21 Aug 2022

{LEIPFOLD SERIES 1} DRIVEN.

DRIVEN by DANE COBAIN.

Meet private detective James Leipfold, computer whizzkid Maile O’Hara and good-natured cop Jack Cholmondeley in the first book of the Leipfold series.

A car strikes in the middle of the night and a young actress lies dead in the road. The police force thinks it’s an accident, but Maile and Leipfold aren’t so sure.

Putting their differences aside, and brought together by a shared love of crosswords and busting bad guys, Maile and Leipfold investigate. But not all is as it seems, as they soon find out to their peril… ... Back Cover Blurb

Donna Thompson turned the volume up on her iPhone, tightened her scarf, and started to walk a little faster. ... First Sentence, Chapter One: Donna Takes A Walk

... Find out as much as you can. Check its fail-safes and that sort of thing. I understand its' programmed to avoid accidents, so why did it mow down Donna Thompson?

"Got it. Are you sure it's the right vehicle?"

"Pretty sure," Leipfold said. "Now we justy need to find out who programmed it to kill." ... Memorable Moment, Page 71

Just as important to me {probably more so} as the plot are the characters. 

That Driven has both a compelling plot that is just that little bit different; the murder weapon, well, lets just leave it at the murder weapon is somewhat unique.

That is also has interesting characters in the form of down on his luck private detective James Leipfold, computer whizzkid Maile O’Hara {a feisty, small, World of Warcraft playing woman who is well able to take care of herself ... just the kind of female character I love} and cop Jack Cholmondeley {who has something of a begrudging respect for Leipfold} makes it a hugely enjoyable read.

Well fleshed out; I found myself engrossed in the use of innovative technology, that there are several different threads to the story, none of which without take away from/disrupt the flow of the main plot, that I quickly invested in the characters, all particularly impressive given that at 214 pages this is a relatively short read.

The first in what I'm hoping is going to be a long running series, Leipfold, O'Hara and  Cholmondeley certainly have a lot of mileage in them if Driven is anything to go by; I'm sure I won't be the only reader eagerly awaiting the next instalment.

ABOUT DANE COBAIN ... A published author, freelance writer, book blogger, poet and {occasional} musician with a passion for language and learning. When he's not working on his next release, he can be found reading and reviewing books for his award-wining book blog, SocialBookshelves.com
*

FOLLOW DANE COBAIN ... ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ GoodReads

* Biography curtesy of the back cover of Driven. Photograph curtesy of the author's GoodReads' page.

 

7 comments:

Kelly said...

Good review, Felicity. I wasn't sure by reading the blurb if I was interested, but you've convinced me to take a closer look.

Kelly said...

It's only $1.99 at Amazon, so I decided to go ahead and add it to my library. The question now is when I'll get to it!

Gina said...

Sounds like it was a good match for you!

nightwingsraven said...

Felicity,
This sounds like a very enjoyable
story with interesting and sympathetic
characters. I will definitely keep it
in mind.
And thank you for your excellent review.
Raven

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

I always enjoy a series where a private detective and a cop can mange to rub along together, without ripping too many strips off each other.

I see that there are already three books in the Leipfold series though, so I need to make my decision soon, as to whether they are heading for my own list or not - Who am I kidding, of course they are!! :)

Thanks for an excellent review :)

Shooting Stars Mag said...

Ooh the murder weapon is unique huh? I'm curious, and I love a good mystery.

Lauren @ www.shootingstarsmag.net

Mary (Bookfan) said...

Always a good sign when you look forward to reading more in a series. Thanks for putting it on my radar.