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Relative Malice (Detective Kendall Halsrud Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Marla Madison (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 2,791 ratings
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RELATIVE MALICE
First book in the Detective Kendall Halsrud series

When a home invasion takes place in an upscale neighborhood, Detective Kendall Halsrud takes over the case. In the murder house, she discovers an empty crib with blood drops next to it on the wood floor. The rest of the family has been fatally shot . . . but where is baby Philly?

Kendall’s desperate search to find the child derails when a man is arrested for murdering the family and claims that he killed the baby. Suspecting he had an accomplice, she isn’t convinced. Unable to give up on the baby, Kendall puts her career and her own life at risk, unearthing deadly family secrets in pursuit of the truth.

The suspense builds as Kendall tries to stop a killer before he strikes again. Get your copy of this page-turner today!


Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 5
    Detective Kendall Halsrud Series
  2. Print length
    388 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    January 9, 2013
  6. File size
    1222 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marla Madison is a retired mediator and when she's not writing, works as an arbitrator in the Midwest. Living in Wisconsin on Prairie Lake, Marla is the author of the suspense novels, She's Not There, Trespass, Relative Malice, and Iced Malice. Keep up with her weekly blogs for writers and readers at http: //marlamadison.blogspot.com Contact her at: mam887@gmail.com

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00AZOS6Z2
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Marla Madison; 1st edition (January 9, 2013)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 9, 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1222 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 388 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 2,791 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Marla Madison

Marla Madison

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Marla Madison is the author of two suspense series. She's Not There is her debut suspense novel and is the first book of the TJ Peacock and Lisa Rayburn series.TRESPASS is the second, Girl Undone the third, and the fourth of that series is THE WAY SHE LIED. THE WAY SHE LIED was a Silver Fanchion Award finalist at Killer Nashville, 2018

Relative Malice, her second book begins the Detective Kendall Halsrud series. Iced Malice is the second book of that series, Promise of Malice the third, and the fourth is Season of Malice.

Marla is a retired Federal Mediator and she lives on Prairie Lake in Northwestern Wisconsin with her significant other, Terry, a beloved shelter dog, Skygge, and Poncho, an opinionated feline from the same shelter.

Also an avid reader of suspense, some of Marla's favorite authors are Tana French, Lisa Gardner, Jeffrey Deaver, Jonathan Kellerman, James Patterson, Tess Gerritson, and Tami Hoag.

When not reading or writing, Marla enjoys hanging out with other area authors, playing duplicate bridge, golfing, and going on long walks with her dog.

Contact her at:

mam887@gmail.com

http://marlamadison.blogspot.com

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
2,791 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Tough & amazing read
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2024
Verified Purchase
Device Kendall Halsrud is called in on a horrible case family husband wife two kids dead and the baby is gone. The how is painfully obvious but who and why and where the baby is makes the entire story. Several triggers here all of them ugly but the story is so moving and so well done that it's worth risking them.
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T London
4.0 out of 5 stars Author has a new reader
Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2015
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Once in a while I love to just curl up and read a good mystery book. I came across Relative Malice and decided it fit my needs at this time and I wasn’t wrong. I look for mysteries that keep me guessing, isn't really predictable and has strong character development, enough so that I can get a sense of the person as the story unfolds. Marla Madison seems to be a pro at giving me what I look for.

Kendall Halsrud is a very strong female detective in a male dominated department. Her partner who was assigned to her to help train her over the years was suddenly no longer at her side so it was time to step up and take the lead on a case of a family being murdered and a baby gone missing.

Kendall has a lot of darkness in her life, she is currently living out of her car when her roommate kicked her out, her father hasn’t always been daddy and is now being rather intrusive in her life and the new partner that she was assigned has a few issues that drive her crazy, but what is bothering her most is where is this baby and who does she belong to?

Finally some answers begin to fall in place for her from a very unlikely person, which I might say added an element of uniqueness to the story. Brinn becomes a major character in the story and I loved her. As evidence begins to unfold, the author takes us on a suspenseful ride till the end. Don’t think once you find out the truth of what happen that night in the home, everything is solved. Marla Madison will still have a few loose ends to tie up that will leave you wondering how you missed it.

