Kate’s Informant by Sarah Holman (Review)

I don’t read many mystery novels, but I’m addicted to this series, so here’s a review for the latest one! There were some unexpected feels but otherwise I loved most of it!

Title: Kate’s Informant

Author: Sarah Holman

Series: Kate’s Case Files, #6 (Read my reviews for book 1, book 2, and book 3)

Thriller / Contemporary / Mystery / Christian Fiction • NA • 2022 • 160 pages (Kindle)

Read June 4, 2022 • 4 stars • Favorite characters: Patrick and Thomas • Source: Amazon

Goodreads • Amazon • Author Website

The first three-quarters of this book I absolutely ADORED! I think it was the funnest Kate’s Case Files book yet. The bantering dialogue was delightful and spot-on, which is always my FAVORITE about these books, along with the fun team of characters! I love all of them, and the character interactions are the best—and like I said, I think all of that was the best so far in this one!

So yes, I really, really enjoyed most of the book! It made me SO happy to be back in this series, which I like to think of as a crime show, just clean and in book series format; what’s not to love? The mysteries and characters and dialogue are the best and keep me flipping the pages in each book, especially this one!

I highlighted so many hilarious moments in my Kindle copy. XD SO. MANY! This cast is just gold! XD I stayed up late to finish reading it, and I had only meant to read the first few chapters that night, but I couldn’t stop and next thing I knew, the book was over!

I…will say that I was super upset about something that happened near the end. I literally spent the last quarter of the book in denial and it was only in the last few pages I realized it was real and I could hardly read I was crying so hard. It hit especially hard due to some stuff in my life this last year and the aftermath of the book was that I was so sad I couldn’t sleep and just listened to music in the dark for hours instead. So yeah, not gonna lie, it was devastating. I was shocked.

So, personally, I knocked a star off for that—even though the rest of the book was probably my favorite so far (so many good character moments!)—but that’s not to say others won’t enjoy the book! Because, yeah, it may just be a me-thing. I personally read for enjoyment, not for feels, and the first three-quarters of the book was definitely enjoyable! ^_^ But the last quarter just hit me so hard (and I haven’t been able to read new books since, except for work, so I’ve been re-reading comfort reads so I know what’s going to happen, haha). It made me feel deeply, because it got me SO invested in these characters. Which is clearly a testament to the author’s skills.

I definitely had to wait a few months to recover from these feelings (which I have mostly done) before I could write a fair review. XD Because…yes, in fairness, I LOVED the rest of the book, and I actually super suspect good things will come out of this tragic happenstance, so I’m definitely looking forward to future books in the series! I think they’re going to be amazing and I can’t wait to come back to hang out with (most of… *sobs*) these characters again. ^_^

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10 Thoughts on Kate’s Dilemma by Sarah Holman (Kate’s Case Files, #3)

The third book in Sarah Holman’s “Kate’s Case Files” series is releasing June 1st!

It’s currently on sale as a pre-order (the price will go up after publication), so you can check that out. 🙂 (And scroll down to the bottom of the post for info on the first book being free on Kindle through May 20th!)

Meanwhile, I’m here to review the book. 😀

Title: Kate’s Dilemma

Author: Sarah Holman

• Date read: May 6, 2018
• Rating: 5 stars
• Genre: Mystery / Christian / FBI
• Age: New Adult?
• Year pub: 2018
• Series: Kate’s Case Files, #3
• Fave character: Patrick and Thomas
• Source: The author
• Notes: I read an ARC of this book from the author (thank you!) and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
• Links: Goodreads • Amazon • Author’s Website

10 Thoughts on Kate’s Dilemma by Sarah Holman

1. I don’t read a lot of modern fiction, and definitely not usually FBI mysteries. But Sarah Holman’s Kate’s Case Files is a special series that has twined itself around my heart. These books are like my candy, or a fun TV show—I’m addicted and I love them. XD So I was really excited for this third installment, and it did not disappoint!

