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Mordecai's Ashes (Larsson Investigations Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Arlana Crane (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 130 ratings
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Karl Larsson is an out of work roughneck, home from the oil fields of Alberta and back on the coast for the first time in years. His wife has left him and his future looks bleak. Becoming a detective is the last thing on his mind, but when Karl learns that he has inherited his estranged grandfather’s agency he decides to take a chance.

He doesn’t expect much action in a city as small as Victoria, BC, but Karl soon finds that Victoria is only the base of operations. His grandfather’s business took him across the length and breadth of Vancouver Island, and the Island is a world unto itself, with a culture all its own.

When a reporter from a national news agency asks him to investigate a drug running operation on the Island, Karl is drawn into a dangerous game. Finding the truth sounds simple in theory, but as Karl delves deeper he begins to realize that more than his life may be at stake.
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  1. Book 1 of 1
    Larsson Investigations
  2. Print length
    260 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    June 1, 2020
  6. File size
    3697 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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  9. Enhanced typesetting
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  10. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B089LG7BB9
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Big Tree Press; 1st edition (June 1, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 1, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3697 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 260 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 130 ratings

About the author

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Arlana Crane

Arlana Crane

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Arlana Crane is a fourth generation Vancouver Islander, currently living in Calgary, Alberta with her husband James. She loves to read, write, knit, play the ukulele and attend the theatre. Summer vacations will find her back on her beloved Island, enjoying the ocean and spoiling her niece and nephews. For more information please visit arlanawrites.com.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
130 global ratings
Larsson Investigations is On The Case!
5 Stars
Larsson Investigations is On The Case!
In her debut novel, talented author Arlana Crane combines everything fans of the genre love about detective novels with an interpersonal story that will appeal to every reader. She delivers vibrant, relatable characters with all the troubles of difficult families and lives complicated by universal misfortunes, yet delivers on the tension and action that fans of Agatha Christie and James Patterson expect and desire. I read this work in a single sitting and was only disappointed that book two of Larsson Investigations is not yet available on the market.Crane's Canadian spelling of particular words overlays well on the setting for her novel, adding to the immersive experience rather than breaking immersion, and the government entities that interweave with the protagonist's early adventures as a private detective share enough commonality with their American counterparts to make it an easy mental conversion for American readers. More importantly, the author cleverly anchors the narrative in experiences that are universal - the expectations of family, the need to make important choices on intuition, and the proud and difficult struggle of self-reliance.I was completely happy with Mordecai's Ashes and gladly recommend it to fans of Patricia Cornwell and MIckey Spillane, anyone with an interest in detective stories, and supporters of new authors. This novel is both a solid work of fiction on its own, and a promise of great things to come from this gifted writer.
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Top reviews from the United States

Patricia
5.0 out of 5 stars New Author - Great start!!
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2020
Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoyed Mordecai’s Ashes. Karl inherits his grandfather’s Private Investigation Agency on Vancouver Island, Canada, through the death of his Aunt, and finds himself undercover in a drug operation. He’s young, likeable, and quick to learn the ropes. Between him and his cousin/assistant Kelsey, they foil their family’s plans to make them conform, and begin to love their new career as they discover they are actually good at it. There is plenty of excitement, and a great story. I am happy that this is the start of a series, as we are just getting to know Karl and Kelsey. I cannot recall reading such a great characterization of Vancouver Island, the quirky people, and the breathtaking scenery, and feel this would make an excellent Canadian TV series. A clean read. Well done, Arlana, I look forward to more from you.
2 people found this helpful
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Ralph Roggenbuck
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! A very rare thing, not all sexed up !
Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2021
Verified Purchase
Wow! Refreshingly Different. ! No garbage to attract the depraved!
Just a well written story in an unusual setting. The characters are very different from the usual portrayal for their types of people.
An enjoyable, captivating, cleanly written fast paced story.

Very much worth reading.
One person found this helpful
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John N. Powers
5.0 out of 5 stars Good solid detective story in a unique setting
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2021
Verified Purchase
Well written story with good solid characters. The author does a great job of taking every day people and crafting their story to bring the reader inside. There were a couple of characters that had me wondering right up to the end. A couple of plot twists caught me by surprise. Kept my interest from start to finish.
2 people found this helpful
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V. Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute delight of a story, engaging characters
Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2020
Karl Larsson is shuffling aimlessly when he gets a call from his sister that his aunt Matilda passed away. Following the funeral and reading of her will, he is dumbfounded to discover he has inherited his grandfather’s (Mordecai’s) building and detective agency in Victoria, BC.

He’s young. He’s inexperienced, but the building and the agency gives him a direction. No license? No prob. What he is is a sympathetic protagonist, an underdog you’ll root for immediately. He’s a good kid. You can’t help but love him.

Then comes his cousin, Kelsey. She’s only 19—smart as a whip, intuitive, clever and enormously engaging. You might gain grudging respect for her--she earns it—time and again when she proves an invaluable resource for Karl. You can’t help but love her.

The author carefully introduces the circumstances building her characters background and a well-plotted drug running plot into a fast-paced and immersive storyline. The light-sided search and serve side of the detective agency moves along quietly until a journalist (a former client of Mordecai’s) comes with a very serious investigation and soon Karl is heavy into the case with the initial support of Kelsey. Until the case turns decidedly grim.

