Long Time Gone: A Novel of Suspense

Product Description

When a middle-aged nun, unexpectedly, recalls the grisly details of an unsolved murder she witnessed as a child, Special Homicide Investigator J.P. Beaumont finds himself wrapped in a case wher a band of powerful co-conspirators who are willing to go to any length to keep their deadly secrets hidden. Meanwhile, Beau's former partner, Ron Peters, becomes the prime suspect after his ex-wife is killed. Barred from any official involvement in the case, Beau watches helplessly as his friend's family is slowly torn apart. Faced with personal conflicts and shocking suprises, Beau must struggle to solves one of his most baffling and dangerous cases yet. Read by Gene Engene 10 CD's 11.7 Hrs.

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After more than twenty years of distinguished service with the Seattle Police Department, Jonas Piedmont Beaumont is now working for the Washington State Attorney's Special Homicide Investigation Team or, as it's more commonly called, the SHIT squad. But the more things change, the more they stay the same.

An eyewitness to a fifty-year-old murder has just come forward, and Beau has been hand-picked to lead the investigation. While undergoing hypnotherapy, a middle-aged nun unexpectedly recalls the grisly details of a cold-blooded killing she witnessed when she was five years old. Though fear has kept these memories repressed for half a century, they've now risen to the surface to cast a harsh light on a deadly plot that spans two generations. And Beau's caught in the glare, facing a ruthless band of coconspirators willing to go to any lengths to keep their secrets hidden.

But there's more shaking up Beau's world. His former partner, Ron Peters -- caught in a bitter child-custody battle -- becomes the prime suspect in his ex-wife's vicious murder. A surrogate parent to Ron's three children, Beau must watch helplessly as his friend spirals through an emotional free fall, his life and family torn to pieces. Everywhere he turns, Beau keeps butting heads with an adversary from the Seattle PD with a personal vendetta. And his growing feelings for Melissa Soames—the squad's newest investigator and Beau's unlikely ally -- is a distraction that threatens to open painful old wounds and rouse his personal demons.

Filled with all of the Jance trademarks -- heart-stopping suspense, deeply drawn characters, local flavor, intelligence, and humanity -- Long Time Gone is a crowning achievement in this bestselling author's career.

Customer Reviews:

Investigating with Beau's a Pleasure.......2007-10-06

The kind of enjoyable mystery/thriller I was looking for. Such books are diversions from heavier reading and busy life. Having done my fix of Harold Adams, I was ready to find a detective to enjoy in Carl Wilcox' stead (no sign of him in nearly seven years), and since Thomas Perry has seemed to abandon Jane Whitefield, I was looking for someone to join James Sallis' thoughtful protagonists. Beau, J.P. Beaumont, retired Seattle P.D. officer now working for the state attorney's office, proves to be that detective. Here, he is involved in two cases. One is the one he's assigned, the murder recalled under hypnosis by a former high school classmate of his turned convent Mother Superior. Fifty years later, the case is very cold until she comes forth. The other case is one in which a good friend and former partner of Beau's, Ron Peters, appears to be the prime suspect in Peters' ex-wife's murder. Conflict of interest prevents Beau from participating in this one, but friendship supersedes direct orders to stay out of it. In both cases, Beau ends up working with fellow investigator Melissa Soames, and the loner Beau re-considers having a partner as a result. They make a good pair. Beau himself is human, with a background that includes his previous employer, two former wives, some bad habits and times, and more. He ends up being a thoughtful, compassionate man doing a tough job with insight and feelings. The combination works in him and helps him with the cases. This is a good read. Beau is especially well fleshed-out, but the other characters are three dimensional, even the teenagers. The plot line is fun, with just the right amount of clues to keep the reader investigating alongside Beau, and a pace that keeps things moving. Ms Jance, I'll be back!

Found it boring.........2007-03-12

Sorry...this was the first time I have read any of her books and I thought it was terrible. I purchased based on the other reviews, but I did not find the characters very engaging, the story line dragged and overall I found it extremely difficult to read through to the end. Will not try her books again and will stick to Patterson, etc.

A 30 year local review.......2007-01-21

I have spent most of my adult life living in Seattle. J.A Jance is able to bring the smallest details about the city into her novels. Long Time Gone is no different. If your from Seattle and want to feel like your part of the story your will enjoy Long Time Gone.