2. In Kate’s Dilemma, Kate is having trouble trying to fit in with the group, having second thoughts. We also get some fascinating hints/details/backstory about the various characters, which was very intriguing.

3. The team is headed to Charleston, North Carolina in this one. I haven’t been there, but the level of detail woven into the story makes me feel like I have now! It feels so well-researched and authentic and I was brought right into the setting. 🙂 So that was brilliant and I loved it.

4. It’s a fairly short novel and was a very quick read for me. I only meant to read the first chapter at first… and the next thing I knew, I’d been sucked into the story and only emerged when I was through. 🙂

5. I enjoyed following the trails of mystery with the team—the compelling leads, character growth and interaction, and touch of danger and excitement by the end, which I’ve come to expect from the Kate books.

6. Kate and Brian worked together for most of the story. I enjoyed getting to find out more about him—the fun, easygoing member. 😀 He and Kate make a good team. I felt like I knew the least about him, so getting to know Brian better was fantastic! (And I love when he throws paper airplanes at his boss. :P)

7. Kate and Patrick weren’t working together very much in this one (though I liked the scenes where they were), which is giving them an opportunity to figure stuff out on their own. But I did love Patrick’s parts as he infiltrates a college campus. Patrick’s always great!

8. I still like their somewhat gruff boss, Thomas, and his snarky lines—I’m looking forward to more of him in the future. I bet his part of the story would have been exciting, but probably scary too, so it’s just as well it was mostly off-screen, I suppose. XD

9. Each character has a part to play and I feel like I get to know them all a little more with each tale—Kate, Patrick, Brian, Kim, Logan, and Thomas. I’m very fond of this FBI team! ^_^

10. I can’t wait to continue the series! I’ve enjoyed all three books very much. 🙂 I recommend this series if you like clean modern stories about crime-solving, loveable characters, and a faith element. You can start with book one (Kate’s Innocence), but I imagine starting with this third book would work, too. Another lovely book! *thumbs-up*

Favorite Quotes

(What can I say; this book is very quotable. XD)

“Hasn’t anyone told you? The FBI always gets their man…person…criminal… whatever.”

***

“Patrick, you’re now enrolled at the University of Charleston. You’re also twenty again according to your file. I envy you.”

***

“You see how damaged you are, but that is never how Christ views you, Kathrine. He sees you as you can be and what you will be.”

***

Thomas grunted. “Yeah, I picked them all because the files said they would be the best for this team. I didn’t realize that I was getting a whole batch of religious people. What are the odds? Actually, I’ll tell you: one in a billion.”

***

“Besides, I’ll win a lot of sympathetic souls to my side while sporting this bruise. Half the girls on campus will fawn over me, and the guys will see it as a mark of courage.”

Kim rolled her eyes. “For the record, I think it is a mark of your recklessness and failure to listen to advice.”

Patrick smiled. “Duly noted.”

***

“And please try to avoid getting hit again. Purple is not a good color for you.”

***

“One, I don’t like eggs. Two, I only like sausage in moderation. Three, this means that I hate breakfast.”

“There are other breakfast foods, oatmeal being my favorite, fruit, nuts…”

“Whoa, you are making it sound way too healthy.”

***

“I know that it seems easier to hide from the pain—to put on a mask so that all people see is what you want them to see, but then you’re never truly known. You can neither be hated or loved, helped or hurt because no one can touch you. It’s a very lonely place.”

***

“Are you always this grumpy after being knocked out?”

~ ~ ~

Do you like mysteries? Have you checked out this series yet? Now is a great time, since the first book, Kate’s Innocence, is free on Kindle through May 20th! 🙂

Read my reviews for the first two books in the series:

Thanks for reading! 🙂

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer / Deborah O’Carroll

Kate’s Capitol (Kate’s Case Files #2) by Sarah Holman

Title: Kate’s Capitol
Author: Sarah Holman

• Date read: July 4, 2017
• Rating: 5 stars
• Genre: Christian / Contemporary / Mystery / FBI
• Age: YA? (The characters are technically adults, but I feel like teen readers would love it too, and it’s entirely clean. :))
• Year pub: 2016
• Pages: 175 (Kindle)
• Series: Kate’s Case Files, #2 (I also reviewed book 1, Kate’s Innocence, awhile back.)
• Fave character: Patrick
• Source: Amazon
• Notes: Read for 10/10/10 challenge
• Links: Goodreads • Amazon • Author’s Blog

Another thoroughly enjoyable mystery story from Sarah Holman!

