BRAKING POINTS

Braking Points

by Tammy Kaehler

ISBN 978-1-4642-0099-1

A 2013 release from Poisoned Pen Press.

 For any reader of crime fiction  also interested in automobile racing here is a dandy novel.  It is the second Kate Reilly racing story. Fans can learn a whole lot of inside stuff about car racing--the book even contains simple diagrams of some of the hilly tracks where the action occurs. The author is careful to restrict her explanations of racing techniques and technology tightly to the plot. And while the intensity of the narrative is never lost, the author is careful to move the story in time to the roaring cars speeding around the non-oval tracks. 

Kate Reilly is one of a few female drivers in the sport and she enjoys an equal position within the team for whom she drives, if not the entire population of competitive auto racing.  In  an accident judged by many to be her fault, she wrecks her car racing in Wisconsin and seriously injures one of the male stars of the sport. Even before track officials complete their study and evaluation of the accident, Reilly is the target of Internet and other media attacks. So the story follows her attempts to regain a positive reputation as an award-winning driver who can withstand intense negativism from fans, a secret attempt to permanently drive her from the sport and even cause her serious injury or death.

The descriptive scenes with Kate driving in races are among some of the the best high-risk, high energy racing scenes I have ever read. The author is really good at these descriptions.  The story line as Kate works to repair her reputation and discover who the saboteur is and his or her motivation is also very well done and seriously compelling. For readers  not particularly keen on auto racing, the human elements are just as engaging. Well conceive, well formed and very well written. I recommend this story.