Reviewed by Grant Leishman for Readers' Favorite

Murder on the Waves: A Voyage of Violence by Jimmy Ray Conner is an intricately plotted murder mystery on the high seas. Homicide detective from Saratoga Springs, New York, Chris Taylor has just married high-powered defense attorney Kate. The happy couple is about to embark on a month-long dream honeymoon cruise of the South Pacific, from Auckland to Bali. Also aboard the luxury cruise liner, the Vulcan Orion, is a working team of businessmen and women from a medical equipment supply company who are about to launch their company public with an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The cruise is a chance for the executives, lawyers, and money people to put the final touches on a deal that will launch the company and make the executives exceedingly wealthy. When first there is one death, quickly followed by another and then another, the security officer on board for Vulcan Lines jumps at the opportunity to use Chris and Kate’s extensive legal knowledge to help him unravel the mysterious deaths.

Murder on the Waves takes readers on a journey of subtle clues, red herrings, and possible perpetrators that will have them second-guessing the experts along the way. Author Jimmy Ray Conner has done an exceptional job of balancing a large cast of characters and seamlessly taking us from one arc to the next, encompassing several unexpected and unexplained deaths. I particularly enjoyed that so many potential perpetrators had the motive and opportunity to have committed the crimes. It is this multiplicity of potential killers that draws the reader into speculation and self-discussion. Any author who can involve readers in a story to the extent that they are forming conclusions or hypotheses along with the characters has done an extraordinary job and this author has achieved it. The setting for the violence and the crimes couldn’t have been a greater contrast to the heinous acts themselves; a luxury cruise around the beautiful South Pacific. The contrast with the subterfuge and conniving going on behind the idyllic scenes of paradise gave the narrative a wonderful depth and breadth. I very much appreciated the conclusion, tying up the loose ends and, more importantly, promising readers more adventures with this unusual crime-fighting duo. I enjoyed the story immensely and look forward to the next mystery from this author. I highly recommend this read.