In a way, Kate’s Capitol was quite different than the first one. Kate’s Innocence (book 1) had a lot of action and peril; this one has more of a political/office/spy sort of feel, so there was still tension, just of a slightly less life-threatening sort for most of the book. It was interesting watching the FBI team tracking trails of paperwork etc. This one is somewhat tense but not as high-stakes as the first book, so they feel rather different, although it got exciting and perilous at the end there for a bit—eep!

Overall it was a good modern mystery/thriller. Even the office parts, of which there were many, kept me absorbed, even if you’d think they wouldn’t be as interesting. But it seemed very authentic and well-researched; I felt like I was in the Austin capitol building and other settings. The attention to detail was fabulous! (I know the author worked there for awhile, and it shows; I was totally pulled into the place!)

This novel was a quick read, which I absorbed in an afternoon, and was fast-paced and enjoyable. I felt like I was watching a TV show, actually. 😀 As if each book is like an episode (or maybe a pair of episodes), self-contained with full storylines, but with a few ongoing threads continuing from book to book—what’s in Kate’s past that she doesn’t like to think about? Are Kate and Patrick ever going to realize they’re perfect for each other? Is Thomas going to have a character arc? Etc. I really liked this feeling. 😀

I love this cast of characters, this close-knit team of FBI agents who are friends, and have enjoyed getting to know them. 🙂 Brian, Logan, and Kim seem more side-character-ish, with not as much focus on them, though they are still lovable, while it’s mostly about Kate and Patrick (I really like him!) and maybe a bit about Thomas sometimes—perhaps because he’s the superior who’s kind of in the shadows and not around as much; I’m curious to learn more about him. They all have a very well-drawn individual “feel” to their characters, like people I know, and I’m extremely fond of them. ^_^

I thought I was going to be sad that Kate and Patrick were working separately for a lot of the story, but I actually ended up loving it! It was super fun to go back and forth in their POVs and see them working separate angles of the case, and talking through email or phone calls—it was unique and fun and upped the tension sometimes. 🙂 I love their story and so enjoy reading about them.

At first I was disappointed in some of the ending, until I recognized the point of it ending that way, realizing it illustrated a moral point, so I decided I was okay with it. It had some good Christian themes and thoughts as well. 🙂

For readers who enjoy clean Christian fiction with an FBI twist and a light dash of possible-romance—or even just an enjoyable mystery-type read, well-written and with a fun cast of characters—I highly recommend these books!

I’ve so enjoyed these first two books in the Kate’s Case Files series, and I look forward to more adventures with this team! 🙂

Favorite Quotes

It was much easier to snoop when you weren’t trying to look like you weren’t snooping.

***

“Like there is more to life then solving crimes and catching the bad guy.”

Patrick lifted his head. “Such as?”

“Tsk, tsk, you are a sad man, Patrick Connor.”

***

“One day, we are sitting in the office, getting ready for the work day.”

“I think you were making paper airplanes out of your reports,” Brian interjected.

***

Thomas tried to push in after her, but Patrick held him back. “You flashed your badge at that poor nurse, didn’t you?”

Thomas grinned. “It saves a lot of time and paperwork.”

Patrick shook his head. “I think that you could charm your way into the White House without an ID.”

“Why do you think they made me boss?” Thomas said, entering the room.

~ ~ ~

Do you enjoy mysteries? Have you read any agent-y FBI-ish stories? Do you have a favorite agent-y book (or film/show) that you could recommend to me?? 😀

Thanks for reading! 🙂

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer