A critic once pooh-poohed grocery store books, saying that he didn't want to purchase his reading the same place as he bought his laundry detergent, or words to that effect. Working mothers who pulled DAMAGE CONTROL from the shelf, however, knew exactly what they were getting—another chapter in the life of working mother Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady. The Arizona sheriff wrestles with several violent deaths which occur in one storm-ravaged weekend, while juggling the needs of her infant son, teenage daughter, and her supportive but wearying at-home spouse, Butch, whose writing career needs more time. I don't know why Jance always feels compelled to make at least one of the deaths in her books excessively violent, as she does here with that of a young woman. Her writing is strong enough to hold readers without this fillip of gruesomeness.
Male critics may scoff at scenes of hostage negotiations interspersed with those of laundry, new-parent sleep deprivation,and the joys of takeout pizza, but this is exactly where Jance connects with her readers. Brady seems at her most realistic here when she soft-pedals her day to her husband, not wanting the grimness to spill into her home sphere. As someone whose work has been at times grim and demanding, I'll take Joanna Brady as a role model anytime.
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