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Charlie Mack Motown Mystery #6
Warn Me When It's Time
A hate group operating in Oakland County, Michigan, has claimed responsibility for a six-month-long string of arson fires and robberies at mosques, temples, and Black churches around Detroit, eluding police and federal agencies. The most recent fire, at a mosque in Dearborn, kills a respected imam. His children--suspicious of law enforcement's treatment of Muslims and afraid of reprisal--hire Charlie Mack and her team of investigators to find their father's murderers.
The Mack team begins to hunt down the clues in this local hate crime, but they aren't prepared when they realize that those clues are pointing to a widespread conspiracy that runs through elected state officials and up to the highest levels of national leadership. FBI agent James Saleh returns to help the Mack Agency infiltrate and take down a homegrown militia hell-bent on starting a race war in America.
Runtime: 8. 66 hours, 7 library CDs
The Mack team begins to hunt down the clues in this local hate crime, but they aren't prepared when they realize that those clues are pointing to a widespread conspiracy that runs through elected state officials and up to the highest levels of national leadership. FBI agent James Saleh returns to help the Mack Agency infiltrate and take down a homegrown militia hell-bent on starting a race war in America.
Runtime: 8. 66 hours, 7 library CDs
9 pages, Audio CD
First published January 1, 2021
11 people are currently reading
229 people want to read
About the author
Cheryl A. Head
13Ìýbooks262ÌýfollowersShe/Her. Introvert, solver of puzzles, righter of fictional wrongs. I write the Anthony Award nominated Charlie Mack Motown Mystery series-two-time, Lambda Literary Award Finalist, Goldie Winner. Jeopardy Clue in February 2025,
Time's Undoing, published by Dutton Books and based on a true story, is a finalist for the L.A. Book Prize, Anthony, Agatha, and Strand Critics Award.
Time's Undoing, published by Dutton Books and based on a true story, is a finalist for the L.A. Book Prize, Anthony, Agatha, and Strand Critics Award.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
February 24, 2022
Homegrown terrorists are in the crosshairs of the Mack Detective Agency. Charlie Mack and her crew are employed by the Pashia family to find the person responsible for their father’s death. He was killed in a bombing at his mosque. Once Charlie finds the two men involved she is asked by an FBI task force to help find who ordered the bombing and help take down their group.
Warn Me When its Time is novel number six in the Charlie Mack Motown Mysteries series but it can easily be read as a stand alone. In fact, this is my first read in this established series and due to Head taking the time to fill in some of the background when needed I felt comfortably immersed in the story from the beginning.
This novel is more a procedural plot with little connected mysteries interspersed than one big whodunnit. It still gives you moments of suspense and excitement and a sense of the unexpected. The racist vitriol used for realism is a hard reminder of today’s world and a brave choice from the author.
Calling all mystery readers, you need to add this novel to your must read lists. You will not be disappointed.
I received an advance review copy from Bywater Books and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Warn Me When its Time is novel number six in the Charlie Mack Motown Mysteries series but it can easily be read as a stand alone. In fact, this is my first read in this established series and due to Head taking the time to fill in some of the background when needed I felt comfortably immersed in the story from the beginning.
This novel is more a procedural plot with little connected mysteries interspersed than one big whodunnit. It still gives you moments of suspense and excitement and a sense of the unexpected. The racist vitriol used for realism is a hard reminder of today’s world and a brave choice from the author.
Calling all mystery readers, you need to add this novel to your must read lists. You will not be disappointed.
I received an advance review copy from Bywater Books and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 10, 2021
I love a good series. It’s great when you have multiple books with characters that you already love, and storylines that you want to continue. That’s why I was glad to see Warn Me When It’s Time (Charlie Mack Motown Mystery #6) by Cheryl A. Head.
In this book we get to revisit many of the characters we have come to know and love from the earlier books including Charlie Mack and her girlfriend Mandy who are now living together in their new home with their dog Hamm. There is also Don and Judy who are partners with Charlie at Mack Investigations. And we can’t forget Charlie’s mom Ernestine Mack who has a new boyfriend named Gabriel Constantine.
This book has a very serious subject. Mack Investigations becomes involved with the FBI and the local police in trying to stop a hate group (or two) that has been causing havoc in the Detroit area with fires, robberies, and most recently an explosion at a Mosque that kills an Imam. It means danger for them all, but especially Don as FBI agent James Saleh returns to help Don and the agency infiltrate the hate group and stop them before they do even more harm.
