Throwback Thursday is a weekly meme created by Renee @ It’s Book Talk. This meme is an awesome way to share old favorites that were published over a year ago or even books that you’re finally reading after much time has passed. I have plenty of those to share! If you have your own Throwback Thursday recommendation feel free to jump on board, and you’re welcome to use Renee’s pic as well. Please link back to her by using the link above.
This Week’s Pick:
The Life We Bury (Detective Max Rupert #1)

Summary from Goodreads: College student Joe Talbert has the modest goal of completing a writing assignment for an English class. His task is to interview a stranger and write a brief biography of the person. With deadlines looming, Joe heads to a nearby nursing home to find a willing subject. There he meets Carl Iverson, and soon nothing in Joe’s life is ever the same.
Carl is a dying Vietnam veteran–and a convicted murderer. With only a few months to live, he has been medically paroled to a nursing home, after spending thirty years in prison for the crimes of rape and murder.
As Joe writes about Carl’s life, especially Carl’s valor in Vietnam, he cannot reconcile the heroism of the soldier with the despicable acts of the convict. Joe, along with his skeptical female neighbor, throws himself into uncovering the truth, but he is hamstrung in his efforts by having to deal with his dangerously dysfunctional mother, the guilt of leaving his autistic brother vulnerable, and a haunting childhood memory.
Thread by thread, Joe unravels the tapestry of Carl’s conviction. But as he and Lila dig deeper into the circumstances of the crime, the stakes grow higher. Will Joe discover the truth before it’s too late to escape the fallout?
My Thoughts on this book…
Loved it from beginning to end!
Joe, a college student, has an English assignment to complete that requires him to interview someone for a biography. He chooses a man named Carl, a Vietnam veteran who’s also a convicted rapist and murderer. Carl has an interesting background including some secrets. He’s been released from prison only because he’s dying of cancer. Everyone already knows his story–or do they? As Joe discovers more about Carl and gets him to open up about his past, he realizes that there’s a lot more going on and must uncover it all.
Joe and Carl are the main characters and the book focuses primarily on these two. There’s so much happening with Carl’s story in addition to Joe’s struggles with his alcoholic mother and autistic brother. I truly enjoyed all the characters, the plot with the twists, and the suspense. The characters are all well written and everything felt realistic to me. I had to find out what the outcome would be and for that, this will always be a favorite. 5-stars
Find this book on Goodreads and Amazon:
- Paperback: 303 pages
- Publisher: Seventh Street Books; First Paperback Edition edition (October 14, 2014)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1616149981
- ISBN-13: 978-1616149987
About the Author:
Allen Eskens is the USA Today-bestselling author of The Life We Bury, The Guise of Another and The Heavens May Fall. He is the recipient of the Barry Award, Rosebud Award, and the Silver Falchion Award and has been a finalist for the Edgar Award, Thriller Award, Anthony Award, and the Minnesota Book Award. His debut novel, The Life We Bury, has been published in 16 languages and is being developed for a feature film.
Allen has a journalism degree from the University of Minnesota and a law degree from Hamline University. After law school, he studied creative writing in the M.F.A. program at Minnesota State University-Mankato, as well as the Loft Literary Center and the Iowa Summer Writer’s Festival. He is represented by Amy Cloughley of Kimberley Cameron and Associates Literary Agency, and published by Seventh Street Books
Allen grew up on the hills of central Missouri. He now lives with his wife, Joely, in out-state Minnesota where he has been a practicing criminal defense attorney for 25 years. – Goodreads
More Throwback Thursday Picks Around the Blogosphere…
Jill at Jill’s Book Cafe
Deanna at DeesRadReads and Reviews
Amanda at Literary Weaponry
Susan at Susan Loves Books
Cathy at What Cathy Read Next
Lynne at Fictionophile
Annie at The Misstery
Cathy at Between the Lines
Amy at Novel Gossip
Diana at A Haven for Booklovers
Laurie at Cozy Nook Books
Ann Marie at LItWitWineDine
Laura at Snazzy Books
Nina at The Cozy Pages
Virginia at Rose Point Publishing
Reblogged this on Angie Dokos.
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Thank you, Angie! 💛
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I loved this book too! 💜📖
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Yay! Did you read the second? I accidently went on to read the third, but it was just okay. 😉💚
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No. I haven’t read the second or third.
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Oh, geez. Another book to my ever- growing TBR… I blame you for tempting me! lol
Great review, Mischenko ❤
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Haha I really think you’d enjoy this one! 👍💚 Thanks!
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Sounds good! I’m glad you enjoyed it so much. I will have to have a look at this one too. Thanks for sharing.
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Thank you, Deanna. I do believe you’d like this one. 🖤 Thank you!
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I really enjoyed this book too. It had some extremely ‘frightful’ parts but was well worth the outcome. I have a few of his others on my TBR but haven’t gotten to them yet. Great review Jen! 🙂
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Glad you liked it too! I have a few to catch up on as well. ❤ Thanks!
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This looks like a winner with an interesting premise. Gotta love suspense!
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Sounds like a fabulous read! I hadn’t heard of it before.
Thanks for sharing! Happy Easter!
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I loved that book!
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