After her Uncle Dexter passed away, Tai Randolph took over his gun shop that especially caters to Civil War re-enactors. She was in the middle of cleaning and upgrading the shop when a tornado blew through the area threatening her livelihood, and her life. The storm especially caused major damage at a local cemetery. Unfortunately, the skeletal remains of a popular confederate hero were scattered for miles.

Tai and her boyfriend, Trey Seaver, a corporate security agent and former FBI agent, got involved with the rescue of the skeletal bones. At first Tai thought she found an important discovery from the past, but soon realized some of the bones appeared to be much more recent then two hundred years ago.

When Tai, and others, attempted to retrieve the far-flung bones, she found herself at the wrong end of a shotgun held by an elderly woman by the name of Rose Amberdecker, whose land they were on and whose descendant’s grave they were desecrating by trying to remove the remains.

A war of wills, and territory, were growing between local law enforcement, local property owners, and the land owners’ daughter, Evie Amberdecker, who wanted the artifacts placed on display under the direction of the Department of Natural Resources.

Tension increased as the conflict over who had control of the crime scene, the local police, a daughter who wanted everything dug up and put on display (Evie), or a mom (Rose) who wanted everything left as it was the past two hundred years.

Tai works hard to clear her uncle’s name as well as save the business he left her. Not only is she uncovering deadly secrets, but she is also discovering a live murderer is on the loose. The killer has tried to bury clues of the murder of the resent death by burying them in the old grave.

Deeper Than the Grave, A Tai Randolph Mystery, is the fourth in the series written by Tina Whittle. The author has created an interesting and intense heroine who struggles to succeed in spite of her challenges. Tai and Trey obviously care for one another, but they have an intense relationship that keeps their emotions on high alert, and readers wondering what will happen next between the two.

The novel is an energetic and fast-paced story of a woman who many of us can relate to, especially when she must deal with a feisty newcomer to downtown whose office is too close for comfort and who seems to live to give Tai a hard time.

Readers who enjoy a strong, feisty heroine, who has more flaws than she cares for, will enjoy reading how Tai ultimately handles her challenges in the face of possible death.

If you are interested in purchasing any of the books in this series, they are available at Amazon.com.

A special thank you goes to Poisoned Press for providing us with a complimentary copy of Deeper Than the Grave for our review.