Deadly Drive

by Cara C. Putman

One phone call can change your life. What you do after that is up to you.

Joci Littleton is recovering from law school finals and preparing for Christmas when she receives a call that changes everything. Her twin Nathan is the victim of a mugging in Washington, DC. Her family needs her to go to DC to identify him, while her mom stays home with her sick father. Joci agrees and that decision launches her on a path that has her hunting for the truth and running for her life.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Suspense, Novella, Christmas

114 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 15, 2022

About the author

Cara C. Putman lives in Indiana with her husband and four children. She is a clinical associate professor in law and ethics at Purdue University's School of Business. She has loved reading and writing from a young age and now realizes it was all training for writing books. She loves bringing history and legal romantic suspense to life.

An honors graduate of the University of Nebraska, George Mason University School of Law, and Krannert School of Management, Cara left small town Nebraska and headed to Washington, D.C., to launch her career in public policy.

Cara is an author chasing hard after God as she lives a crazy life. She invites you to join her on that journey. She's currently writing her 46th book with more on the way. Please check out her website to learn more about her books and read first chapters.

Reviews

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novella has a great pace about it. Short chapters and the story is always moving so it's very easy to turn the pages.

Keeping the suspense high in novellas can be challenging due to their brevity. This story is a complete story, we're not left with any unknowns and we're left sad for Joci and the Littleton family as they celebrate Christmas without their brother, Nate, who has died a few days prior. In shock, Joci travels to Washington DC to confirm it is indeed her twin, Nate, that is lying in the morgue and to try to understand the circumstances behind his death.

As the circumstances unfold, it's extra sad for Joci as she realises that she really didn't know her twin brother very well. Being a twin myself, it kinda gave me a jolt to make sure I spend some more time speaking to my brother.

It's a good tight story. The suspense could have been amped up a bit more and perhaps a stronger 'final conflict' could have been written but I enjoyed it.

There are also some typos, eg, Jennifer/Jessica, Ryan Elliott or Elliott Ryan that surprised me a little but it wasn't too distracting.

If you're not familiar with Putman's stories perhaps try this one and then check out her other legal thrillers which are very good.

[Pianosue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick read. Not what I was expecting but suspenseful. Fast action and fast ending.
Joci gets a call her from mom that her twin brother has been found dead and she needs to go to DC to identify him. She is shocked but goes. When she gets there some man claims to be her brothers roommate and wants her to go with him but she refuses. Later while she is at her brother's apartment with the police detective he shows up again and tries to shoot her! What? Why? Will she be able to figure out who killed her brother?

[Faith Posten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreak at Christmas

A raw, gut-wrentching emotional roller coaster story of the loss of a twin. Not a natural event at that, but a life taken too young. Strong characters whose faith is tested to the limits. The author is a master story teller, admired by thousands.

[Renee Helton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.”
Full of action and plot twists.
Looking forward to reading more books by this author.

[Elle Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think this one was long enough to fully develop the characters or the storyline, but overall this short novella was an interesting story.