The reader gets to see the story through the eyes of several characters including Mack, Don, and a couple of the bad guys in the hate groups. This made the story especially intriguing and often creepy when we were in the minds of those who wanted to destroy, hurt and kill. The mystery and suspense is well done. We know who some of the bad guys are, though there are a few surprises for the team before the tale ends. What kept me reading was how successful the hate groups might be. I couldn’t put the book down until I knew.
The pace of the book is a bit slow at the beginning, but keep reading. It gets very exciting the more you get into the story. Be aware that the subjects of racism, bigotry and misogyny are discussed in this book. There is also violence. I know this is obvious since the book deals with violent hate groups, but I just wanted everyone to know this up front.
If you love to read a good mystery and suspense novel, then I believe you will want to read this book. It would be possible to read this novel as a standalone simply for the intrigue. However, my recommendation would be to read, at the very least, the first book in the series as well. The best scenario would be to read all of the books in order. They are well worth your time.
I received an ARC from Bywater Books for an honest review.
In this book we get to revisit many of the characters we have come to know and love from the earlier books including Charlie Mack and her girlfriend Mandy who are now living together in their new home with their dog Hamm. There is also Don and Judy who are partners with Charlie at Mack Investigations. And we can’t forget Charlie’s mom Ernestine Mack who has a new boyfriend named Gabriel Constantine.
This book has a very serious subject. Mack Investigations becomes involved with the FBI and the local police in trying to stop a hate group (or two) that has been causing havoc in the Detroit area with fires, robberies, and most recently an explosion at a Mosque that kills an Imam. It means danger for them all, but especially Don as FBI agent James Saleh returns to help Don and the agency infiltrate the hate group and stop them before they do even more harm.
The reader gets to see the story through the eyes of several characters including Mack, Don, and a couple of the bad guys in the hate groups. This made the story especially intriguing and often creepy when we were in the minds of those who wanted to destroy, hurt and kill. The mystery and suspense is well done. We know who some of the bad guys are, though there are a few surprises for the team before the tale ends. What kept me reading was how successful the hate groups might be. I couldn’t put the book down until I knew.
The pace of the book is a bit slow at the beginning, but keep reading. It gets very exciting the more you get into the story. Be aware that the subjects of racism, bigotry and misogyny are discussed in this book. There is also violence. I know this is obvious since the book deals with violent hate groups, but I just wanted everyone to know this up front.
If you love to read a good mystery and suspense novel, then I believe you will want to read this book. It would be possible to read this novel as a standalone simply for the intrigue. However, my recommendation would be to read, at the very least, the first book in the series as well. The best scenario would be to read all of the books in order. They are well worth your time.
I received an ARC from Bywater Books for an honest review.
June 23, 2021
I love a good series. It’s great when you have multiple books with characters that you already love, and storylines that you want to continue. That’s why I was glad to see Warn Me When It’s Time (Charlie Mack Motown Mystery #6) by Cheryl A. Head.
In this book we get to revisit many of the characters we have come to know and love from the earlier books including Charlie Mack and her girlfriend Mandy who are now living together in their new home with their dog Hamm. There is also Don and Judy who are partners with Charlie at Mack Investigations. And we can’t forget Charlie’s mom Ernestine Mack who has a new boyfriend named Gabriel Constantine.
This book has a very serious subject. Mack Investigations becomes involved with the FBI and the local police in trying to stop a hate group (or two) that has been causing havoc in the Detroit area with fires, robberies, and most recently an explosion at a Mosque that kills an Imam. It means danger for them all, but especially Don as FBI agent James Saleh returns to help Don and the agency infiltrate the hate group and stop them before they do even more harm.
The reader gets to see the story through the eyes of several characters including Mack, Don, and a couple of the bad guys in the hate groups. This made the story especially intriguing and often creepy when we were in the minds of those who wanted to destroy, hurt and kill. The mystery and suspense is well done. We know who some of the bad guys are, though there are a few surprises for the team before the tale ends. What kept me reading was how successful the hate groups might be. I couldn’t put the book down until I knew.
The pace of the book is a bit slow at the beginning, but keep reading. It gets very exciting the more you get into the story. Be aware that the subjects of racism, bigotry and misogyny are discussed in this book. There is also violence. I know this is obvious since the book deals with violent hate groups, but I just wanted everyone to know this up front.
If you love to read a good mystery and suspense novel, then I believe you will want to read this book. It would be possible to read this novel as a standalone simply for the intrigue. However, my recommendation would be to read, at the very least, the first book in the series as well. The best scenario would be to read all of the books in order. They are well worth your time.
I received an ARC from Bywater Books for an honest review.
