#W.F. Ranew

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

Catawba Falls by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow Mysteries #6

Nearing 70 but not slowing down, Red Farlow begins this pro bono murder investigation while in town for a summer camp’s administrative board meeting. Two male college students, counsellors for the summer, are missing when Red arrives. Having been a counsellor decades ago, he is soon on trails with the search team following paths he once tramped long ago. His memories of those long-gone days intertwine with the current case as it moves from missing to murdered young men and increases to multiple murders with a sinister serial killer on the loose.

What I liked:

* Red: retired Bureau of Georgia Bureau of Investigation, husband, private investigator, attended summer camp where some of the murders took place, puzzle solver, follows clues, has a network of friends in the area, tenacious, team player, motivated, loving husband, teen in the sixties

* Being able to relate to the summer camp counsellor reminiscences having been a camp counsellor in the sixties myself

* The myth of Boojum and how it tied into the story

* The close friendships that lasted decades – at least for red – and wondering why my time as a counsellor did not provide the same

* The police procedural aspects of the story

* Finding out the motivation for the multiple murders and the eventual solution of the cases

* The surprises, twists, and turns – and finding out new information as it came along

* The teamwork and effort exerted to bring down more than one evil person

* Catching up with Red and hearing a bit about his earlier years

What I didn’t like:

* Who and what I was meant not to like

* Knowing that there are people in the world as evil and amoral as the ones in this story

Did I like this book? Yes

Would I read more in this series? Yes

Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

BLURB

Does a killer roam the Western North Carolina mountains? Red Farlow travels to Camp Ridgemount for Boys for a reunion with his summer camp friends. On arrival, he discovers two camp counselors have been found in the woods, hacked to death. Red’s investigation soon widens with more mysterious deaths, one of them a close friend. Far-right extremist Troy Unsworthy knows the hills and hollows after a lifetime of growing up in these mountains. Red soon learns all the victims are connected to Unsworthy in the years leading up to a deadly auto accident which put him in prison. When he learns Unsworthy was released just before the counselors’ deaths, Red goes into the mountains. His trek requires sure-footedness over rocky terrain and old-growth forest as he explores caves with endless tunnels, shafts, and deep-water pools searching for his suspect. But, did Unsworthy really murder these people, or should Red turn his attention to other suspects? Red treads a treacherous path on his quest to find the killer and bring him to justice.

[thebridgeofdeaths]

Catawba Falls 

by W.F. Ranew Red Farlow Mysteries, Book 6   Mystery Date Published: 07-11-2023 Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing   Red Farlow travels to Camp Ridgemont for Boys for a reunion with his summer camp friends. On arrival, he discovers two camp counselors have been found in the woods, hacked to death. Red’s investigation soon widens with more mysterious deaths, one of them a close…

[bookjunkiez]

Cracker Town Virtual Book Tour

Cracker Town Virtual Book Tour

Red Farlow Mysteries, Book 5   Mystery Date Published: 09-14-2021 Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing     Town’s secrets cloak ruthless killer for decades   EXCERPT Chapter One   Red Farlow’s disdain for cold cases ran deep. They dredged up some long-ago, heinous murder when reopened, which haunted him at night and hovered like a black cloud all day. For months.   Unsolved crimes also reminded Red…

[chowardauthor-blog]

Rich and Gone by W.F. Ranew

Rich and Gone by W.F. Ranew

Welcome to Tirgearr Tuesday! This week, we’d like to introduce you to W.F. Ranew’s latest release: Rich and Gone.

ASIN: B07QTC145M Kindle US, Kindle UK Kindle CA, Kindle AU

  Blurb:

PI Red Farlow is on the hunt to find $300 million a Florida insurance executive has bilked out of family and friends.

