Synopsis

In the tradition of Craig Johnson and C. J. Box, Bruce Borgos’s The Bitter Past begins a compelling series set in the high desert of Nevada featuring Sheriff Porter Beck…

Porter Beck is the sheriff in the high desert of Nevada, north of Las Vegas. Born and raised there, he left to join the Army, where he worked in Intelligence, deep in the shadows in far off places. Now he’s back home, doing the same lawman’s job his father once did, before his father started to develop dementia. All is relatively quiet in this corner of the world, until an old, retired FBI agent is found killed. He was brutally tortured before he was killed and clues at the scene point to a mystery dating back to the early days of the nuclear age. If that wasn’t strange enough, a current FBI agent shows up to help Beck’s investigation.

In a case that unfolds in the past (the 1950s) and the present, it seems that a Russian spy infiltrated the nuclear testing site and now someone is looking for that long-ago, all-but forgotten person, who holds the key to what happened then and to the deadly goings on now.

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Review

This book had me hooked from the start. It blends mystery, humor, suspense, action, a touch of romance, and unique characters that blend the past with the present to portray a complex scenario.

The story is primarily told in the present, but there are jumps to the late 50s that share what it was like when they were testing nuclear bombs, what they thought would happen with the radioactive material, and what actually happened. I really enjoyed the changes in time because it helped us to understand the present by understanding the past.

Sherriff Beck has his own issues to deal with, including degeneration in his eyes, especially at night, that hinders his abilities. FBI Special Agent Sana Locke is sent to Nevada to investigate the death of a former agent. The tension between these two could set off sparks. One underrated character is Beck’s sister, Brinley. She is one hot mess but has skills that most of us might wish we possessed.

I enjoyed the interaction between all of the characters. I especially loved Sana’s dry and sarcastic wit. I had a good chuckle throughout the book.

I don’t know if this is going to be a series, but I think the author should consider it. It does say #1 on Goodreads, so I’m going to go with it probably will be a series.

If you enjoy mysteries, you might want to give this one a whirl. We give it 5 paws up.

About the Author

BRUCE BORGOS lives and writes from the Nevada desert where he works hard every day to prove his high school guidance counselor had good instincts when he said “You’ll never be an astronaut.” He has a degree in political science which mostly served to dissuade him from a career in law while at the same time tormenting his wife with endless questions about how telephones work. When not writing, you can usually find him at the local wine store.

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