In this book we get to revisit many of the characters we have come to know and love from the earlier books including Charlie Mack and her girlfriend Mandy who are now living together in their new home with their dog Hamm. There is also Don and Judy who are partners with Charlie at Mack Investigations. And we can’t forget Charlie’s mom Ernestine Mack who has a new boyfriend named Gabriel Constantine.
This book has a very serious subject. Mack Investigations becomes involved with the FBI and the local police in trying to stop a hate group (or two) that has been causing havoc in the Detroit area with fires, robberies, and most recently an explosion at a Mosque that kills an Imam. It means danger for them all, but especially Don as FBI agent James Saleh returns to help Don and the agency infiltrate the hate group and stop them before they do even more harm.
The reader gets to see the story through the eyes of several characters including Mack, Don, and a couple of the bad guys in the hate groups. This made the story especially intriguing and often creepy when we were in the minds of those who wanted to destroy, hurt and kill. The mystery and suspense is well done. We know who some of the bad guys are, though there are a few surprises for the team before the tale ends. What kept me reading was how successful the hate groups might be. I couldn’t put the book down until I knew.
The pace of the book is a bit slow at the beginning, but keep reading. It gets very exciting the more you get into the story. Be aware that the subjects of racism, bigotry and misogyny are discussed in this book. There is also violence. I know this is obvious since the book deals with violent hate groups, but I just wanted everyone to know this up front.
If you love to read a good mystery and suspense novel, then I believe you will want to read this book. It would be possible to read this novel as a standalone simply for the intrigue. However, my recommendation would be to read, at the very least, the first book in the series as well. The best scenario would be to read all of the books in order. They are well worth your time.
I received an ARC from Bywater Books for an honest review.
June 20, 2021
Cheryl Head continues to blow my mind with each new instalment in this captivating series. Charlie Mack and her badass team of investigators are working with the FBI to solve a mosque bombing and a murder. They also want to stop hate groups from targeting religious places of worship and people of color. I’m a seasoned armchair detective but I still got caught up in my feelings when Charlie Mack and her team tried their best to keep their families safe while they dodged deadly attacks from a hate group. I love the fact that this story was told through Charlie, Don and one of the perpetrator’s points of view because I had unrestricted access to their deepest thoughts and emotions and the unique circumstances that had shaped their lives. This author definitely owes me a good night’s rest and a riveting sequel to this story!
August 23, 2021
All I can say is that this series is a favorite-chef's kiss...
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Where you can find me:
Twitter:
Instagram:
Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ Group: The Black Bookcase
June 16, 2021
This book a run-of-the-mill procedural featuring a private investigating firm made up of former federal agents. When a Mosque in Oakland County, Michigan is defaced, the family of a man killed in the bomb blast hires the Mack Agency to supplement the police in their search for the killer(s). Charlie Mack and her team does the legwork necessary to identify one of the perpetrators.
This is the 6th book in the Charlie Mack Motown mystery series and the author does little to introduce new readers to her series. None of the characters were developed in such a way as to give them personalities readers will fall in love with, perhaps the first book was where she did all that work, but she needed to at least help the new reader to her series want to read the 7th book and she failed to do that.
Head’s storyline had great potential, but it, like the characters, was never fully developed leaving the reader wondering when the story was going to take off and soar. There were problems with some of the events, i.e., when the bomb was detonated in an office in the Mosque, it was strong enough to blow the door out and kill a man, but not strong enough to destroy the interior of the office or do much damage to the office.
If you want a non-angsty summer read, this book may be what you’re looking for, but if you’re looking for a well-written, character driven book published by a LesFic publisher (with all that that usually entails), you’d best skip this book.
My thanks to NetGalley and Bywater Books for an eARC.
#ourownreviewer
This is the 6th book in the Charlie Mack Motown mystery series and the author does little to introduce new readers to her series. None of the characters were developed in such a way as to give them personalities readers will fall in love with, perhaps the first book was where she did all that work, but she needed to at least help the new reader to her series want to read the 7th book and she failed to do that.
Head’s storyline had great potential, but it, like the characters, was never fully developed leaving the reader wondering when the story was going to take off and soar. There were problems with some of the events, i.e., when the bomb was detonated in an office in the Mosque, it was strong enough to blow the door out and kill a man, but not strong enough to destroy the interior of the office or do much damage to the office.
If you want a non-angsty summer read, this book may be what you’re looking for, but if you’re looking for a well-written, character driven book published by a LesFic publisher (with all that that usually entails), you’d best skip this book.
My thanks to NetGalley and Bywater Books for an eARC.
