As the Crow Dies
By Ken Casper
4/5
()
About this ebook
Jason Crow comes home to Texas on clumsy, prosthetic legs, struggling with his lost dreams and the pitying curiosity of friends and strangers. But there's no time for him to brood, because his father has just been shot to death.
Unable to convince the police that his father was murdered, Jason begins his own investigation. In the process he uncovers family secrets that shake him to his core and make him question everyone and everything around him, including the love of Michiko, the beautiful Eurasian-American nurse he met in Japan.
While fighting his own insecurity as a double amputee, Jason must challenge forces capable of destroying him and those he loves to pursue the person who robbed him of his greatest hero: His dad.
This debut book in Ken Casper's Jason Crow West Texas Mystery Series treats readers to a powerful new voice in mystery fiction.
Ken Casper
Ken Casper was born and raised in New York City. After graduating from Fordham University with a degree in Russian, he joined the Air Force, was stationed in the Far East, served in Vietnam, and lived five years in Germany. He also earned a Master's degree in Education from the University of Southern California. Ken retired from more than 33 years of government service in September '97. Now a transplanted Texan. He and Mary, his wife of 34 years, own a horse farm in San Angelo. Along with their Border Collie, Chief, they have a Golden Retriever, Casey, two house cats, four barn cats and eight horses. They also board and breed horses and Mary teaches English riding. She's a therapeutic riding instructor for the handicapped, as well. Life is never dull. Their two granddaughters visit several times a year and feel right at home with the Casper menagerie. Grampa and Mimi do everything they can to make sure their visits to Little Oaks Farm will be lifelong fond memories. After all, isn't that what grandparents are for? Ken figures his writing career probably started in the sixth grade when he was ordered by a teacher to write a "theme" explaining his misbehaviour over the previous semester. To his teacher's chagrin, he enjoyed stringing just the right words together to justify his less than stellar performance. Fortunately, she forgave him. Since then, he's had short stories published in a popular men's magazine and was working on a mystery when his critique partners, three romance writers, suggested he try their genre. He had his doubts ("Me? Write romance? Are you kidding?), but he decided to give it a try, anyway. His first-chapter romance submission won honourable mention at the Southwest Writers' Workshop contest in 1993. Ken revised it...and revised it, then entered the Golden Triangle Writers' Guild contest in '95. This time he took first place in both mystery and romance. The romance entry later became his first sale to Harlequin Superromance. A MAN CALLED JESSE was published in October '98. Since then he's written more than a dozen other Superromances, including the First Family of Texas series, contributed to two trilogies, a six-book series set in the police department of Houston, Texas, and he's currently involved in a five-book series set in the beautiful hill country of central Texas. His October 2003 Super, THE WOMAN IN THE NEWS, was a Holt Medallion finalist.
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Reviews for As the Crow Dies
11 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Author: Ken CasperPublished by: Bell Bridge Books Age Recommended: Adult Reviewed By: Arlena DeanBook Blog For: GMTARating: 5Review:"As the Crow Dies" by Ken Casper was a very good historical mystery, thriller and suspense read. This author will give you a quite a read about a post Viet Nam story of Jason Crow who has now return home as a double amputee ...and his father is determined that he will walk again. "Through painful effort and sheer determination, he had learned to walk with prosthetics something the doctors told him he would never be able to do. He couldn’t wait to show his father. But when Jason who was a former football star arrives home, he will not be able to walk to his father because apparently he has committed suicide. Making no sense to Jason and is determined to find out what has happened to his father. Jason was sure that his father had been murdered and would take on the case to find out who that was by "slowly building support among his family friend, his father's friends and slowly builds a case for murder." How he goes about this is really intriguing. This is the time that I will say you must pick up the good read "As the Crow Dies" to she the what, why, how and where to it all. This author did a excellent job with this read creating a memorable and fascinating read with some drama that even deals with some racial issues. All of the characters and there were many, were well developed captivating at this time in 1968. Be ready for a unique plot, with mystery, thrills, suspense along with many twist and turns. Questions that remain to be asked and answered: " Will his girlfriend still want him? How can he ever be whole again if even his friends look on him with pity?" You will get all of these answered and more from the read "As the Crow Dies" and Yes, I would recommend this book as a good read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5As the Crow Dies by Ken Casper 5 STARSAs the Crow Dies is a murder mystery and it kept me guessing till the end. Jason Crow was 6'6' talls and all around athlete that was drafted into war instead of Dallas Cowboys. In Vietnam he lost both legs, above the knees.Jason was told he would never walk, but his dad said if he wanted it bad enough he could do it.He was finally able to come home after he got his new legs. His best friend Zach was driving him, but when he got their there were police cars. They told him that his dad committed suicide.Jason believed his father was murdered and was determined to find out who did it.Thier were a lot of good suspects who looked good for one reason or another. a lot of drama of others beeing taken out to.I really liked Jason and hope to see him in more books in the future. Jason was going through tough times but he did not give up on himself or on others. Yes he wanted his legs back and the future he was supposed to have. But he was making new plans.I was given this ebook to read in exchange of honest review by Netgalley.02/01/2012 PUB Bell Bridge Books
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Interesting story of a Vietnam War Veteran who lost both legs above the knee and was told he wouldn't have enough stump left to be able to use a prostheses effectively. This prognosis was especially hard on Jason Crow as he had been a High School Football legend with an apparent future in professional football. His father wouldn't acknowledge this limit and insisted his son would be able to walk if he really wanted to. Jason trusted his father's opinion over the experts and dedicated his efforts to overcoming his loss of legs. When his father is killed and the police insisted it was suicide and refused to investigate, Jason with his friend and shadow, Zack Merchant. Adjusting to the handicaps and apparent pity that he viewed in the eyes of everyone he encountered was part of the challenge Jason needed to deal with. This story is one of contrasts that play Jason's former physical prowess against his now missing limbs and limited mobility along with his slowly acknowledging the effects of his injury and the life adjustments he must make to become independent. Initial self pity doesn't work with his intent to venerate his father and find the murderer who killed him. Jason's investigation run up against the prejudices of deep south where his father's black partner and sister's affection for the black son of his father's partner turned the whole community against them, especially the landed white affluent. Jason's tribulations and even physical altercations kept piling up as he learned of his mother's intent to divorce his father and further her intent to donate their common ranch property to a "Jim Jones" style minister and his church. Worse was his amnesia of the details of his injury. He kept flashing on elements of that event but, couldn't unravel the details. He also agonized over how his love interest would react to his missing limbs and whether he would still be able to consummate a marriage if she was still willing. Actual and imagined limitations plagued Jason but, he plunged ahead regardless. The twists in the story and the southern West Texas characters gave the plot plenty of shades. Jason manages against all odds and the surprise ending is a jewel. The twists and actions never cease. Deserves to be read more than once to fully appreciate the nuances. Treat yourself and get this book!