Forgotten Book Friday – Long Time Gone
Posted on September 18th, 2009
Long Time Gone by J. A. Jance
Publisher: William Morrow/HarperCollins. ISBN: 0-688-13824-1
Once upon a time, a long time ago, a five year old girl named Bonnie, according to her version of events, saw two grownups do something really bad to a very nice neighbor woman named Mimi. And afraid of what the mysterious grownups might do to her because of what they said to her when they realized she had seen what they had done, Bonnie promised those bad people that she would never ever tell anyone what she had seen.
Now, something like half a century later, Sister Mary Katherine—the Mother Superior of a small convent on Whidbey Island in Washington—is having a very disturbing, recurring nightmare about something that threatens her emotional health (and the peace and quiet of the tiny convent). When she seeks the help of a hypnotherapist named Frederick MacKinzie—a friend whom she remembered from high school—Sister Mary Katherine very soon finds herself relying upon the help of yet another acquaintance from high school, Jonas Piedmont Beaumont.
Now working with the Seattle unit of the Washington State Attorney’s Special Homicide Investigative Team, the former Seattle homicide detective J. P. Beaumont, deferring to pressure—and orders—from his superiors, involves himself most reluctantly in Sister Mary Katherine’s nightmare. Almost immediately, after Beaumont talks with Sister Mary Katherine, the questions begin accumulating: What does Sister Mary Katherine really remember? Did it really happen? When did it happen? Who was involved? What—if anything—can be done about it now? And as for Beaumont and the Special Homicide Investigative Team—known fondly by its few select members by the unfortunate acronym, the SHIT squad—is Sister Mary Katherine’s nightmare eligible for the squad’s specialized investigative skills?
At the same time, J. P. Beaumont’s friend and former colleague from the Seattle police department, Ron Peters, has become the prime suspect in the murder of his ex-wife. Beaumont, unable to believe his friend’s complicity and also unable to turn his back on a friend in need, quickly immerses himself in the investigation much to the consternation of his superiors in the SHIT squad and the local law enforcement officials. Beaumont is willing to put his reputation and his life on the line for his friend, but—when the evidence in the case begins to accumulate—Beaumont wonders if his loyalty is well-placed, and he wonders if his investigative skills and instincts are leading him astray.
Beaumont becomes more deeply involved in what he believes are two “disaster bound” cases: Sister Mary Katherine’s nightmares and Ron Peters’ apparent involvement in murder. Both cases are complicated mysteries filled with intricate twists and turns, and both cases confront the normally brilliant yet occasionally flawed Beaumont with seemingly insurmountable challenges.
In Long Time Gone, J. A. Jance’s 18th novel featuring the resourceful and resilient detective J. P. Beaumont, Jance has demonstrated that she is at the top of her form. Even though Beaumont has matured during his 20 years in Jance’s intricately plotted and imaginative novels—he is now in his late 50s—and in spite of his personal difficulties and his professional challenges, Beaumont has not by any stretch of the imagination slowed down. More importantly, he has become even more fascinating and complex. Beaumont fans will not be disappointed.
Tags: Beaumont, Convent, Emotional Health, Forgotten Book, Grownups, Half A Century, Homicide Detective, Hypnotherapist, Investigative Skills, Investigative Team, J A Jance, Mary Katherine, School Sister, Seattle Police Department, Seattle Unit, Shit Squad, Sister Mary, Washington State Attorney, Whidbey Island, William Morrow
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