Review of Three Bullets

[Mutai Marshal]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Three Bullets" by Charles Alexander.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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You would expect a private investigator to focus on private practice most of the time. It is not the case for Annie Steele. Her love for speed bikes means she plies her trade via the two-wheel carrier serving the community.

In one instance, Annie salvaged stranded people in Jamaica. It was during a rescue operation following an earthquake that left a trail of destruction. Life wasn’t kind to Annie Steele. She received a call from a hospital informing her that Nick had suffered an accident and was receiving treatment. Nick succumbs to his injuries, however. But who would kill her boyfriend, who had left to assist his brother Rick? A few days later, Rick was found dead. Preliminary investigations suspected a suicide case.

Being a private investigator, Annie sets out to connect the loose ends and find the people responsible for the killings. Apparently, Rick had been working for the United Nations. He had been hired to investigate incidents of malpractice. Selling supplies intended for disaster relief. The suspected culprits were Gatti and Moran. Meanwhile, the ‘Undertaker’ is on the loose. He continues to leave behind a trail of dead bodies. Is he a sociopath? You’ll find it rocky believing who the culprit is. Can you justify killing as a means of fulfilling God’s will?

The greatest strength of Three Bullet by Charles Alexander is its deployment of vivid descriptions. Most of the scenes, if not all, were detailed so that the reader visualizes the proceedings in the novel. An instance was a case of carjacking where a teenager made away with a woman’s car carrying a child. My favorite scene was when Annie took down condescending men who underestimated her abilities: she is a woman, after all.

Women are the main drivers in this novel. Alexander envisaged the power play of women when accorded a platform: the emotional strength of women should never be palliated. They love but are prudent not to allow anyone to exploit this niche. Given an opportunity, Annie showed that women are emotionally intelligent. I liked the character development in this novel. The relevant characters displayed both admirable and despicable attributes. Again, Annie was my favorite character. She exudes love and caring qualities even towards her juniors. Angela is a beneficiary of these values as her boss–Angela–supported her during her time of need.

Unfortunately, some things didn’t sit well with me. First is the error rate. The punctuation errors, although not glaring, should be addressed for smooth reading. I failed to understand the rationale behind Angela sharing sensitive information with random people. It’s common practice to restrain such information from the public domain to avoid thwarting investigations. It was hard to believe that most of those people had no ill intentions toward Annie. While the vivid descriptions spiced up this novel, I felt that it derailed the flow of the novel in some instances. Slowing the pace of the book elicited boredom. It unnecessarily made the book lengthy. The actions of the antagonists seemed less thought out. Most of their operations fell through while the ‘good guys’ prevailed. I would have appreciated it if the tug-of-war was more burdensome and laborious.

I give this book 3 out of 4. I didn’t award it a lower score because most of the issues are from a personal perspective, and others may have different opinions. I enjoyed the mystery laced with suspense in the book. They made the proceedings unpredictable and thrilling.

Lastly, I recommend Three Bullets to coming-of-age adults. Those that enjoy investigative stories will find it fascinating too.

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Three Bullets
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[Opara Jerry]

This seems to be quite an interesting read. I love mystery too, and suspense is a must-have when I read a book or watch a movie. I think I’d add this book to my reading list.

[NetMassimo]

I read and reviewed the first Annie Steele novels and I liked them. I didn't have the time to go on with the series up to Three Bullets but I see that the author can still create suspenseful plots. Thank you for your great review!