#ourownreviewer
March 25, 2021
3 stars
A PI firm works with the FBI to infiltrate white hate groups in this Detroit based mystery. It begins slow but gets more interesting towards the end.
[What I liked:]
•It was really fun to read a book set in Detroit & the metro area! I’ve worked & lived in several of the locations featured in the story, & could easily picture myself in the location descriptions. Additionally, the issues & tensions in the book are very relevant to Detroit. SE Michigan has the largest Arab-American population in the country & a large Muslim community, & also a far-right militia/hate group problem. So this story was set in a very relevant time & place.
•The various figures involved in the conspiracies, the undercover agents, & infiltrations were interesting.
•I appreciate how many women characters there were, including Mack, Judy, Coleman, & Mandy; not to mention, a queer couple.
[What I didn’t like as much:]
•The first 40% of the book was kind of boring, mainly because of slow pacing. Things definitely picked up after that, but I was tempted to DNF at 20%.
•Several characters were important at the beginning of the book, but then sort of disappeared until the end (Ernestine & the Pashias). That felt clumsy.
CW: explosives detonations, racism (& other bigotry), physical violence
[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]
A PI firm works with the FBI to infiltrate white hate groups in this Detroit based mystery. It begins slow but gets more interesting towards the end.
[What I liked:]
•It was really fun to read a book set in Detroit & the metro area! I’ve worked & lived in several of the locations featured in the story, & could easily picture myself in the location descriptions. Additionally, the issues & tensions in the book are very relevant to Detroit. SE Michigan has the largest Arab-American population in the country & a large Muslim community, & also a far-right militia/hate group problem. So this story was set in a very relevant time & place.
•The various figures involved in the conspiracies, the undercover agents, & infiltrations were interesting.
•I appreciate how many women characters there were, including Mack, Judy, Coleman, & Mandy; not to mention, a queer couple.
[What I didn’t like as much:]
•The first 40% of the book was kind of boring, mainly because of slow pacing. Things definitely picked up after that, but I was tempted to DNF at 20%.
•Several characters were important at the beginning of the book, but then sort of disappeared until the end (Ernestine & the Pashias). That felt clumsy.
CW: explosives detonations, racism (& other bigotry), physical violence
[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]
August 23, 2021
Cheryl Head’s “Warn Me When It’s Time� tackles the rise of hate groups, the demonization of “other,� and the danger we all face from fear, ignorance, and intolerance. The book makes you think, and more importantly feel, but it’s also a good, solid PI story with a gutsy, smart, tenacious Black female character in the lead. A good read? Absolutely.
“Warn Me When It’s Time� is book six in Head’s stellar, award-winning Charlie Mack Motown Series featuring Detroit PI Charlene “Charlie� Mack. (If you haven’t read the first five books, you’ve missed out.) The series is as solid as they come, and each entry never disappoints.
Charlie is a former agent with Homeland Security who now heads up her own top-notch investigative team at the Mack Agency. Her team’s made up of ex-cops and ex-government agents, all seasoned crime-fighting veterans at the top of their game, who take on tough cases in Detroit of the early 2000s, a time when the city is going through a period of great turmoil and transition, just as the country has elected its first African-American president, just as society’s cultural pendulum begins to swing far right (again), as racial resentment and anger violently breeches the surface.
Charlie cares about it all. She’s empathetic and compassionate, driven, and in WMWIT she’s seeking justice and closure for the Pashia family whose patriarch, a man of faith, was tragically murdered in a mosque bombing. As Charlie and her team race to unmask the extremists and bring the violence to an end, they too become targets and the clock begins to tick as the stakes rise.
Who killed Mr. Pashia? Who ignited the bomb that destroyed his mosque? Can Charlie and her team find the culprits before another mosque, another church, another family suffers a cruel and sudden loss? These are the questions the Mack team must answer � before it’s too late.
Though the story is set just months after the election of the country’s first Black president, Barack Obama, it could very well be set in present day. The problems of hate, home-grown terrorism, and widening racial divisions are still relevant, and resolutions for solving them in short supply.
The writing’s impeccable—lean, clean, taut. Cheryl Head is a wonderful storyteller. Readers will feel like they are working the case alongside Charlie as she picks through clues and evidence, leads and misleads, one detail falling upon the next like breadcrumbs along a forest path.
Fans of good gumshoe fiction will love Charlie Mack. You don’t have to start at book one in the series and work yourself forward, each book presents a new case for the crew, but if you want to get the full breadth of Charlie’s backstory, and it’s a rich one, go back to the beginning and get to know her properly. Believe me, you won’t be disappointed. Meanwhile, grab “Warn Me When It’s Time.� And enjoy.
