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Charley Davidson has seen dead people since she was born. She helps them transition from being dead to "the other side," the whole portal of light thing and all. Her childhood years were not always pleasant; this gift is not one most people want, or want to know about. Still, Charley is a relatively well-adjusted female who, as a consultant for the Albuquerque Police Department, helps her uncle solve a lot of cases. It's easy when she can just ask the dead person who the killer was. Right now, however, there is something unusual happening in her life. She is having these intensely real, incredibly erotic dreams. The man in these dreams calls her "Dutch" and only one person has ever called her that in her entire life. That person, if he can be referred to as a person, Charley calls "The Big Bad" in her head. How can "Big Bad" make her feel so good? The current case on Charley's docket is the murder of three lawyers in one night. They were all working on one case. Who wants that case stalled? Why did all three lawyers have to die? As Charley and the police explore this case, they come up with more questions than answers. This is also true of Charley and the dream guy. This all sounds very serious, and parts of FIRST GRAVE are serious. Parts of it are laugh-out-loud funny, not so much in terms of situations but in how Charley reacts to those she finds herself in. She's got a mouth on her that won't quit, and a mind that can usually keep up with her mouth. The plot is good; Jones can build tension (both sexual and story) as well as the next woman. The characters are great; not one of them seemed unlikely or improbable (well, apart from the Grim Reaper bit). Her friend/receptionist/neighbor, is a great woman. Everyone has a buddy like Cookie, or should. FIRST GRAVE is a good first novel. Jones melds the best of Charlaine Harris with the best of Janet Evanovitch - not an easy task for a first-timer. § P.J. Coldren lives in northern lower Michigan where she reads and reviews widely across the mystery genre when she isn't working in her local hospital pharmacy.
Reviewed by P.J. Coldren, February 2011
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