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Sam Casey Books In Order

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Publication Order of Sam Casey Mystery Books

When the Dead Speak (1999)Description / Buy at Amazon
Nothing Else Matters (2000)Description / Buy at Amazon
Restless Spirit (2002)Description / Buy at Amazon
Echoes from the Grave (2007)Description / Buy at Amazon
What Lies Within (2010)Description / Buy at Amazon
Destiny Kills (2012)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Tunnel (2013)Description / Buy at Amazon

The name Sam Casey refers to a series of mystery suspense novels written by S. D. Tooley. The books follow the exploits of a detective that can speak to the dead.

+The Story

Samantha Casey is introduced to readers in ‘When the Dead Speak’, the first book in the Sam Casey mysteries. At the time, the Sergeant is a member of the Chasen Heights Police Department.

Her specialty is homicide and Sam’s talent for it is no fluke. You see, Sam has a special gift, a talent that makes her the perfect homicide detective. Sam can talk to the dead, or something akin to that.

When the heroine touches a dead body or an item they handled, she can see the events that led up to their death. Sam Casey’s visions are not perfect. They always reveal the truth but they do not tell her what she needs to know in clear detail.

Rather, Sam must make do with a smattering of images and sounds, clues that she is then able to use to guide her investigation and solve crimes. Sam’s special gift has been imputed to the fact that she is part Native American.

Operating out of a suburb of Chicago, Illinois, Sam Casey is rarely keen on the idea of revealing her gift to other people, though questions about the way she reaches certain conclusions are sometimes raised.

Sam is joined on her journey by Jake, a homicide detective. Sam and Jake meet when she is transferred to Precinct 6. It doesn’t take Sam long to develop an attraction for Jake. But she initially fights it.

Over time, the pair begins to wear down one another’s wall, thus giving way to the romance aspect of the Sam Casey mystery series. Sam and Jake do not always get along. Jake is rational in his approach to crime solving.

He looks for clues and uses what he sees to follow the trail to the bad guys. Sam cannot operate on that same wavelength because her visions give her access to information she cannot explain.

The fact that her conclusions are often proven to be accurate doesn’t make it any easier for Jake to trust her hunches. And even though the pair grows closer with each new book, they continue to be somewhat guarded with each other, not always keen on confiding their deepest darkest secrets.

But their respective personal problems rarely grow so big as to threaten their relationship. And it becomes an easier balancing act for Sam once she loses her place in the police department.

Though, that particular hiccup does not stop her from pursuing police work. Whenever she comes across an artifact that reveals a murder, Sam cannot keep herself from acting, especially when the wrong person has been imprisoned.

Some screen time is given to Abby, Sam’s mother. Like Sam, Abby has a special gift. She also gets visions, though her ability seems somewhat stronger. Abby chose Jake as a future mate for Sam and that decision was driven by her visions of the couple. And she has no qualms about taking steps to make the two lovebirds see the truth about their chemistry.

While some readers have commended this series for its use of Native American characters, others do not think S.D. Tooley delves deeply enough into that particular culture.

The author does get a lot of credit for her handling of Sam and her mother and their abilities. Tooley is specifically credited for taking a tasteful approach to those few aspects of Native American culture that she bothers to touch upon.

On the other hand, Sam gets a lot of flak for the many bad decisions she keeps making.

+The Author

S.D. Tooley worked as a media merchandiser, a car salesman, and a casino dealer. And those are just a few of the careers with which she experimented. But eventually grew restless and decided that her imagination was better spent telling stories.

Tooley has written novels under the Lee Driver pseudonym. Her real name is most commonly associated with the Sam Casey mysteries. The author describes Sam Casey as the protagonist of the television show ‘Medium’ but with a Native American twist.

Tooley was inspired to write mystery and suspense by Nancy Drew and Stephen King. She also has a great love for James Patterson.

+When the Dead Speak

A body is found in a cement pillar. It is revealed to be an African-American soldier that went AWOL during the Korean War. Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey cannot help but think that someone was trying really hard to keep a secret buried when they encased the soldier in cement.

Sam is good with murder cases. She isn’t the most intelligent police officer in her precinct. But she does have the advantage of being able to talk to the dead. Or rather, the dead speak to her. And by learning their secrets and putting the clues together, Sam can find out how the dead ended up dead.

Of course, talking to the dead isn’t without its challenges. Sometimes Sam learns things that are better off hidden. Sometimes the dead tell her secrets that others would rather keep buried. And that places her in immediate danger.

This is the first book in the Sam Casey Mystery series. The book introduces readers to a detective of Native American origins who uses the talents of her forbearers to solve murders. This time Sam is out to prove that a politician might have killed a man.

+Nothing Else Matters

Sparrow is a mercenary of considerable renown and he has set his sights on Reverend Emmett Smith. Unfortunately for the good reverend, besides the tattoo on the back of his hand, no one knows what the Sparrow looks like which means they will be hard-pressed to stop him from killing the reverend.

Unfortunately for Sparrow, someone kills the reverend before he can pull the trigger. Even more perplexing is the fact that Emmett was found with tens of thousands of dollars in counterfeit money.

The discovery leads Sparrow to scrutinize the money he was paid to kill Emmett. And he isn’t too pleased to learn that it is also counterfeit.

Sam Casey is a detective who can speak to the head. Her last case saw her get suspended from the department. However, that won’t stop her from looking into Emmett’s murder.

Book Series In Order » Characters » Sam Casey

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