“Warn Me When It’s Time� is book six in Head’s stellar, award-winning Charlie Mack Motown Series featuring Detroit PI Charlene “Charlie� Mack. (If you haven’t read the first five books, you’ve missed out.) The series is as solid as they come, and each entry never disappoints.
Charlie is a former agent with Homeland Security who now heads up her own top-notch investigative team at the Mack Agency. Her team’s made up of ex-cops and ex-government agents, all seasoned crime-fighting veterans at the top of their game, who take on tough cases in Detroit of the early 2000s, a time when the city is going through a period of great turmoil and transition, just as the country has elected its first African-American president, just as society’s cultural pendulum begins to swing far right (again), as racial resentment and anger violently breeches the surface.
Charlie cares about it all. She’s empathetic and compassionate, driven, and in WMWIT she’s seeking justice and closure for the Pashia family whose patriarch, a man of faith, was tragically murdered in a mosque bombing. As Charlie and her team race to unmask the extremists and bring the violence to an end, they too become targets and the clock begins to tick as the stakes rise.
Who killed Mr. Pashia? Who ignited the bomb that destroyed his mosque? Can Charlie and her team find the culprits before another mosque, another church, another family suffers a cruel and sudden loss? These are the questions the Mack team must answer � before it’s too late.
Though the story is set just months after the election of the country’s first Black president, Barack Obama, it could very well be set in present day. The problems of hate, home-grown terrorism, and widening racial divisions are still relevant, and resolutions for solving them in short supply.
The writing’s impeccable—lean, clean, taut. Cheryl Head is a wonderful storyteller. Readers will feel like they are working the case alongside Charlie as she picks through clues and evidence, leads and misleads, one detail falling upon the next like breadcrumbs along a forest path.
Fans of good gumshoe fiction will love Charlie Mack. You don’t have to start at book one in the series and work yourself forward, each book presents a new case for the crew, but if you want to get the full breadth of Charlie’s backstory, and it’s a rich one, go back to the beginning and get to know her properly. Believe me, you won’t be disappointed. Meanwhile, grab “Warn Me When It’s Time.� And enjoy.
November 30, 2021
A copy of the book was provided to for free in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 3/5 stars
I ended up working through this book at a somewhat slower pace than I typically do, partly because of some significant life events. I enjoyed this book but it wasn't something I felt compelled to pick up during every spare moment.
Warn Me When It's Time deals with some heavy themes, such as racism, domestic terrorism, and white supremacy- all of which are central to the plot. I appreciated the nuance with which these matters were dealt, which I think can be particularly difficult regardless of context.
I haven't read other books in this series but I can imagine that seeing them grow over time would make for a rewarding reading experience. I could see them challenging their biases and developing a more nuanced understanding of their world during this book, so I'd like to see that continue in the future. A few of the characters mentioned past cases, but you don't need to have read the rest of the series to understand Warn Me When It's Time.
Overall, I think this book did a great job of discussing some difficult topics without oversimplifications. I felt like the pacing was slow at the beginning and had a difficult time getting really involved with the characters, but it was certainly engaging!
Rating: 3/5 stars
I ended up working through this book at a somewhat slower pace than I typically do, partly because of some significant life events. I enjoyed this book but it wasn't something I felt compelled to pick up during every spare moment.
Warn Me When It's Time deals with some heavy themes, such as racism, domestic terrorism, and white supremacy- all of which are central to the plot. I appreciated the nuance with which these matters were dealt, which I think can be particularly difficult regardless of context.
I haven't read other books in this series but I can imagine that seeing them grow over time would make for a rewarding reading experience. I could see them challenging their biases and developing a more nuanced understanding of their world during this book, so I'd like to see that continue in the future. A few of the characters mentioned past cases, but you don't need to have read the rest of the series to understand Warn Me When It's Time.
Overall, I think this book did a great job of discussing some difficult topics without oversimplifications. I felt like the pacing was slow at the beginning and had a difficult time getting really involved with the characters, but it was certainly engaging!
July 5, 2021
Cheryl Head knows her way around a mystery. This time her focus is on hate groups. All of her characters ring true. Her working class white male characters are spot on. This is a suspenseful read.
July 28, 2021
I’ve enjoyed every book in this series, but Warn Me When It’s Time just moved to the top of the list. Head really hits the mark with book six and readers are the true beneficiaries of her brilliance. There is so much to like about Head’s latest book, I don’t even know where to begin. The pacing is excellent. The plotting is superb. The character development is fantastic. Bottom line, this book is so mind-blowing and well-scripted, you will not be able to put it down.
