Edge of Evil (Ali Reynolds Series #1) »

You might call J. A. Jance a true town and country novelist, since she writes one series set in Seattle and one in small-town Arizona as she shuttles between the two in real life. In big-city homicide detective J. P. Beaumont and in small-town sheriff/mom Joanna Brady, Jance has created two mega-popular mystery franchises.

The end of her high-profile broadcasting career came too soon for TV journalist Alison Reynolds, bounced off the air by executives who wanted a younger face. With a divorce from her cheating husband also pending, Ali is summoned back home to Sedona, Arizona, by the mysterious death of a childhood friend—and the killer may be hunting her next.

Publishers Weekly

At the start of this disappointing thriller from bestseller Jance (Long Time Gone), Alison Reynolds, a 45-year-old Los Angeles television news anchor, loses her job, realizes her marriage is a sham and learns that her childhood friend Reenie Bernard has disappeared after being diagnosed with ALS. Alison efficiently handles the first two problems, hiring attorneys specializing in discrimination and divorce. With her supportive college student son, Chris, she heads for Sedona, Ariz., her hometown, to visit her sympathetic parents and await news of Reenie. When Chris sets up a blog for her, Alison, usually tense and judgmental, begins revealing herself to strangers, a practice that leads to a personal threat. After Reenie's body is found, the police pronounce her a suicide; Alison disagrees and begins to investigate her friend's life. The reader learns much about age and sex discrimination, spousal abuse, the effects of catastrophic illness on families and anonymous Internet communication. The result, though, is a polemical novel with poorly developed characters and predictable situations uncharacteristic of this talented author. (Jan.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.