I enjoyed the description of the island and the little coastal BC communities. The author builds sympathy for Karl; he’s a quick study, but the reader becomes fearful for him as he succeeds in getting deeper into a situation that will not be easy to get out of. Kelsey speaks her mind with knee-jerk reaction and the reader is quickly drawn to her wit. She is a strong co-protagonist. Can Karl keep Kelsey safe, much less himself?

The narrative cruises into the conclusion and the dust settles quietly, until little plot points, threads, begin tying off. There were questions, issues to be resolved (after all, this is Book 1) and the reveal at the end is one that will elicit a satisfied chuckle. My only problem is the edit misses—but the story and characters really win the day. Brilliant twist. Master storyteller. I’m so looking forward to Book 2! 4.5/5 stars
One person found this helpful
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BigAl
5.0 out of 5 stars Mordecai's Ashes
Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2020
In a work of crime fiction like this where a detective (whether pro or amateur) is trying to find out who has committed or (as in this case) is committing crimes, the biggest part of the appeal, what keeps you reading, is waiting for the investigator to catch the wrong doer(s). Not to mention wondering how he or she is going to do that, but also who it is going to be. Mordecai’s Ashes has all of that. But it has more.

Part of that “more” are the detectives (Karl who is assisted, much more than he probably anticipated, by his cousin Kelsey) who are completely new to this and still finding their way. As the series progresses, I expect that part will settle down, but it adds to this first installment. Karl has inherited his grandfather’s detective agency, a man he really never knew, nor realized was a private investigator. In fact, with a recent divorce and family who are only looking out for themselves, with the exception of cousin Kelsey, Karl’s non-work life isn’t going so well, so making a go of this new opportunity that just fell in his lap is even more critical than it would be for most people, and as a reader I felt it.

This was a good entertaining read in a new series from a new author. I’m looking forward to future books in the series. A twist near the end has me curious about where things are going to go from here.

**Originally written for "Books and Pals" book blog. May have received a free review copy. **
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Top reviews from other countries

G2417
5.0 out of 5 stars Great novel
Reviewed in Canada on January 24, 2023
Verified Purchase
I bought the book partially because of knowing the author and partially because of loving the genre. I was over the moon with both. I've never wished I had bought more copies to lend out before but the book was just so enjoyable to read it was hard not to. Can't wait for more!
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John.S.Cole
5.0 out of 5 stars Mordecai’s ashes
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 2, 2020
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Excellent entertaining thriller with a less than usual story line with a twist at the end. Characters are well defined and feel real. Highly recommended piece of fiction.
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic First Effort
Reviewed in Canada on June 19, 2020
Verified Purchase
This was a fantastic first effort. My wife and I both read the Kindle edition. We were drawn in by Crane's easy style and both of us thoroughly enjoyed the book. It held our attention to the end, while keeping us involved emotionally in the protagonist's experiences. At times we were both either laughing out loud or in tears.
Setting a murder mystery on Vancouver Island was something new. We loved looking up the small towns and topographical references the author mentioned. Also, the idea of a jr. detective essentially thrown into the deep end of dangerous police work kept our nerves raw until the very end. Part of the book I read aloud, and in doing so found it read very smoothly and easily. I think anything you can read aloud is a cut above average.
Nevertheless, I couldn't quite give Mordecai's Ashes five stars for the following reasons: (1) At the beginning it took too long setting the scene before getting on with the real story. Characterization was great, but perhaps some of the characters, especially those belonging to the protagonist's own family, could have been introduced during the actual story.
Spoiler alert for what follows.
(2) There were a couple of things that just did not ring true. The hardest to swallow was that a seasoned journalist with wartime experience should get himself killed by charging into the midst a serious drug operation. His behaviour that night was inexplicable in light of the life experience he supposedly had. (3) Finally, the story of how the main character inherited a detective agency did not ring true. It seemed everyone was just a little too quick to presume the original owner had died.
But these are minor quibbles. The overall story was captivating, and if there is to be a sequel, and the author left room to hope for one, I can hardly wait.
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Rebecca
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
Reviewed in Canada on October 28, 2020
Verified Purchase
I'm so blown away by the ending of Mordecai's Ashes, it's been a long time since I've found a book so captivating. I'm not much of a reader these days so I won't try to sound as professional as some of the reviews. Just a normal person who was taken by surprise at how much I loved reading this book and how excited I am for the next!

I love the characters, the plot.. Oh, how I want to visit Vancouver Island again after those descriptions! I found the foundation laying to be really helpful to let the book flow, and for me to feel like I was getting to know the main character's life.

Clearly so much time and effort went into detail research and with that I found the story immersive and so believable that the fiction lines began to blur. Especially for a Canadian.

I recommend this to anyone interested in enjoying a good story.
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Rebecca
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
Reviewed in Canada on October 28, 2020
I'm so blown away by the ending of Mordecai's Ashes, it's been a long time since I've found a book so captivating. I'm not much of a reader these days so I won't try to sound as professional as some of the reviews. Just a normal person who was taken by surprise at how much I loved reading this book and how excited I am for the next!

I love the characters, the plot.. Oh, how I want to visit Vancouver Island again after those descriptions! I found the foundation laying to be really helpful to let the book flow, and for me to feel like I was getting to know the main character's life.

Clearly so much time and effort went into detail research and with that I found the story immersive and so believable that the fiction lines began to blur. Especially for a Canadian.

I recommend this to anyone interested in enjoying a good story.
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One person found this helpful
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Miss Sophie A Pollard
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 23, 2020
Verified Purchase
Wonderfully written good old fashion detective story. One of those you can not read fast enough. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Twists at every turn.
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