Woody Cunningham stashed the money in safe havens around the world before disappearing. Has he been…

[rincondejoss]

Cracker Town | Tour

Cracker Town | Tour

Red Farlow Mysteries, Book 5   Mystery Date Published: 09-14-2021 Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing   Town’s secrets cloak ruthless killer for decades      About the Author W.F. Ranew writes the Red Farlow Mysteries series from Tirgearr Publishing, the latest of which is book five, Cracker Town. Ranew is a former newspaper reporter, editor, and communication executive. He started his…

[joyffree]

#NewRelease #KU ➙ Title: Rich and Gone Series: Red Farlow Mysteries #1 Author: W.F. Ranew Genre: Adult Mystery PI Red Farlow goes on the hunt to find $300 million a Florida insurance executive bilks out of family and friends. The exec, Woody Cunningham, stashes the cash in money havens around the world. Then he disappears. Where is Woody? Dead, done in by one of his enemies? Or did he skip town with his girlfriend to live off the ill-gotten wealth? If that’s the case, where is he? Seeking answers, Farlow works with Miami legal experts who specialize in recovering cash from hidden offshore accounts. He also confronts a tough guy from his past who wants to settle a score and has links to the missing man. Cursed, shot at, and knocked out, Farlow delivers surefire punches of his own. Along the way, another executive turns up missing, and someone murders Woody’s brother-in-law. Rich and Gone takes Farlow to Europe, across Georgia and north Florida, and points beyond to find the money and the man. Finally, on a tip from a raven-haired Latina beauty, Red takes off on another international flight to determine if Woody Cunningham, rich and gone, is dead or alive. #RichandGone #RedFarlowMysteries #Adult #Mystery #WFRanew #kindleunlimited #intheseries #richandgonecoverreveal #richandgonerelease #richandgonewfranew #wfranew #redfarlowmysteries #tbr #ku #amazon #buynow @wfranew

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

East Beach by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow Mysteries #3

 Red Farlow is working for free in this case. Why? His friend leaves a quick rather abrupt message that has Red worried so off her heads to Tram’s house only to find him near death. After listening to Tram’s dying words Red knows that he must find the person who killed his friend. With that goal in mind he calls in a group of people that he feels will be helpful in finding the killer and the story unfolds. The story includes an ex-wife, multiple lovers, a motorcycle gang, drug dealers, a seedy dishonest businessman, a few crazy people, and a whole lot more. The book is filled with twists and turns, sleuthing, relationships and an interesting cast of characters.

 What I liked:

* Red: a good man, loyal husband, dedicated private investigator and loyal friend. He is more than capable of staying on the scent to get the baddie.

* The newshounds helping Red: interesting people with leads and sources that help locate information while also locating leads for stories they will publish

* Red’s wife: didn’t see much of her but she seems to balance Red well

* The twists and turns in the story and not knowing who the killer was till nearly the end

* That those that might be considered good or bad were never 100% one or the other

* The location, writing and story

* That the story was complete without a cliffhanger

* Looking forward to another book in the series soon

 What I didn’t like:

* The ease with which some take the lives of others

* Being reminded of how seedy and difficult the lives of some people are

* Knowing it might be awhile before another book in this series is ready for me to read

 Did I like this book? Yes

Would I read more in this series? Yes

 Thank you to the author for the ARC – this is my honest review.

 4-5 Stars

   BLURB

 FBI Agent Joseph Trammell retires to a beachfront home on a Georgia island. Six months later, PI Red Farlow finds him dying in a pool of blood. Someone shot him four times. Five shell casings litter the floor. Drops of blood lead out of the house and onto East Beach on St. Simons Island. Red sets out to find out who killed Joe Trammell and why. Did the local drug and arms smuggler hire a hit? And who caught the fifth bullet? Farlow wades into the murky water of intrigue, conflicting love affairs, and danger as he tracks down the killer. It’s not exactly a relaxing day at the beach.

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

Cracker Town by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow Mysteries #5

 Red Farlow is on a cold case this time. He has been tasked with finding out the truth about the murder of a family that took place decades previously. The case may be cold but Red is hot on the trail finding threads to follow, pull, sort through, untangle, and watch as they weave together to create an intriguing story for the reader.

 What I liked:

* Red Farlow: older, private detective, married, capable, knowledgeable, has many contacts from years on the job, good people skills, interesting.

* The four-part layout of the story with timeline moving from the case being undertaken then moving to the past then moving further into the past before returning to the present and the eventual conclusion of the story.