This is the first book I have read from this author but I do believe I have found my go to author for a great mystery books this winter. I am anxious to see what else she has in her collection because her writing style fits me and her characters are strong, intelligent and realistic. Even the strong have cracks and sometimes what is going on in your life has to be put aside because the job must be done.
8 people found this helpful
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Constant
5.0 out of 5 stars A Future for Women?
Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2023
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While the underlying plot of this story is women who give up their babies for adoption because it is really best for the baby - sometimes even that has unforseen consequences. One has to wonder if this is the future for women in the United States. In this 1st in a series we meet Kendall and get a small peek into her past and future. In the present she is assigned to work the horrific murder of a family which includes a missing baby. Lots of family secrets and lies to innocents are revealed. Ms Madison does a masterful job of reeling out the aspects of the story and developing the characters and their relationships giving birth to a series worth following. A very good read.
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Bookzilla
3.0 out of 5 stars Unanswered questions
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2017
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Unanswered questions. Stand-alone that is difficult to follow. There are several subplots running throughout the story. They may tie in as a series.

Law enforcement procedures are not realistic.

Believable characters with distinct personalities. The dialogue is okay.

No desire to re-read this story. I may be interested in other works by this author.
5 people found this helpful
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Laura hooper
5.0 out of 5 stars Subtle.
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2023
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Has a great turn that I didn't expect at all. Great book. Love the characters, the plot, and the story. You think it's one person thru it all then get blindsided by the actual perp. Totally didn't expect it whatsoever.
2 people found this helpful
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Cindy Kludt
4.0 out of 5 stars Liked the main characters
Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2023
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I did enjoy reading this book even though I got confused at times with who was who and the villain was not really developed much. However, I did like the main character, Kendall Halsrud and her budding romance with the man who she felt was responsible for her gunshot wound prior to them working together. But, I was especially drawn to Kendall's young hacker neighbor, Brynn. For a start of a new series, Marla Madison has left me willing to read more to find out more about these characters and what is in store for them next. I'm hopeful this will be another great series for me to sink my teeth into.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars "Everyone Has Secrets"
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2013
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Right from the start of reading this novel by Author Marla Madison, the murder mystery grabbed me. After Detective Kendall Halsrud's partner has a heart attack, she becomes the lead detective working on a home invasion crime where the husband, wife, son, and teen-aged daughter are killed. However, the 10-month old daughter cannot be found. Kendall's new partner is Ross Alverson, known to be a womanizer. But Kendall is a strong-willed woman who can hold her own when it comes to men. Gray Glausson, brother of the deceased father, wants to find his missing niece. There are complex crimes that seem to be linked together and eventually Kendall works with Gray's corporation security chief privately to help locate the toddler. There are numerous characters in this novel, each one having secrets that are eventually revealed by the author. Secrets of the law enforcers as well as the suspects. The author weaves these well-defined characters remarkably well through the story and I had no trouble following each scenario. This mystery novel is intense and moves rapidly along. It's an exemplary thriller, dynamically written. I highly recommend this compelling novel.
43 people found this helpful
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Biggle Bop
4.0 out of 5 stars Relative Malice - Very Good and Entertaining Book
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2015
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I gave this book a 4-star rating instead of 5 because there were just too many characters to remember. Another issue was that there were several typos and proofing errors. Other than those 2 peeves, I found the book totally enjoyable. The book is well written, has interesting characters, and held my attention from beginning to end.

The book is basically about a woman detective trying to solve a multiple homicide. The story had depth, likeable characters and most of them played a key role in solving the murders. There was plenty of action, lots of who dunnit schemes, and there was even room for romance among the characters. If you love action, mystery, adventure, and entertaining novels, you will definitely enjoy this book. Good job Ms. Madison!
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Booto_123
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 29, 2017
Verified Purchase
I had this as a free book and liked it so much that I have bought the two sequels. There are typos but no more than in any kindle book (which is quite a lot; kindle books presumably aren't edited). I enjoyed the developing characters of Kendall and Brynn especially, and the twists and turns of the story kept me guessing. Each story is complete but the characters' lives grow and change as time passes.
One person found this helpful
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Donnab
5.0 out of 5 stars A Riveting Story
Reviewed in Canada on September 28, 2016
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I loved this book. I couldn't put it down. The author skilfully incorporated the characters into the story without giving a hint of the end result. It left me guessing to the end. I look forward to further books in the series.
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Diane
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in Australia on October 30, 2016
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I really enjoyed this book. Good story with a few twists and turns. Will certainly be reading any other books by this author. I highly recommend this book.
One person found this helpful
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cozyfan
4.0 out of 5 stars gritty not cosy well crafted but too many coincidences
Reviewed in Canada on February 20, 2020
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A good read with well developed characters. far too many coincidences to fit the storyline but that would not stop me recommending the book to others.
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gordon
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting plot in a very long book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 22, 2016
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Orher reviewers have mentioned grammatical errors, os which this book abounds. Leaving that aside, I enjoyed the story immensely. Rather a lot of superflous descriptions, but a well planned plot with lots of gwists and turns. Back to,errors, the author really should get a group of proof readers together to read her books before publication. I would certainly love t be included.
One person found this helpful
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