Listening to Shoot/Don't Shoot by J. A. Jance

I not only read books, I listen to them. When I'm doing certain kinds of work, balancing my checkbook, for instance, or clearing out my e-mail Inbox, it is not only possible to listen to a mystery novel or a thriller, it is downright pleasurable. The medium lends itself to the lighter sorts of material; I listened to a history of the Supreme Court a year or so ago, and it was difficult to keep in mind all of the details of the cases. On the other hand, I have really enjoyed listening to several of the Harry Potter novels.

Shoot/Don't Shoot was my first J. A. Jance mystery novel, and I was sufficiently impressed that I have since obtained another book on tape, a couple on CD, and a couple in print. Why so many? Well, once I got to the library and started checking their holdings, I found that J. A. Jance has not one but three series in print, each with its own chief character. J. B. Beaumont, a Seattle detective seems to be the earliest of Jance's creations. Joanna Brady, the Sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona, and the main character in Shoot/Don't Shoot is the second. The newest is Ali Reynolds, the principal in Web of Evil.

One of the things both my wife and I look for when we find a "new" mystery writer, that is, one with whom we are not yet familiar, is a substantial backlist. I suspected that J. A. Jance would not disappoint in that department when I realized that Shoot/Don't Shoot was published in 1995 and recorded in 1996. With three active series, and a new book in each coming out every year, J. A. Jance has produced reading (and listening) material that will last us a good long time.

From internal evidence, Shoot/Don't Shoot appears to be the second novel featuring Joanna Brady. There are references to earlier events which resulted in the death of Joanna's husband, and led to her subsequent election as Sheriff of Cochise County. Now that she's the Sheriff, Joanna has to attend the Arizona Police Officers' Academy in Peoria, outside Phoenix. This means that she must leave her nine-year-old daughter in the care of her grandparents, a difficult separation so soon after the death of the child's father. But the family will get together for Thanksgiving in Peoria, although Joanna's mother Eleanor seems determined not to join the party.

Naturally, all does not go smoothly with any of Joanna's plans, as Thanksgiving is disrupted by an attack on one of Joanna's classmates, the death of one of the instructors, and a disturbing surprise sprung by Eleanor. I won't give that one away, but I think I can reveal that the plot is driven by a series of murders which appear to have been the result of domestic violence. The obvious solution is that the husbands and boyfriends, men who have already encountered the legal system, finally went too far. But what if the obvious solution is not the correct one?

Shoot/Don't Shoot is light entertainment, but Jance creates some engaging characters and puts them into complicated, and sometimes amusing, situations. Joanna Brady is sufficiently complex, and has enough open connectors out to the community, to provide the central character for quite a number of mysteries. I am looking forward to my next adventure in J. A. Jance's world.