An Enjoyable, Well-Written Yarn

by Bill Stephens, Gotta Write Network

Tommy and Tuppence. Nick and Nora Charles. Now Chester Campbell's husband-and-wife detective team Greg and Jill McKenzie seem poised to take their place alongside the gumshoe spouses of old. There are, of course, considerable differences. Instead of London or New York, the Mckenzies tackle crime in Nashville, Tennessee. They are also considerably older than the "bright young things" that occupy center stage in the Christie and Hammet novels.

Greg McKenzie is of an age when scanning a restaurant menu for senior's discounts may come more natural than slipping a 9mm automatic into his belt, but he’s just as ready for action as any other fictional shamus. A former investigator with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations followed by a stint in the Nashville DA’s office he brings experience and professional credentials to the fledgling McKenzie Detective Agency. Wife Jill contributes an adventurous spirit, the ability to ferry them from place to place in her Cessna 172, and some remarkable feats of marksmanship.

Unlike most other fictional private detectives, the McKenzies are ardent churchgoers. Still, this doesn’t mean that Deadly Illusions belongs on the shelf among the Christian novels. The religious content is pretty much limited to the heads of the McKenzie Detective Agency taking their places in a pew come Sunday morning and recruiting fellow parishioners as occasional operatives.

An enjoyable, well-written yarn, a couple of engaging characters and an author who apparently knows the Nashville locale and the art of criminal investigation well, Deadly Illusions has a lot to offer fans of mysteries and soft-boiled private eye yarns. This is Campbell's third book featuring the private eye duo, and it would be extremely disappointing if it were to be the last. A good, well-paced read with plenty of twists and turns to hold the reader's interest.

A Look into a Funhouse Mirror

by Nancy Mehl, MyShelf.com

All of (the) situations flow together to create an engrossing novel that keeps you hopping from one situation to another. Deadly Illusions is a look into a funhouse mirror. The images shift and alter. Just when you think you have it figured out, the picture changes again. The McKenzies are engaging characters, the plot is fast-paced, and the writing is top-notch. Chester Campbell has a winner with this series. I recommend this installment, and I look forward to the next offering.

Senior sleuths don't act their age

by Jo-Ann Greene, Sunday News, Lancaster, PA

Greg McKenzie retired from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, then from the Nashville, Tenn., District Attorney's Office.

Trouble is McKenzie is not really the retiring type. So he has put his snooping skills to use as a private eye in partnership with his wife of nearly 40 years, Jill.

That's right. Instead of bagging groceries at a local supermarket and attending AARP luncheons, these fictional senior citizens play with guns and pilot their private plane to check out leads.

...the McKenzies are having lunch at the Opryworld Hotel with a client who suspects employees are skimming cash from his restaurants. As they leave, they learn the Federal Reserve Board chairman has just been assassinated in the hotel lobby.

Police and the FBI are all over the case, but the McKenzies stumble onto related information when delving into the background of another client's menacing husband. The nervous wife goes missing, and the McKenzies fear for her life as they turn up evidence the husband is not who he said he is.

After threats, break-ins and related murders, there's a showdown that provides a solution.

It's fast and easy reading. Though the connections are complicated, the resolution is not too far-fetched.

Greg, a cavalier gent with a knack for alienating police investigators, narrates the tale. His admiring remarks about the looks, skills and personality of the "babe" he married will endear him to female readers.

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Another Winner

by Shelley Glodowski, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

Chester D. Campbell has his own unique style of writing that is both dashing and touching. His obvious affection for his wife shines through just as he outlines a nefarious plot based on his own military experience. Greg McKenzie is a senior investigator who relies on his experience to compensate for the brawn he might have engaged in the past. His wife, Jill, is an accomplished pilot, cook, and is the perfect partner for her husband. Campbell juxtaposes her correction of Greg's "blue language" and her obvious spirituality with her determination when the going gets rough and she has to use some of the private investigator skills that most people would shrink from. All in all, DEADLY ILLUSIONS is another winner in the Chester D. Campbell literary cabinet. Campbell obviously has many stories to share, and he continues to write fabulous mysteries.

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"Becoming one of my favorite mystery series"

by Dawn Dowdle, The Best Reviews

The Greg McKenzie series is fast becoming one of my all-time favorite series. Mr. Campbell has a great way of telling a story while weaving the various cases that Greg and Jill are working on. I find his characters to be very believable. I like that they don't just center on one case. That's not how it is in real life.

I like the Nashville setting. And the fact that Jill is a pilot and owns a Cessna allows them to travel to gain additional information and not lose much time.

The only complaint I'd have is that they turn off their cell phone too much, especially during important cases. But, since they are older, this is still believable.

I can't wait to read the next Greg McKenzie mystery. I highly recommend this book and the whole series.