Title: Three Small Bones
Author: Jennifer Chase
Publisher: Bookouture
Pages: 358
Genre: Crime Thriller
Release Date: September 13, 2022
Soft Cover: ISBN: 978-1803145945; 329 pages; $11.99; eBook $3.99
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3SQBsZA
BOOK
BLURB:
Smoke curls from what’s left of the beautiful family home on
the edge of the woods. The heat is unbearable as she descends the stairs to the
basement, past a set of bicycles––two big, one small. That’s when she sees three
little white bones in the cracked earth at her feet, turning her blood to ice…
When firefighters tackling a blazing house in a quiet suburb of Pine Valley,
California discover human remains, Detective Katie Scott races to 717 Maple
Street. She calls a halt to the excavations the moment she sees the full number
and size of the bones; someone has buried a whole family down here.
Working night and day, it’s up to Katie to prove her theory that the fire was
no accident, that someone wanted to expose the secret in the basement. Tiny
traces of explosives residue found at the scene is all the proof she needs. But
the Cross family have been missing for months––leaving friends and loved ones
in agonizing pain––what twisted soul would do this now? And why?
The case takes another heart-shattering turn when Katie’s suspicions over
recent renovation work on the house leads to the discovery of more bodies in
the back yard: two little girls, buried years apart. What other devastating
secrets are hidden in this perfect family home?
It’s a dead end at every turn as Katie tracks down anyone who knew the family.
Just when it looks like all hope is lost, reports of the Cross’s landlord
harassing the family before they went missing gives Katie a crucial lead. With
a menacing grey sedan following her every move, how many more innocent lives
will be lost before Katie can dig up the truth?
“Edge-of-your-seat suspense to the very end! … Clear your
schedule… you will not want to put it down!” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
“Love, love, LOVE… I absolutely adore this series!!” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
“Grabbed me from the very first page! It was so intense, and enthralling. I
stayed up until 11pm two nights in a row so I could finish it.” NetGalley reviewer
Book Excerpt:
PROLOGUE
The heat was even more scorching
than usual. It wasn’t a surprise to the special army team whose mission it was
to find bombs and insurgents in Afghanistan while keeping civilians safe. It
was late afternoon, barely 1700 hours. Still, the temperature raged at one
hundred ten degrees and wasn’t showing any remorse.
The assignment was to enter a small
village, search it, and maintain a presence while waiting for further orders.
They had intelligence information that the enemy had possibly used the village
for storing bomb-making paraphernalia. The inhabitants were not known hostiles,
merely farmers, and would not pose any type of danger.
Katie Scott took point, which meant
she was holding the most exposed position leading her unit. She trudged
forward, feeling every muscle ache in her body. Her gear seemed heavier than it
had only two hours ago. She adjusted her helmet and, keeping her weapon poised
and ready, watched the black German shepherd pad along the roadway. The dog’s
posture was almost regal and he was on high alert, ears perked forward as his
head moved from side to side catching scents from the open area. Cisco was
Katie’s constant companion and partner, one who had alerted her team to danger
on several occasions. The dog was invaluable in so many ways, thwarting
multiple potential dangers and keeping the team safe.
They finally entered the village. A
couple of elderly townspeople acknowledged the American soldiers with a subtle
nod but stopped what they were doing immediately to take refuge in their small,
makeshift homes. There were supposed to be families with children in the
village, but now Katie could only see two young men out and about.
It seemed strange.
Something was out of place.
Katie slowed her pace and her
sergeant caught up with her.
“What’s up, Scotty?” he said
quietly, still keeping his eyes on any movement around the village.
“I don’t know…” she said softly.
“But something is wrong.”
They stopped.
The rest of the team spread out and
kept a watchful eye around them.
Cisco stopped too. He stood
completely still, taking in the sights and sounds as the hot breeze ruffled his
black fur. He growled and turned his attention ahead toward a group of buildings.
“He senses something,” she whispered
to her sergeant.
The sergeant gestured for the rest
to follow in that direction.
The company moved out. Each soldier
had their position, watching for any movement as they covered each other’s
backs.
Katie could feel her heart beating
hard. She shivered even though the temperature was blistering. Moving
cautiously in the direction that Cisco had headed, she brought the dog close by
her side. She was ready to return fire or take cover. She took a deep breath to
steady her nerves and keep focus. They continued to advance.
A building made of mud bricks and
concrete with blocked up windows sat silent. It didn’t appear to be the same
structure type as the family homes around it. On one side of the dwelling the
windows were crumbling, appearing more ancient than the rest.
Katie watched Cisco slow his pace.
His fur bristled down his spine.
The team stopped just before the
entrance. There was no visibility as to what was inside.
Under the direction of the sergeant,
two team members opened the door and then cleared the entrance, heading farther
inside.
Katie heard gasps from her group.
She cautiously entered behind them, directing her weapon in front of her. The
musty stench hit her first—it was an unmistakable odor. As her vision slowly
became accustomed to the dim, dusty lighting, she saw what her teammates had
seen. Death.
At first, it appeared to be a large
pile of clothes. Katie saw shoes and various materials, but she then realized
that the clothes were covering bodies that were by now mostly bones but there
were some that were in the first stages of decomposition. There were smaller
bones that had been children.
She gulped and took a few steps
back. Her mouth went dry and her heart hammered. Her team searched and cleared
the building before moving out in formation.
Cisco kept close to her side as
Katie tried hard to erase the horrific spectacle from her mind. It had been a
massacre. Parents had still had their arms wrapped around their children. She
had seen tiny shoes and part of a toy.
Without warning, gunfire bombarded
them, peppering off the old clay walls. Smoke filled the air. The team took
their positions and returned fire. Katie tucked into a safe place with Cisco
next to her. She began to help hold off the ambush attack by firing in the
direction of the threat.
Later on, Katie realized that it had
been the longest gun battle she had been in, lasting nearly thirty minutes. But
the worst part wasn’t the shooting. It was that now she could never forget the
image of the town whose inhabitants had been systematically murdered just to
keep the enemy’s weapons safe. Something had changed in her perspective that
day. The incident fused into her soul, and she would always now carry it with
her.
About
the Author
Jennifer Chase is a multi award-winning and
USA Today Best Selling crime fiction author, as well as a consulting
criminologist. Jennifer
holds a bachelor degree in police forensics and a master's degree in
criminology & criminal justice. These academic pursuits developed out
of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience
with a violent psychopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in
every story she tells. In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and
criminal profiling.
Her latest book is the crime thriller, Three Small Bones.
You
can visit her website at www.AuthorJenniferChase.com or connect with her on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.
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