* The setting in the South

* Getting to know the various characters and thinking about their parts in the story

* The overlapping of Red’s past with this case

* The sleuthing done and how it unfolds

* Thinking about human behavior and motivation – there were some doozies in this story

* The twists…and there were a few

* That all the threads were tied up in a neat bow by the end of the book

* Knowing that there will be a new book in the series coming out at some point in the future

 What I didn’t like:

* Exactly who and what I was meant not to like

* Having to wait for the next book in the series

 Did I enjoy this book? Yes

Would I read more by this author? Yes

 Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review

 4-5 Stars

     BLURB

 In 1955, Cleet Wrightman is found guilty of murdering a woman and sent to the Georgia State Mental Hospital to serve out his time until 1973. In spring of that year, young agent Red Farlow investigates the slayings of three members of the Goings family in Valdosta, but he was never able to apprehend the murderer. Fifty years later, the surviving son hires Red to revisit the crime and track down the killer. As he begins his cold-case probe, uncanny coincidences emerge from a key witness and old interview files. He follows a lead to Cleet’s hometown of Damville and its polluted Cracker Town area and discovers two brothers prone to violence are the ones speaking up the loudest against Cleet. But where is he? Cleet hasn't been seen since his 1973 release. Red believes the man is still alive and knows who the real killer is but finding both proves challenging. Red's going to need more than old investigation files and Dr. Goings's clinical notes if he's going to solve this cold case.

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

Blood Mug by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow Mysteries #4

 Red Farlow Mysteries are thought provoking, twisted, complex, evocative, paint pictures and intense. They are a delight and I look forward to reading each and every one of them! This time people affiliated with the Wickham Art Center seem to be dropping like flies but…why? Red is called in to find out what is what and as a PI he might have better luck than the local police force since he is not constrained in quite the same way as they are. Will Red or the police be first to find the killer? They say murder has to do with means, motive and opportunity so…who will it be this time?

 What I liked:

* Red: mature, grounded, steady, wise, has many contacts, knowledgeable from past work with Georgia Bureau of Investigation, a good friend, married to a good woman…like him.

* The first-person narrative and the feeling of looking over Red’s shoulder as the story unfolds

* The slow unfolding of the story as clues are revealed

* That all of my senses were engaged

* That Red was not invincible

* The supporting characters and the parts they played

* The way it all came together

* The tidbits that made it “more” … so much information gleaned through the story that might not seem important but definitely played a part.

* The pottery tie-in since I took a class in elementary school and college and enjoyed them both

* Being reminded of previous cases/books in the series as Red mentioned bits of them

* Reading through my reviews for the first three books and remembering why this series is one to revisit and reread in the future.

* Finding out the “who, what, when, where and why” journalists are to note and also the “means, motive, and opportunity” that police look for – and that the person(s) involved in crime and murder were unearthed

  What I didn’t like:

* The people I was meant not to like and the crimes they were involved in

 Did I enjoy this book? Yes

Would I read more in this series? Definitely.

 Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

 5 Stars

     BLURB

 PI Red Farlow has a meeting with Wickham Art Center board chair in Atlanta, but when he arrives, he finds the chairman slumped over his potter's wheel with a medieval battle dagger protruding from his back. During the investigation, other victims are discovered in the pottery studio, each meeting the same gruesome end as the chairman. Is the dagger a dramatic flourish of a twisted mind, or a more profound message? Clues soon reveal a real estate scheme—wealthy Venezuelan investors plan to plow Whickham under and build condos on the site. Red gets his hands muddy as he throws himself into finding the answers.

[bookjunkiez]

East Beach Blitz

    Red Farlow Mysteries, Book 3

Mystery/Thriller

 Date Published: September 30, 2020

Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing

   FBI Agent Joseph Trammell retires to a beachfront home on a Georgia island.

Six months later, PI Red Farlow finds him dying in a pool of blood. Someone shot him four times. Five shell casings litter the floor. Drops of blood lead out of the house and onto East Beach on St.…

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

Blue Magnolia by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow Mysteries #2

 Private Eye hired to protect a country singer

Country singer with high hopes and little luck so far

Crazy wicked people willing to do anything to buy a song

 What I liked:

* The setting, plot, story and writing

* Feeling I was truly in the South

* That all my senses were involved – I felt I was there

* Red: a good man who knows his stuff, cares about people, and does all he can to get the job done

* Realizing how important having contacts must be in more than one line of work

* Being reminded of how murky some family histories are and how some might want to lose some of the ancestral branches on the family tree

* The way the story unfolded in increments then were woven together seamlessly

* Being reminded that people are human – some are good, some bad and some a bit of both

* Hank: a sweet, kind, gentle and loving man that touched the hearts of his audience

* Wondering if any of the song lyrics in the story would be made into songs I might hear on the radio