Head’s writing style is easy to digest. The narrative flows quickly and smoothly, utilizing a tight structure and well-placed tension. The language and word building are rich and detailed, providing the novel with the perfect tone and tempo. The story world is relevant and realistic as the storyline reflects some of the troubling and concerning issues facing America today. Head approaches the content head-on though, making this tension-filled plot quite powerful. Rest assured, this is one well-constructed dramatic crime thriller.
The characters in this series are a fantastic ensemble of diversely unique individuals. The series revolves around Charlie Mack naturally, but they all play a part in the story arc. They consistently contribute to the storytelling and add fat to the bone, so to speak, giving it a dynamic texture that makes Head’s writing stand out. Most notable though is Head’s natural aptitude for effectively utilizing secondary characters; it’s beyond impressive. Her skillful finessing expands and explodes the plot in the most intriguing ways, making the story not only well-crafted, but gripping throughout.
Head thrives in this genre, and the story shines because of it. She knows how to execute a superb mystery, one that is complex, compelling and keeps readers guessing until the very end. Her edge is simple. She lets the suspense slowly unfold in the quiet moments of the story. It is then, when there is a gap in the action, that readers hear the whisper of dread. They sense danger and fear for their favorite characters. Head knows this and masterfully plays with their emotions, underscoring exactly why her talent can not be denied.
Final remarks�
This book should really be titled Warn Me to Stop Before Midnight! It is an engrossing reading experience, to be sure. Head once again demonstrates how to keenly script gut-twisting apprehension and suspense that’s so enthralling, it can not be resisted. Make no mistake, Warn Me When It’s Time is definitely one wild ride through Motown! I only hope Charlie Mack hurries back soon!
³§³Ù°ù±ð²Ô²µ³Ù³ó²õâ€�
Compelling
Gripping
Suspenseful
Well-plotted and page-turning
Strong character development
Head’s writing style is easy to digest. The narrative flows quickly and smoothly, utilizing a tight structure and well-placed tension. The language and word building are rich and detailed, providing the novel with the perfect tone and tempo. The story world is relevant and realistic as the storyline reflects some of the troubling and concerning issues facing America today. Head approaches the content head-on though, making this tension-filled plot quite powerful. Rest assured, this is one well-constructed dramatic crime thriller.
The characters in this series are a fantastic ensemble of diversely unique individuals. The series revolves around Charlie Mack naturally, but they all play a part in the story arc. They consistently contribute to the storytelling and add fat to the bone, so to speak, giving it a dynamic texture that makes Head’s writing stand out. Most notable though is Head’s natural aptitude for effectively utilizing secondary characters; it’s beyond impressive. Her skillful finessing expands and explodes the plot in the most intriguing ways, making the story not only well-crafted, but gripping throughout.
Head thrives in this genre, and the story shines because of it. She knows how to execute a superb mystery, one that is complex, compelling and keeps readers guessing until the very end. Her edge is simple. She lets the suspense slowly unfold in the quiet moments of the story. It is then, when there is a gap in the action, that readers hear the whisper of dread. They sense danger and fear for their favorite characters. Head knows this and masterfully plays with their emotions, underscoring exactly why her talent can not be denied.
Final remarks�
This book should really be titled Warn Me to Stop Before Midnight! It is an engrossing reading experience, to be sure. Head once again demonstrates how to keenly script gut-twisting apprehension and suspense that’s so enthralling, it can not be resisted. Make no mistake, Warn Me When It’s Time is definitely one wild ride through Motown! I only hope Charlie Mack hurries back soon!
³§³Ù°ù±ð²Ô²µ³Ù³ó²õâ€�
Compelling
Gripping
Suspenseful
Well-plotted and page-turning
Strong character development
July 25, 2021
Charlie Mack is a Black lesbian private eye. I would add “hard boiled,� but she is a caring, sensitive individual who uses a weapon only as a last resort and then regrets it.
“Warn Me When It’s Time,� is the sixth novel in the series, and it is a slam-bang success. Cheryl A. Head, a former television producer and media executive, has written a tightly plotted action mystery that will keep you turning pages long after it’s time to turn the lights out.
It centers on violent acts against houses of worship by a white supremacist hate group. Cheryl shows a command of how these groups operate—how they recruit, communicate, and elude detection by law enforcement. She knows her martial arts and her weaponry.
Ms. Head writes with stunning clarity. Her descriptions of her native Detroit, from food wagons to St. Anne’s Church to the abandoned train terminal, should be used in writing courses. Her dialogue is crisp and spare. For newcomers to the series, she weaves the backstory in seamlessly so that no one is left behind and the pace of the story is uninterrupted.
