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Title: Payne County Weekly

Author: Joe Harwell

Narrator: W. B. Ward

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 46 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-27-14

Publisher: Joe Harwell Publishing

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Suspense

Publisher's Summary:

Doing the right thing was always a clear, easy decision for LaShelle Roland, editor of Payne County Weekly in Stillwater, Oklahoma, until she discovers the District Attorney's Drug Task Force is actually shielding major drug dealers from prosecution. The Sun, Stillwater's powerful daily newspaper, is part of the corruption cover up and is pressuring LaShelle to sell her struggling paper to keep a lid on the story.

LaShelle shares details of the corruption with Bo Stark, a financially successful classmate from their days at Perkins High School in the 1970's who visits Stillwater with his family during spring break in 1994. Bo wants to help and offers an investment so she can withstand the financial backlash of publishing the story. What's the right thing to do? Sell Payne County Weekly and take a marketing job that's made for her in Oklahoma City, or accept the investment and break the story, placing herself, the informant, Bo and others in mortal danger by going up against the local power brokers.

Members Reviews:

I enjoyed this historical Oklahoma mystery

Payne County Weekly by Joe Harwell is the story of a newspaper in a small Oklahoma community trying to uncover the drug activity in their town. Debbie and Bo Stark are the daughter and father team who return to Perkins, OK where they buried their wife and mother. Bo Stark is drawn to the Payne County Weekly when he finds a high school friend, LaShell Martine, trying to make it prosper. Debbie is drawn to Oklahoma State University for her college. Her dad, Bo, invests in the Stillwater paper that is trying to give the Payne county citizens an alternative to the big paper that is controlling the opinions of everyone. There is a drug investigation and it involves the police, officials, and many citizens considered successful in this society.

I enjoyed this historical Oklahoma mystery. It is well told. The characters are well developed, and the dialogue is realistic. It was an enjoyable read for me. I enjoy mysteries. I enjoyed this one. I give it a four out of a possible five stars.

Realistic and Riveting!

Payne County WeeklyJoe Harwell does it again. I have read it twice now. Every time I pick it up I will not put it down til I finish it. I truly enjoy such authentic writing and storytelling. Living on the coast it is a joy to pick up a book like this and remember Oklahoma. Joe paints a perfect picture of it too. Tying in the communities of Perkins, Stillwater & Tulsa seamlessly. How wonderful Oklahoma can be and how down and dirty it can get. It is a good thing that he changed the names but, I grew up in Tulsa County and figured some of them out too. What you may think begins a sappy, predictable down home story soon turns and twists into some low lifes, high drama, suspense and crime. Joe should be writing scripts for television crime series.

Great summer read

This book is a great summer read. It goes by quickly and while the start is a bit slow, it grabs you as you want to know what is going to happen to these folks. The climax comes fast and furious as the story picks up speed. I enjoyed it.

Stunning read, well done

Mr. Harwell tells an engrossing well characterized tale. The reader is drawn to immediately sympathise with the main character, Bo, and his family.