Wow! So much can happen, be revealed over the course of 24 hours. ( )

The story in FAST FALLS THE NIGHT takes place during 24 hours. It all starts with a young woman overdosing on the floor of a gas station bathroom in Acker's Gap. For the police in the town it is one tragic event, but then they got called to another overdose and then another. Prosecutor Bell Elkins realize that there is a tainted batch of heroin and that someone is behind it. As the hours pass by more and more overdoses occur and Bell and her colleagues, together with the local police, hunt the person who is behind it all. But, there are those that think that the addicts have had it coming and that the resources should be spent on those that deserve the help.

READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION! ( )

I selected this book without knowing it was part of a series. I did not feel that I missed anything by not reading the books before it. That is not to say that I am not interested now. I am, very much so. It is just to clarify that it is a part of a series and that it can be read as a stand-alone.

This book caught my eye because my heritage is Appalachian. Southeast Kentucky, not West Virginia but, trust me, the same. The drug epidemic in Appalachia is strong and heartbreaking. It knows no age, sex, religion or economic status. There is no discrimination in it. My heart broke so many times reading this book. I thought about family and friends. I thought about how much I truly want to go home and the fear that keeps me here. I know, one day, I will go home. I have made my wishes for my ashes to be scattered in the holler where I learned what love and family meant.

The characters in this book are familiar to me. They were well written and very realistic. Their lives were true to real lives there. There are good people who try to clean it up just as there are good people lost in the drug epidemic. The story could have been a real day there.
The series this book is apart of is called the Bell Elkins novels. I didn’t find this out until the end. I’m happy it is a part of a series. Bell is an interesting character and, in this book, a truly interesting background. I want to connect the dots so I will be reading those prior books. I am also looking forward to how this story ends as it does end on a cliffhanger of sorts. I say of sorts because you could just accept the way it ends and let it play out in your mind. Or you could be like me and want more. There are plenty to choose from; I just need to decide start at the beginning or read the next book first, then go back. ( )

Bell Elkins continues to try to make Acker's Gap, WV, a better place for the people there. This book overs one 24-hour period and a rash of overdoses. As you approach the end of this book, you will want to have the 7th book, Bone on Bone, handy. Trust me! ( )

Based upon actual events, the story unfolds in one day from multiple perspectives as Aker's Gap suffers multiple overdoses while several of the main characters also cope with their own life complications. The pacing and perspectives make this one of the best books in this series though it does leave some areas hanging for what looks like another year until the next book comes out.