The Record Keeper by Charles Martin is the third installment of the Murphy Shepherd series. I highly recommend reading the series in order or you’ll miss key parts. This story centers around Bones – where he came from and what he overcame to lead an operation that rescues people from human slavery/trafficking. This story is dark and intense, but Martin weaves such powerful themes of hope, freedom, and salvation throughout every word on the page.

The Record Keeper follows Murphy as he tracks down Bones. He hires a new team of hackers to help him scour the earth to find his friend and mentor. I love the new characters (and hope maybe some of them get a spin-off series of their own someday.) And many characters return from the previous stories (like Summer, Clay, and Gunner.) But just like the first two in the series, this story has lots of action and intense moments that kept a suspense fan like me hooked. I appreciate the overall themes of The Record Keeper. The sacrifices both Bones and Murphy make to find the lost and forgotten is powerful.

The whole series is so well done! This releases on July 5^th – and what better way to celebrate Independence Day than with a story about a Shepherd seeking that one lost sheep, bringing freedom to the hopeless and lost.

I received an ebook review copy of this book through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

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 “The wounds of the past carry a lot of weight when it comes to walking into one’s future, and if anything can rob you of now, it’s yesterday.”

The Letter Keeper is the follow-up to The Water Keeper. You definitely need to read these in order.  While The Water Keeper brought the action, The Letter Keeper focusses in on the repercussions of the life Murphy Shepherd has chosen. He’s given up his life to rescue people from human trafficking, but the toll is high. He doesn’t know how to handle new relationships, and an injury forces him to let others take care of him for a while. But don’t worry, there’s plenty of action in the story as Murphy faces many life and death situations, because he always leaves the ninety-nine to go after the one. Nothing can keep that man down.

The name of Freetown says it all: what is freedom worth? The story dives into the dark spots of humanity but Charles Martin weaves a message of hope through every page. The rescued women struggle with love and understanding that everyone is worth being rescued, but Murphy shares a similar struggle. He needs to let go of the past and so he can find hope and love in the future. Such great themes in this story make the characters come alive on the pages.

This story captured my heart on such an emotional and insightful level, and it will be one of those novels that I think about long after I put the book down. I am excited that there’s a third in the series – this does end on a bit of a cliff hanger, so I’m ready for book three!

Overall Rating:
5 stars (I loved it, couldn’t put it down)

Suspense Rating:
5 stars (Non-stop edge-of-your-seat suspense from start to finish)

I received an ebook review copy of this book through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

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For fans of gritty dramas, complex plots, and high seas adventure

The Water Keeper is a wild ride. The complex plot and broken characters put me through the emotional wringer.

Charles Martin is an off-the-charts amazing writer. His stories are rich with imagery and complex characters that work their way into your heart.  Murphy Shephard takes his boat down the coast of Florida, picking up off the wall, broken misfits with more baggage than his boat can carry. But Murphy has his own secrets, as he’s made it his life’s mission to hunt down missing women who’ve been trafficked.

The story is complex and at times weird. It took me a while to wrap my head around what was happening. So many plot twists kept me guessing, and this story is much darker and seedier than other Martin novels. The author drags readers right into the ick and evil of human trafficking.

This book has a lot of high action scenes. But at times I struggled with the reality of some of the scenes. The hero and his dog both seemed to be bullet and fire proof, and several times I found myself saying, “Really? How can that happen?”  While some of the scenarios didn’t seem plausible, the story was so good that I willingly suspended my belief. Other parts made me question, “Why would that happen?” as there were a few uncomfortable moments that made me question character motives. I don’t want to give spoilers, but the author isn’t going to deliver you a tidy story wrapped up in a bow. It’s going to leave you with questions and unsettled feelings. 

Despite my thoughts above, I loved this novel. It’s one of those stories that sticks with you long after you’ve put it down. I love when authors take chances and write something different. Some Martin fans might not hang in there through this one, but I enjoyed the characters and the overarching themes about love and evil. I like that the novel isn’t what I expected, and hope readers will embrace it for being “off the beaten path.” Figuratively, and literally – because much of the story takes place in alligator infested swamps, rivers and back-woods Florida.

Overall Rating: 4 stars (I liked it a lot and would definitely recommend)
Suspense Rating: 4 stars (lots of action and suspense to keep me intrigued)

I received an ebook review copy of this book through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

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