Dark Spot: A Jake Baker Mystery

Jake Baker Mystery fans had awaited yet one more intrigue-filled plot involving the renowned Mississippi attorney Jake Baker and his longtime Vietnam Navy comrade Joe Bremer who now runs one of the most successful high-end security firms in the Southeast. With the 2017 death of Arnold Dyre, author of the first three books in the series, faithful readers had feared they would hear no more of the somewhat mysterious, bigger-than-life Baker, the master-in-the courtroom who finds himself time and time again in the midst of a crime-ridden situation that cries out for justice to be served. Like a phoenix rising, thanks to a partial manuscript left behind by the late author coupled with the writing talent of his younger sister, readers discover the protagonist Jake Baker finds once again strongly entrenched in a plot full of criminal actions and their deep, long-running ramifications. This time, however, the homicide that jumpstarts the action is committed by Baker's righthand man, Joe Bremer himself. The homicide, whether it can be established as justifiable or not, ultimately pales as layers of tragic crime destroy lives and leave the greater Jackson, Mississippi area in the throes of a full-blown drug war with the Dixie Mafia. Without missing a beat, debut novelist Mary Jo Dyre picks up with the too-close-to-home homicide case that her brother used to initiate Dark Spot's partial plot, filled with the depraved actions of a life gone wrong. Following her brother's lead, Dyre plays out a story line that poignantly captures the tangled, complex web of humanity that often results when one man totally gives over to self-serving and darkness. As you read and follow the actions of a more mature, yet no less dynamic Baker and Bremer duo, you will also enjoy time with the Fat Fox, Foxy Malone and, of course, Jake's Bonnie. Also expect glimpses of other characters from the first three novels in the Jake Baker Series: Untruths and Truths Untold, Death Too Soon and Lost and Found. Just when you think you have figured out the many twists and turns of the various dark spots brought to light in this intriguing novel, you will find a depth of plot rising on the horizon that promises to leave you a long-devoted fan of the Dyre's Jake Baker character and the stories that seem to follow in his footsteps.