I can't wait to read the next in the series.

I see a lot of J A Jance books in my future :)

Two young women, one with nothing to lose and one with everything to lose, join forces to fight police corruption in the desert town of Bisbee, Arizona. Written in 1993, Desert Heat is so well written that the story is still riveting in 2018; not stale. There is great character development, perfect for the first book of a very popular series. The reader cares enough about the "white hat" people to be curious about their futures. J.A. Jance is also known for the J.P. Beaumont series.

Not as good as I remember it being from when I first read it back in the 90s. Maybe it's because I'm having a hard time connecting with the narrator of the audiobook.

In this first of a series, a young woman is thrust into danger after the suspicious death of her husband. The story is fast-paced and well plotted, but the star is heroine Joanna Brady, a smart, feisty woman dealing with the aftermath of a terrible crime.

I enjoyed it. I have been reading Jance's J. P. Beaumont series and had heard friends say how much they enjoyed this series so I thought I would try it. Just noticed that, at least currently, it is available on Kindle for $4.99.

I find Jance very readable.

Here, Joanna's husband Andy has just been killed and she is one of the suspects. There is some question of corruption in the sheriff's department. Andy was a lawman running for Sheriff of Cochise County. And he was recently seen at the bank with a good looking woman. Is he having an affair? The DEA thinks that he was involved in drugs and that Joanna is a prime suspect for having killed him. She thinks they are just going to stop looking and stick with her. So she has to find out just what is going on. But who can she trust? His co-workers? They may be corrupt.

Since this is the first in the series about Joanna, we can assume that she is not the killer. But that's about the only assumption we can make.

Oooh, that looks bad - taking 5 1/2 years to read this book. Actually I only to read it in spurts when I started reading it when I was on my exercycle.

"The only way an enemy can betray you is by becoming your friend".

Two-haiku review:

Cop husband is shot
Cops accusing him of crime
She's sure innocent

Great start to series
Older book but still quite good
Great main character

Very engaging first novel in the Joanna Brady series by Jance. I read another in this series several years ago and remember enjoying it. Not sure why it took me so long to continue with this series. In this one, Joanna's husband, Andy, is shot and later killed while he is in the hospital. The local cops and the DEA think that Andy committed suicide and was involved with the drug cartel in Bisbee, Arizona. It is up to Joanna to prove them wrong. With the help of the hit man's girlfriend, she is able to determine what really happened. At the end of the novel, she is convinced by others in the town to run for sheriff. This was a very good lead-in novel to the series and I look forward to reading more.

Excellent mystery, crime solve. First in series with Sheriff Joanna Brady as main character. Read in order so to don’t miss the details. Set in Bizbee, Az.
Same author writes an excellent series set in Seattle with detective JP Beaumont as main character.

Re-reading this book and it was good on a second run through. It was a fast moving tale that I enjoyed in one day. When Andy is late coming home, she goes looking for him and finds him gravely wounded. While she thinks he was attacked, others are saying it was a botched suicide. The story unfolds as Joanna struggles to get at the truth with the local police and even DEA agents in the mix. Lots of challenges present themselves and Joanna has to think fast on her feet.

If you want a quick fun read, this one will fit the bill.

I like the Joanna Brady character better than J.P. Beaumont (another one of J.A. Jance's series), perhaps it is the western setting or that the author writes a better female lead than a male.

DESERT HEAT - G
Jance, J.A. - 1st in Joanna Brady series

Life is good for Joanna Brady in the small desert community of Bisbee. She has Jenny, her adored nine-year-old daughter, and solid, honest, and loving husband, Andy, a local lawman who's running for Sheriff of Cochise County. But her good life explodes when a bullet destroys Andy Brady's future and leaves him dying beneath the blistering Arizona sun.

The police brass claim that Andy was dirty--up to his neck in drugs and smuggling--and that the shooting was a suicide attempt. Joanna knows a cover-up when she hears one...and murder when she sees it. But her determined effort to track down an assassin and clear her husband's name are placing herself and her Jenny in serious jeopardy. Because, in the desert, the truth can be far more lethal than a rattler's bite.

I didn't care for Joanna as much as Beaumont, but I'll read more of these.

I liked this book.

It developed chronologically which was a treat after so many that jump from character to character, era to era to tell the story.

When the reason for the title was revealed, I had to smile as by then I had learned to know the characters and the name “fit”.

I wanted Joanna to control her temper and her mother to be more reasonable, but I enjoyed the novel and it’s resolution.