Sunshine State by D.P. Lyle

Sunshine State is the third book in Jake Longly series by D.P. Lyle.

Serial killer Billy Wayne Baker has a message for Jake Longly. “Two of the seven murders I confessed to aren’t mine. I won’t tell you which two…“

Well now, Billy wants Jake to help clear his name of the two murders he did not commit. Not that it is going to make things better for Billy anyways – the chap is serving seven life sentences, one for each murder. But Billy feels he shouldn’t be pointed fingers at for something he did not do. There’s no catch, except that Jake and his team will have to do all the digging by themselves – this includes finding the two murders that weren’t committed by Billy Wayne.

Nicole Jamison, Jake’s girlfriend comes up with a plan. The team – consisting of Ray(Jake’s father and P.I), Pancake (P.I. and Jake’s best friend), Nicole and Jake Longly (former pitcher turned P.I.) go to Pine Key, Florida on the pretext of interviewing for an upcoming documentary. Nicole’s uncle is a renowned director and he approves the idea. Though this is going to be just another investigation for Jake and team, Nicole’s uncle wants to make a documentary on how Billy Wayne’s brutality changed Pine Key for good.

What’s so special about the murders in Pine Key? Billy Wayne’s M.O. is that he kills women and never returns to the place. One murder, one county. So how is that he killed three women, one of which was a cop’s wife?It was Billy’s DNA on the three crime scenes, all right. This can mean just one thing – someone who had access to Billy’s DNA framed him for the two murders he did not commit. Hence, the spotlight on Pine Key.

As the cuatro start to investigate, they find a couple of secrets buried deep within the walls of Pine Key – from extra-marital affairs to grudges. And yes, nothing stays shushed in Pine Key for long. They all know each other and the ‘documentary’ is already a hot topic in the county.

I really liked the plot. A serial killer confessing he did not commit the two crimes he was accused of. And, there is a little teasing of the grey cells when he lets the P.I. find which two.

Jake and Nicole are a couple and the scenes get a little raunchy at times – when they are not investigating, that is. Pancake aka Tommy, Ray’s partner and Jake’s best friend is a foodie. More like a always-hungry, want more food kinda guy. Nicole manages to grab every man’s attention wherever she goes. Ahem.

The story gets really better as the team goes to Pine Key to investigate. Since I identified the killer long before the Jake did, I wouldn’t say the suspense was impressive. However, I was curious to see know Jake and team would feel when they knew they had the wrong guy on their radar. *devilish grin*

The P.I team had their fingers pointed at one guy and they were hell-bent to prove him guilty. This was kinda bummer – as a sleuth, shouldn’t they be open to the idea that someone else could be guilty? So, other than this niggle, I would say the story is pretty impressive.

As my first D.P. Lyle read, I really liked this book. The writing is crisp and precise. Bits of humor certainly make the story entertaining. The plot is super impressive and so is the storytelling. Well-developed characters and a mystery that keeps one guessing.

If you love to read mysteries with a touch of quirky, Sunshine State by D.P.Lyle might be the book you are looking for.

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I received an ARC from Oceanview Publishing and Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.

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