Descent Into Madness

By Ron Lovell

Before he does anything else, amateur sleuth and college professor Thomas Martindale must get out of jail and clear his name. In the process, he has to find the real killer of a close friend and stop... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0976797852
• ISBN13: 9780976797852
• Release Date: May 2007
• Publisher: Penman Productions
• Length: 210 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

A quick and highly entertaining read from an accomplished author

Ron Lovell is presently a member of the Journalism department at Oregon State University. In his lifetime he has been a magazine writer in Los Angeles, Houston, Denver, and New York. He has authored fourteen textbooks, hundreds of magazine articles, and a body of mystery books including MURDER AT YAQUINA HEAD; DEAD WHALES TELL NO TALES; LIGHTS, CAMERA, Murder!; MURDER BELOW ZERO; and SEARCHING FOR MURDER. DESCENT INTO MADNESS begins with Professor Thomas Martindale sitting in a jail cell. It turns out that a body has been found with his bloodied university identification card within reach. Martindale's ex-girlfriend, in a fit of jealousy, jumps to a few far-fetched conclusions and arrests Martindale without any hard evidence. Martindale enlists the help of an excellent lawyer, who quickly points out that the I.D. of the body is in doubt. He and Martindale set out in search of the real killer AND Martindale's girl, who they believe is alive but in captivity. Their search begins with an abandoned mental hospital on the Coast of Oregon and in the suspect's lab, and sure enough, they find something: "In all the other depressing remnants of the time the small band of migrants had rested here, I almost missed a crumpled up paper. I put it on the table and smoothed it out. It was a photo of the beach below my house in Newport with the Yaquina Head Lighthouse in the background. Maxine March had taken it a year ago, soon after I first met her; I suppose she could have taken the shot before we met that day." Ron Lovell turns out his usual high-quality mystery, with lots of action. Professor Martindale is an unlikely but determined hero who forgets to prepare himself before setting out into dangerous territory. But his sleuthing abilities rise to the surface with a logical mind and a good heart. The reader follows Martindale's explorations with baited breath, and finally relaxes as he stumbles on to the answer. The Coast of Oregon is a wonderful setting for a murder mystery, with its rough terrain and beautiful but dangerous tides. There is nothing like an abandoned institution to stir up uneasiness, and Lovell uses this setting, plus a host of vindictive law enforcement who refuse to see the real culprit, to best advantage. DESCENT INTO MADNESS is a quick and highly entertaining read from an accomplished author. Shelley Glodowski Senior Reviewer