At the top of her game.......2006-12-16

Many many years ago, I frequented a mystery bookstore in Long Beach. The owner and clerks used to recommend books to me, and at one point one of the clerks insisted I try these books by an author named J.A.Jance. At the time I think there were only three, and if I'm correct they were paperback originals--essentially pulps. If they did have hardbacked editions, those had very low print runs. She insisted that I read them, and in order, and so I did, and frankly I've never regretted the decision. The stories are at times a bit melodramatic, but the author does very well with character development, and (as with any good detective novel) the city J.P.Beaumont inhabits (Seattle) is a character, and you almost feel like you've visited every time you read one of the books. Believe me, it was a shock when the fourth or fifth book came out, with a picture of a *woman* in the back. Until then, since she'd used initials (and so did her main character, Beaumont) everyone had assumed she was male.

In the current entry, Beaumont has finally retired from the Seattle Police Department. The author's been toying with what to have him do next, but for the moment he works as an investigator for the State Attorney General, as part of the Special Homicide Investigation Team. I'll let you work out the acronym on your own. This is a family website. Needless to say the book is replete with jokes about this, and it's pretty fun. Two mysteries run through the plot, not exactly connecting but crossing one another in "Beau" Beaumont's mind. On the one hand there's the case he's supposed to be investigating, involving a middle-aged nun who thinks now that she saw, and suppressed the memory of, a murder fifty years ago. On the other hand, there's the case he's *not* supposed to be investigating, in which his friend, wheelchair-bound Ron Peters, is suspected of killing his ex-wife in a custody dispute involving their 15-year old daughter.

I enjoyed this book a great deal. Beau's getting another partner (hopefully this one will live for a while) and the plot has enough twists and turns to be interesting. "Mysteries" in the conventional sense have never been Jance's strong suit--she's not Michael Connelly--but her characters and dialog are very good, and as I said she makes Seattle shine. I would recommend this book.

Good plot, written well & it all comes together.......2006-11-19

I find myself preferring the JP Beaumont over the Joanna Brady series by Jance. This book is a perfect reason why. The character is much more developed, JP's attitudes are much more entertaining, the novels clearly better written. This is actually 2 murder mysteries under one cover. The book moves back & forth between the two and does it well. Each mystery comes together well at the end. JP finds himself with a new female partner & possibly a new interest? The last page leaves that thought entertainingly hanging

Average customer rating:

Amazing
Journey Through the Past
SUNSHINE SUPERMAN

Long Time Gone : A Novel
Denis Hamill
Manufacturer: Washington Square Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0743407105

Book Description

Danny Cassidy couldn't remember if he'd killed the cop. So begins one man's journey through his fifty-year-old history and conscience in Long Time Gone, Denis Hamill's gripping novel set in the back streets and alleyways of Brooklyn, U.S.A. It's the year 2001 when Danny, a divorced journalist, returns to his old neighborhood for his father's funeral. He's spent all of his adult life trying to leave Brooklyn behind him -- along with all the drugs, music, and other psychedelic memories from the sixties spent on Hippie Hill. But now that the box of rain has been opened there's no turning back, and Danny must face some painful truths about the woman he used to love -- and her father, a police officer, whom he may or may not have killed. By turns a thriller, a detective story, and a coming-of-age tale, Long Time Gone is a bittersweet love letter to a lost New York that no reader will soon forget.

Customer Reviews:

Amazing.......2006-09-14

I bought this book on a whim at an Ocean State Job Lot (closeout store)and couldn't put it down. This book can be quite explicit, so if you are easily offended by sex or drugs I don't recomend it. As I'm only 21 I can only assume that this is a good representation of the 60s, but the murder mystery aspect of it is top notch!

Journey Through the Past.......2005-09-26

Danny Cassidy's life is in a mess. He walked out on his wife for no good reason, his daughter doesn't want to know him, and his job is on the line due to the fact he's not getting any younger. On top of that, there's the crime he's been running from for thirty odd years, a burden grating at his skull, the root of ALL his problems.

Back in the Brooklyn neighbourhood of his youth, a corrupt cop was murdered, shot repeatedly in a local park. Evidence was lacking but clues pointed strongly to Danny - out of his head on LSD at the time, and suffering from a blackout of the night ever since. As the main suspect, he took off, hit the west coast, never came back. But the mystery of that night back in the drug-drenched dead end of the 60's has preyed on him ever since, not least by the sporadic phonecalls by 'Ankles', the old Brooklyn cop who refuses to 'let this one go', promising that one day he will be hauled back and forced to face his conscience and the truth of that deadly night.

The book opens with Danny receiving a random message from the unrelenting old cop, this time informing him of his estranged father's death. Danny knows his three-decade 'hideout' ends here: he has to return to the neighbourhood and bury him. And by doing so, square up to the demons of his past. It's here that Denis Hamill excells in describing a present-day Brooklyn still physically intact, yet changed beyond recognition. The dirty boulevards of Danny's youth cleaned-up, gentrified, inhabited by a different class. The neighbourhood resembles Manhattan and has lost its "film noir beauty to the bright high-gloss slickness of a Mercedes commercial". Hamill describes his part of the city with honesty and feeling.

The story develops into an explorative account of the past as Danny turns Private Eye to discover the truth of his supposed guilt. He revisits the old haunts, meets an array of old faces who turn up for his father's wake and funeral, and discovers a conspiratorial web of intrigue that unfurls a world of festering corruption, greed and evil. With Danny now rocking the boat, just staying alive becomes tricky business.

Hamill ensures his tale reads like an historical account of the Prospect Park area of Brooklyn - and the late 60's era in general - flashing from the past to the present, namechecking and fact-revealing along the way. The plot twists and turns - the less revealed the better, but DO expect surprises. The writing resonates with a Doors/Dylan soundtrack (never has Mr Tambourine Man sounded so haunting!). And the issue of 'Vietnam' is covered brilliantly: fathers and sons torn apart by the warring sides of patriotism and peace sloganeering, highlighting the boiling anger and violence of that contentious time.

Close renderings of family relationships, first love, nostalgia and failure - along with an expansive plot - make this book so much more than a simple story that you read and forget. Like a well-written piece of investigative journalism, this book is not only highly engaging but will also make you THINK. Hamill at his best.

SUNSHINE SUPERMAN.......2003-03-30

Even though I was born in 1964 this book made me feel, smell and taste the 60's. The main character's name is Danny Cassidy, which I kept reading as David Cassidy. Danny is now a journalist in his 50's haunted by the murder of a cop in 1969. Danny fears he may have committed this crime, however he was so strung out on drugs, he doesn't remember much of anything about the night of the murder. Basically he returns to his hometown of Brooklyn to find out the truth. The book is a real pageturner and an engrosing mystery, however some of the relationships between the male and female characters made no sense to me. For example even though Danny is aging, not in great shape and only semisuccesful, practically every female in the book seems to want nothing more than to hop into bed with him. No matter how young, attractive and successful the women were, Danny inexplicably seemed to be the man of their dreams. His relationship with his old girlfriend Erika is somewhat understandable as they were teenage sweethearts, however I don't think most of my fellow females would find Danny worth lusting after. (Myself not included-as I love all things from this era). Also the constant use of the word, "cherry," in reference to virginity became quite annoying.
All in all this book is a good mystery that most readers interested in the 60's and 70's will enjoy.

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Long Time Gone a Novel
Denis Hamill
Manufacturer: ATRIA BOOKS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SNDNTO

Average customer rating:

Long Time Gone Lp : A Novel Of Suspense
J. A. Jance
Manufacturer: Thorndike Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OEWDU2

Customer Reviews:

Not the end?.......2006-10-27

According to the infamous Wikipedia there just might be a 12th volume. The mangaka went on haiatus in 2001 from this serties & hasn't made a manga since. My personal guess is that the original Japanese publishers are pressuring her to pick up the series again now that they're making forign profit through Viz off the series. The exact same thing happened to the Aoike Yasuko whom made the Eroica manga; 7 year haiatus on book 19, now on book 33.
Hopefully the series will extend beyond a 12th book & like Patalliro, get a second TV series to boot. Oh yeah, & there's a raunchy yaoi scene at the end between unfamiliar characters. The series gets progressively BL.

Volume 3: "The Sword of K".......2006-08-31

I had a few doubts as to whether I was going to like this series at first, but Vol. 3 dispelled them. This was a VERY good story; intense, dramatic, and well told. If you were only to get ONE book from the 11-part series, this would be it. Though of course you should also at least get Book 1, which introduces the characters and the situation presented here.

The (delightful) hero is Tsuzuki, a "shinigami" or Guardian of Death, who is dispatched by the Judgement Bureau of the Minstry of Hades to investigate what appear to be vampire attacks aboard a luxury cruise liner. The focus of the story is Hizoka, Tsuzuki's young partner, who once again comes face to face with - er - the guy on the cover (I don't want to spoil or anything). The story follows up on what was revealed about these characters in Volume 1, but where DoD1 just sort of threw the information at us, here we have intense character development combined with a well constructed mystery story.

DoD is supernatural horror. It is lurid, psychologically murky, and has adult themes. The deep affection and respect between the heroes stands out against this dark milieu, and makes for the major attraction of the series.

random reveiw.......2006-07-03

This is is a good book, keeps you laughing each time you read it

Descedants Of Darkness... Ends All To Quickly.......2006-05-11

I've loved Descendants of Darkness ever since I saw the anime a few years ago. (And I am a guy, by the way. I waited forever for the manga to come out, and even bought the Japanese version a few years ago off Ebay. (Though I can't read kanji...) I am glad it finally came out in English, but unfortunately Vol. 11 is the last. The author never finished the stories and kinda left us all hanging. Unfortunately a lot of great anime do this, including X/1999.

DOD is a great fantasy shojo and is worth reading. Tsuzuki is one of my all time favorite anime/manga characters, and I hope someday the story will be finished... but I'm not holding my breath.

Beyond the Anime.......2006-02-25

As fans may know, the defeat of Muraki, which is the finish of the anime is not the last story in the manga series.
In this new story arc, Hisoka decides to get his own Shiki (the twelve creatures that guard Tsuzuki are called Shiki in the manga, their name is slightly different in the anime). Of course, Tsuzuki volunteers to help him get one,so Tsuzuki takes Hisoki to the Shiki world and of course, they get lost!
If that is not enough, another new story line with Tatsumi and Watari begins. Because Tsuzuki and Hisoka are on this quest,
Tatsumi has to investigate Hisoka's family (the case is not explained yet), something which he grumbles about, since he hasn't led an investigation in 50 years.
We learn that the Shiki live in something called the Imaginary World located in cyberspace (there's an explanation why it is where it is). We see the White Tiger's and Touda's human form, plus other shiki not yet really introduced. We learn a bit more about Tsuzuki's relationship with Touda and how a deal is struck with the creatures of this world.
This is a pretty enjoyable manga as a whole, I'm looking forward to how these two stories play out.

Average customer rating:

Rambling

A bit of a Dud

Great Imagination and a neat idea about time travel.

Nothing spectacular

A Phenomemonal Novel

Out of Place Out of Time: The Testimony of Dr. Trenton Stowel
Eric D. Knapp
Manufacturer: iUniverse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Adventure | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Beyond This Time

ASIN: 0595302130

Book Description

Dr. Stowel made a big mistake: experimenting with unverified theories of time travel. The consequence was his sudden departure from Earth and his introduction to a sentient alien race. When he returns, many years later, he doesn't know how he got back, or why.

Injured and suffering from severe memory loss, Stowel can only speculate that the aliens were responsible, that they are on Earth now and that they are up to no good. To the agents of the Temporal Exploration and Advancement project, Stowel's return could mean advancing their research by years. Yet with the risk of instigating an alien conflict as a result of their research, the project is at risk of being terminated instead!

What is really going on? Katherine Maya is certain there is more, locked inside the lost memories of Dr. Trenton Stowel. But how can she unlock the memories of a man who keeps disappearing into thin air?

Customer Reviews:

Rambling.......2007-01-10

I felt the dialog for the character in this book was rambling and repetitive. So much so, that I could not make it halfway through the book. I strongly recommend you move on and purchase one of the many other fine books available in the sci-fi universe.

A bit of a Dud.......2006-11-05

I started reading this book and just stopped after the first chapter. Possibly it is a bit over my head, but I did not find it interesting and it was just too much of a hassle to keep up with this fractured time story.

Great Imagination and a neat idea about time travel........2005-07-15

The book was very enjoying to read. It was hard to put the book down once it was started. There were a couple of typos, but what book today doesn't have those? The story takes you through time and travel in the mind of Trenton Stowel. I would recommend it, it was a lot of fun!

Nothing spectacular.......2004-11-02

Not the worst thing I ever read, but I can't say I was too impressed either. If you overlook the grammatical and spelling errors, you'll find a science fiction story that seems to want to be taken very seriously, but at the same time is based on such a ludicrous premise that it's just impossible to do so. The primary character of Trenton Stowel is the centerpiece of the story, and I wanted to like him but I just didn't find him all that engaging (at one point in the story his mysterious interviewer tells Stowel, and by proxy the reader, that Stowel is 'definitely very interesting'; I'm glad at least the other characters thought so, but stating it outright don't make it so). Again, not the worst thing I've ever read, but amateurish in both content and presentation, and certainly not worth it's relatively large price tag.

A Phenomemonal Novel.......2004-06-23

This story is incredibly different from any other science fiction out there! It's a brilliant, enrapturing tale that is very well thought out, with every detail clicking into place by the end!

Book Description

The High Holy Days -- Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur -- are for many Jews the highlight of the Jewish year. The liturgy for the Days of Awe are the longest and most complex of the year, leaving a large number of attendees without a complete understanding of the occasion's significance.

Entering The High Holy Days provides historical background and interpretation of the ideas, practices, and liturgy and lends them contemporary relevance to today's Jews.

