens next!

Armchair Interviews agrees.