Detective Carly Edwards had it all - a job she loved, a husband she admired, and a dog they both adored. And in a night when her regular partner had the night off, everything changed. The officer filling in for her partner (a known loose cannon) emptied an entire magazine on a guy who was already unable to be a danger to either officer. However, the ensuing fallout affected Carly, although the Shooting Review Team cleared her. She is reassigned to juvenile after an unrelenting press paints a picture of a trigger-happy, power-hungry cop.

But then the mayor of the town is murdered, and one of the suspects asks for Carly. The suspect, Londy, is a juvenile who has been in trouble before, but never for anything violent. He knows of her because his mother and Carly's mother are friends through church. Londy claims that he has found religion and is reformed. He is only a suspect, he claims, because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Carly sees this as her opportunity to prove that she belongs back on the streets and out of juvenile. How hard can it be to get a confession out of a kid with a mountain of evidence against him? But he won't back down, and soon she begins to believe his story. Homicide, however, is equally convinced of his guilt, and they are determined to convict him. Carly begins to wonder how determined they are when she begins to investigate and finds suspicious activity on the part of the department.

Of all people, her ex-husband seems to believe her. Against her better judgement, she decides to trust him with her suspicions (the marriage broke up because he cheated on her), and he helps her investigate. However, as their investigation progresses, it becomes clear that something is not right - the best investigators are pulled off the case, the files are closed to investigators, and more lives are threatened.

ACCUSED was a wonderfully paced, action-packed mystery. The religious theme running throughout the book was clearly important, but it did not distract from the action. It was woven seamlessly into the dialogue and helped drive the plot forward, although sometimes predictably so. The tension between Carly and her roommate when it came to Nick was also a bit tedious, although understandable.

Carly is a wonderfully written character that I can not wait to revisit. She is clearly a competent detective, an intelligent woman, and a compassionate partner. This is definitely a series I will be revisiting.

Book Summary

Detective Carly Edwards hates working in juvenile—where the brass put her after an officer-involved shooting—and longs to be back on patrol. So when a troubled youth, Londy Atkins, is arrested for the murder of the mayor and Carly is summoned to the crime scene, she's eager for some action. Carly presses Londy for a confession but he swears his innocence, and despite her better judgment, Carly is inclined to believe him. Yet homicide is convinced of his guilt and is determined to convict him.

Carly's ex-husband and fellow police officer, Nick, appears to be on her side. He's determined to show Carly that he's a changed man and win her back, but she isn't convinced he won't betray her again.

As the investigation progresses, Carly suspects a cover-up and strikes out on her own, uncertain whom she can trust. But when danger mounts, she begins to wonder if she made the right choice.