Customer Reviews:

Terrific Book.......2007-10-09

I brought this book with me to High Holyday services this year and used it as a reference. I really enjoyed it. It is particularly interesting when it explains the origins of the various prayers

Don't go to shul without it!.......2006-10-03

Whether you are a Jew-from-birth who wants to deepen your experience of the High Holy Days or a convert going through the Days of Awe for the first time, or a interested bystander who wants to know more of what the holiest days of the year are all about, Reuven Hammer's Entering the High Holy Days is an excellent resource.

The author covers the history and development of the rituals and services of Rosh Hashannah, Yom Kippur and the days between (known as the Days of Awe) as well as customs such as the foods eaten (or not eaten, in the case of Yom Kippur), taschlich, and kaporot. Particularly useful is the indepth guide to the services themselves. Although I was attending my first High Holy Day services at a Reform synagogue, whose siddur doesn't include everything that the Conservative, Orthodox and REconstructionist services do (and thus doesn't include everything mentioned in this book), I still learned a lot and could recognize the steps and overall sections and structures of the services. The background information on the various Torah readings and Haftorah readings added more depth to those portions of the services. Best of all, however, is the knowledge that allows one to act in preparation for the holiest holidays of the year and to enter them feeling more prepared and more knowledgeable than ever before. Whether your first experience or your 50th, you will get something from this book. Highly recommended.

A useful guide written with a contemporary audience firmly in mind.......2005-12-09

Now in a new paperback edition, Entering The High Holy Days: A Complete Guide To The History, Prayers, And Themes is a classic guide to Jewish religious holidays. Written by Reuven Hammer, head of the Rabbinical Court of the Masorti Movement, Entering The High Holy Days has earned the National Jewish Book Award for its scholarly yet straightforward presentation of the liturgy, necessary preparations, ceremonies, historical background and more as connected to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur especially. A useful guide written with a contemporary audience firmly in mind.

Understanding Prayer.......2005-10-26

This is an excellent book explaining the context of the High Holidays. The thinking worshiper will certainly benefit from reading and studying this small volume. It should be read with machzor in hand and deserves serious contemplation.

Entering the High Holy Days: A Guide to the Origins, Themes, and Prayers

Average customer rating:

don't read this without your prayerbook next to you
Rabbi Hammer Hits a Home Run
Entering the High Holy Days:

Entering the High Holy Days: A Guide to the Origins, Themes, and Prayers
Reuven Hammer
Manufacturer: Jewish Publication Society of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Judaism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History of Religion | Judaism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Jewish Life | Judaism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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Days of Awe: A Treasury of Jewish Wisdom for Reflection, Repentance, and Renewal on the High Holy Days

ASIN: 0827606095

Book Description

The High Holy Days-Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur-are for many Jews the highlight of the Jewish year, as well as, perhaps, the occasion of their only visit to their congregation for services. Entering the High Holy Days provides needed historical background and also interprets the ideas, practices, and liturgy that lend contemporary relevance to today's Jews.

Customer Reviews:

don't read this without your prayerbook next to you.......2003-09-24

This book was certainly useful for what it is - a rather dry laundry list of High Holy day prayers and explanations of same. If you have the prayerbook next to you while reading Hammer's book, you can get a brief explanation of each prayer and its context from the latter- certainly a worthwhile task. But I don't think you would get much out of this learned but less-than-lively book otherwise, and I also think Max Arzt's Justice and Mercy (which Hammer, to his credit, cites) covered the same material in much more detail some decades ago.

Rabbi Hammer Hits a Home Run.......2001-02-20

Rabbi Hammer has organized a passagway that takes you through the prayer texts of the Yamim Noraim. This is a must use for either Adult Ed knowledgeable Jews or those looking for meaning and engagement in the classic religious texts. He brings understanding, and a historical context to otherwise obscure piyutim (poems) and rabbinicly organized prayers. It can be used alongside the Machzor( (prayerbook) as the service unfolds or as a preparation for the spiritual journey of the most important ten days of the year for the jews.

Entering the High Holy Days:.......2000-09-05

This book provides a summary to the the liturgy, and services, of the High Holy Days. Hammer gives historical information for the prayers, and services, that take place on these sacred days. This is book is a mature, serious approach to the Days of Awe. This by no means it is unapproachable. It is quite readable. Readers who want a deeper understanding of the origins of the prayers, and services, will enjoy this book. People will learn about what the days hold in terms of what the liturgy holds for the worshipper and how the prayers came to exist in their current form. The first three chapters set the stage for this period by describing the development, meanings and preparing for the holidays. Following chapters take up each service in turn.

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