* All of it except…

 What I didn’t like:

* The truly wicked bad guys in the story

* Being reminded that innocent people suffer for no good reason at all

 Did I enjoy this book? Yes

Would I read more by this author? Without a doubt

 Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

 5 Stars

   BLURB

PI Red Farlow dives headfirst into a hornets' nest of extremists. His new client, Hank Tillman, only wants to get a shot at country music stardom. While playing in a Georgia bar, Hank—known as Cowboy to his fans—stumbles into trouble. The kind that kills. PI Red Farlow steps in to help him. Hank’s song, Redneck Devil, attracts the attention of a violent group called the Blue Magnolia. Its leaders want him to perform at their next hate rally. There's another, darker reason the Blue Magnolia wants Hank in its fold. An elderly patient in a Florida insane asylum reveals a decades-long secret that devastates Hank. It’s the worst kind of fake news. Can Farlow root out the truth? The PI has his own problems as he confronts a hired killer face-to-face.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

W.F. Ranew is a former newspaper  reporter, editor, and communication executive. He started his journalism career  covering sports, police, and city council meetings at his hometown newspaper, The Quitman Free Press. He also worked  as a reporter and editor for several regional dailies: The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle, The  Florida Times-Union, and The Atlanta  Journal-Constitution.                          

Ranew has written two previous  novels: Schoolhouse Man and Candyman’s Sorrow.

He lives with his wife in Atlanta  and St. Simons Island, Ga.

TRAILER

[bookjunkiez]

Rich and Gone Blitz

Rich and Gone Blitz

Mystery Date Published: May 29, 2019 Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing

ng”> PI Red Farlow is on the hunt to find $300 million a Florida insurance executive has bilked out of family and friends. Woody Cunningham stashed the money in safe havens around the world before disappearing. Has he been done in by one of his enemies? Or did he skip town with his girlfriend to live off the…

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

Rich and Gone by W.F. Ranew

Red Farlow has retired from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and has set up as a Private Investigator. The case we meet him on is one that has him searching for 300 million dollars that has been misappropriated and hidden. Then, shortly after the money disappeared, so did Woody Cunningham. Follow the money they say...and so Red does but in so doing he also tried to locate Woody – dead or alive.

I really enjoyed looking over Red’s shoulder as he begins to follow leads that are presented as he works to unravel this case. His interactions with law enforcement, newspaper reporters and all the other people that became known as he pursued one lead after another were fascinating. In movies and on TV the case is wrapped up by the end of the show but this case took a bit of time, required trips to foreign countries, involved interactions with lethal characters, mentioned intriguing cases and characters from his past and gave me true insight into what it might be like to plod rather than whisk along while trying to unearth mysteries that would lead to a resolution by the end of the book. I would sometimes wonder what purpose a person might have in the story and be left dangling only to have that thread tied up neatly a few pages on. And, the book was definitely tied up by the end of the book and done so in a believable and interesting way.

What I liked:

* Red Farlow’s maturity, wisdom and character

* The first persona narration in Red’s voice

* The way information is presented in bits and tidily tied up in the end

* The supporting characters

* The fact that I would like to see the next book in this series when it is published

What I did not like:

* The people and events I was meant not to like

Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45161073-rich-and-gone

Synopsis: 

Rich and Gone, Red Farlow Mysteries No. 1

Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing

Publication date: May 29, 2019

  PI Red Farlow goes on the hunt to find $300 million a Florida insurance executive bilks out of family and friends. 

The exec, Woody Cunningham, stashes the cash in money havens around the world. Then he disappears. Where is Woody? Dead, done in by one of his enemies? Or did he skip town with his girlfriend to live off the ill-gotten wealth? If that’s the case, where is he?

Seeking answers, Farlow works with Miami legal experts who specialize in recovering cash from hidden offshore accounts. He also confronts a tough guy from his past who wants to settle a score and has links to the missing man. Cursed, shot at, and knocked out, Farlow delivers surefire punches of his own. Along the way, another executive turns up missing, and someone murders Woody’s brother-in-law. 

Rich and Gone takes Farlow to Europe, across Georgia and north Florida, and points beyond to find the money and the man. 

Finally, on a tip from a raven-haired Latina beauty, Red takes off on another international flight to determine if Woody Cunningham, rich and gone, is dead or alive.