Charlie Mack is one of my favorite detectives. Long may she reign, and long may Cheryl Head write.
“Warn Me When It’s Time,� is the sixth novel in the series, and it is a slam-bang success. Cheryl A. Head, a former television producer and media executive, has written a tightly plotted action mystery that will keep you turning pages long after it’s time to turn the lights out.
It centers on violent acts against houses of worship by a white supremacist hate group. Cheryl shows a command of how these groups operate—how they recruit, communicate, and elude detection by law enforcement. She knows her martial arts and her weaponry.
Ms. Head writes with stunning clarity. Her descriptions of her native Detroit, from food wagons to St. Anne’s Church to the abandoned train terminal, should be used in writing courses. Her dialogue is crisp and spare. For newcomers to the series, she weaves the backstory in seamlessly so that no one is left behind and the pace of the story is uninterrupted.
Charlie Mack is one of my favorite detectives. Long may she reign, and long may Cheryl Head write.
August 30, 2021
The usual cast of characters return, including Charlie’s wife, Mandy, and her mother, Ernestine, and her partners Don and Judy.
Cheryl Head crafts a complicated story of domestic terrorism within the rich historical landmarks of the Motor City. The ending provides a nice surprise.
I recommend Warn Me When It’s Time, and encourage you to read Bury Me When I’m Dead, which remains my favorite.
Cheryl Head crafts a complicated story of domestic terrorism within the rich historical landmarks of the Motor City. The ending provides a nice surprise.
I recommend Warn Me When It’s Time, and encourage you to read Bury Me When I’m Dead, which remains my favorite.
June 29, 2021
Great read
I love this author and the series I read All the Charlie books Facebook like the earth is had a great story line and I love The characters if you want to understand the characters used to stop from book 1I recommend this series and I can't wait for the next book
I love this author and the series I read All the Charlie books Facebook like the earth is had a great story line and I love The characters if you want to understand the characters used to stop from book 1I recommend this series and I can't wait for the next book
June 29, 2021
A zinger of a mystery!
Washington DC author Cheryl A. Head has stated that her career as a writer, television producer, filmmaker, broadcast executive, and media funder ‘has taken me to every continent except Antarctica and Australia. I'm an ardent observer and listener, always trying to connect the dots, and now is the time to marry my experiences with the craft of writing, and the art of storytelling. Much of what I write focuses on the themes of diversity (in its broadest sense), acculturation and tolerance. Sometimes with a bit of danger and always with a lot of humor, food and music. I've written (the highly awarded) ‘Long Way Home: A World War II Novel�, short stories about families and other relationships and I've completed the first installment of a detective series called The Charlie Mack Mysteries � ‘Bury Me When I’m Dead� - which brings lesbian private investigator, Charlene Mack to life as she grapples with her sexuality, solves a missing-person case, and cares for her mother with early onset Alzheimer's.� Now following the success of her first five Charlie Mack novels, Cheryl brings us the further adventures of Charlie Mack in WARN ME WHE IT’S TIME. Originally from Detroit, Cheryl has an affinity for the flavor and history of Motown and she uses that very well in this third installment of her series. She writes with great skill and has that ability to relate quality mystery with hefty dollops of humor that make the book ring to the last words. She lives in Washington, DC.
The series continues as Cheryl relates in her synopsis: ‘A hate group operating in Oakland County, Michigan has claimed responsibility for a six-month-long string of arson fires and robberies at mosques, temples, and black churches around Detroit, eluding police and federal agencies. The most recent fire, at a mosque in Dearborn, kills a respected imam. His children - suspicious of law enforcement’s treatment of Muslims and afraid of reprisal - hires Charlie Mack and her team of investigators to find their father’s murderers. The Mack team begins to hunt down the clues in this local hate crime, but they aren’t prepared when they realize that those clues are pointing to a widespread conspiracy that runs through elected state officials and up to the highest levels of national leadership. FBI agent, James Saleh, returns to help the Mack Agency infiltrate and take down a homegrown militia hell-bent on starting a race war in America.�
That is the plot outline, but the pleasure of Cheryl’s book is immersing yourself in the fever-pitch drama she writes with such finesse. For this reader this Book 6 of this series is her finest (they each get better and better!). While all of the six books are excellent, this one shoots like a rocket - it is exhilarating. Highly Recommended.
