A Review of EVERY BROKEN TRUST by Linda Rodriguez

A Review of Every Broken Trust by Linda Rodriguez

Every Broken Trust is the second novel about police chief Skeet Bannion.  The author, Linda Rodriguez, novelist and poet, shows a growing command of the structure of the novel along with her formidable use of language.

This book shows more about Skeet’s Cherokee heritage. It also demonstrates the complicated relationships Skeet has with her ex-husband, her father and her mother.  Skeet is now the guardian of fifteen-year-old Brian who acts with the illogic and lack of control that only teenagers manage when he gets to know a troubled teenage girl who he describes as, “a genius.”  If causing trouble and casting unfair aspersions at adults are measures of intellectual prowess, the girl easily outshines Albert Einstein.

Investigating a murder may prove easier for Skeet than navigating through the shoals of emotionally-charged family issues.  As a reader I was pleased to learn  more about Skeet’s grandmother who did not appear in the first book. 

As in the first novel Skeet comes across as a professional police officer, not a female Rambo. She finds plenty of trouble in her job and family relations without creating more stress by macho behavior.  The author brings the novel to a satisfying conclusion.  She also leaves interesting threads hanging which have me eager for Skeet’s next adventure.