Helpless
by Annette Dashofy
Are you up for a solid mystery with lots of action? It’s not quite a police procedural, but close. Zoe, a former paramedic and current county coroner, is married to Pete Adams, police chief in Vance Township. As you read, you will meet a lot of characters and have no trouble keeping track of them. Most of them are people who will put their own lives on the line to insure the safety of others. Some do it as part of their official duties, others because they are good people and good neighbors.
The plot centers around a wife murdered, a husband left for dead under gruesome circumstances, and a child kidnaped. The setting which plays heavily into the plot is Hurricane Iona. Sleuthing and life saving work by the EMS is drastically hampered by pelting rains, destructive winds, flooding and road blockages. Car accidents impede roadways and increase the load on emergency personnel; electrical and cell phone outages cause panics.
As bodies accumulate in the morgue, Zoe is caught between her official duties as coroner and her inner need to support the husband as a former EMS worker and as a friend. She is also called to the death scenes to process the bodies and desperately wants to help her husband find the missing child.
This is a well written book and series. The plot is devised in such a way that the reader wants to keep the story going to hopefully arrive at a happily ever after for the characters. This is not a Hallmark book, however, so don’t expect that level of predictability. I was a little teary eyed at the end, but I admired the author’s fine touch with the conclusion.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Mystery, General Fiction, Women’s Fiction
Notes: 1. #12 in the Zoe Chambers Mystery Series but can be read as a standalone
2. Contains some swearing, but is otherwise clean.
Publication: May 9, 2023—Level Best Books
Memorable Lines:
“What if he asks?” “He won’t. I think he suspects the worse. But as long as no one confirms it, he can go on hoping. My medical training and decades of practice tell me it comes down to that. Hope.
Zoe couldn’t bear merely sitting in her car, staring out the rain-blurred windows. The scene outside looked like an impressionistic painting. The thoughts inside her brain were equally smeared and unclear.
education pathways 
This sounds good, but if there’s a hurricane involved that might bother me, I have experienced too many hurricanes!! Is it depressing because there are so many deaths? Thanks Linda,
Jenna
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Jenna, although this is a really good mystery, I think you might want to give this one a pass. The hurricane and the tropical storm it disintegrates into play a strong role. There are many deaths, but most of them are caused by a person not the storm. The hurricane makes everything very difficult as you can well imagine. The series is good, however, and I would recommend you try a different one of her books.
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Thank you so much Linda, I really appreciate your advice 💕
Jenna
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Hope is always good when it comes to medical training and experience!
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Yes, it is true in real life as well as in this book. When we give up hope, bad things just get worse.
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I’ve said this for awhile (not that I always listen to myself, but I’m getting better):
“You can choose hope or despair, and who would choose despair? The only way I know how to hope is through God.”
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I love this Crystal!
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This sounds like there is a lot of action and I have family in the medical field which makes this even move interesting for me!
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I don’t want to include any spoilers, but there are special medical circumstances for one character that put you on the edge of your seat!
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I always called this series a smart cozy mystery series, but it isn’t really a cozy mystery at all. I read many of the books at the beginning and really need to get back to it. Wonderful review, Linda and thanks for reminding me about Annette Dashofy’s series.
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I think the relationship of Zoe and Pete makes it a borderline cozy mystery, but there is less “cutsie,” humor, and romance than what I consider a cozy mystery. It’s basically a good mystery!
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I think because they are not amateurs, I don’t put it in the traditional cozy category, but I like that their relationship is cozy. Yes, I think they are just good, clean mysteries.
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