Washington DC author Cheryl A. Head has stated that her career as a writer, television producer, filmmaker, broadcast executive, and media funder ‘has taken me to every continent except Antarctica and Australia. I'm an ardent observer and listener, always trying to connect the dots, and now is the time to marry my experiences with the craft of writing, and the art of storytelling. Much of what I write focuses on the themes of diversity (in its broadest sense), acculturation and tolerance. Sometimes with a bit of danger and always with a lot of humor, food and music. I've written (the highly awarded) ‘Long Way Home: A World War II Novel�, short stories about families and other relationships and I've completed the first installment of a detective series called The Charlie Mack Mysteries � ‘Bury Me When I’m Dead� - which brings lesbian private investigator, Charlene Mack to life as she grapples with her sexuality, solves a missing-person case, and cares for her mother with early onset Alzheimer's.� Now following the success of her first five Charlie Mack novels, Cheryl brings us the further adventures of Charlie Mack in WARN ME WHE IT’S TIME. Originally from Detroit, Cheryl has an affinity for the flavor and history of Motown and she uses that very well in this third installment of her series. She writes with great skill and has that ability to relate quality mystery with hefty dollops of humor that make the book ring to the last words. She lives in Washington, DC.
The series continues as Cheryl relates in her synopsis: ‘A hate group operating in Oakland County, Michigan has claimed responsibility for a six-month-long string of arson fires and robberies at mosques, temples, and black churches around Detroit, eluding police and federal agencies. The most recent fire, at a mosque in Dearborn, kills a respected imam. His children - suspicious of law enforcement’s treatment of Muslims and afraid of reprisal - hires Charlie Mack and her team of investigators to find their father’s murderers. The Mack team begins to hunt down the clues in this local hate crime, but they aren’t prepared when they realize that those clues are pointing to a widespread conspiracy that runs through elected state officials and up to the highest levels of national leadership. FBI agent, James Saleh, returns to help the Mack Agency infiltrate and take down a homegrown militia hell-bent on starting a race war in America.�
That is the plot outline, but the pleasure of Cheryl’s book is immersing yourself in the fever-pitch drama she writes with such finesse. For this reader this Book 6 of this series is her finest (they each get better and better!). While all of the six books are excellent, this one shoots like a rocket - it is exhilarating. Highly Recommended.
June 21, 2021
“Warn Me When It’s Time� is current, fast paced and vintage Charlie Mack - PI Charlie Mack and her team of investigators put themselves on the line to find out who bombed a Detroit mosque and killed a teacher.
The likely culprits are domestic terrorists. But who are they? Local groups of disgruntled neighbors resenting “different� cultures? Individuals or groups behind rapidly changing chat sites crossing state lines with instant viral message of hatred and veiled threats? Or are they international groups using top tier electronic devices, high level connections and lots of money to organize support for their beliefs?
Can the police, notoriously slow in investigating crimes against immigrant communities, do the job? Charlie Mack, a black queer woman who runs Mack Associates, takes the job to push the investigation. Her diverse crew Don, Judy and even Charlie’s mother Ernestine are drawn into the story. All are put at risk.
Head can assemble a quick moving, multi layered plot like the famed assembly lines of Detroit took raw materials and labor and created fast moving cars. Her characters are rounded and compelling, whether white team mates willing to go undercover or Charlie’s mother, in her sixties, confronting early stage demential & continuing to raise “good� trouble. Charlie holds the team together, with a good heart and as they say in Westerns, “a fast gun.� I highly recommend this latest Charlie Mack mystery as an individual read or, even better, add the series to your summer list.
The likely culprits are domestic terrorists. But who are they? Local groups of disgruntled neighbors resenting “different� cultures? Individuals or groups behind rapidly changing chat sites crossing state lines with instant viral message of hatred and veiled threats? Or are they international groups using top tier electronic devices, high level connections and lots of money to organize support for their beliefs?
Can the police, notoriously slow in investigating crimes against immigrant communities, do the job? Charlie Mack, a black queer woman who runs Mack Associates, takes the job to push the investigation. Her diverse crew Don, Judy and even Charlie’s mother Ernestine are drawn into the story. All are put at risk.
Head can assemble a quick moving, multi layered plot like the famed assembly lines of Detroit took raw materials and labor and created fast moving cars. Her characters are rounded and compelling, whether white team mates willing to go undercover or Charlie’s mother, in her sixties, confronting early stage demential & continuing to raise “good� trouble. Charlie holds the team together, with a good heart and as they say in Westerns, “a fast gun.� I highly recommend this latest Charlie Mack mystery as an individual read or, even better, add the series to your summer list.
June 22, 2021
A series of attacks on mosques, temples and black churches are occurring across Detriot in 2009.
But the latest attack on a mosque turns deadly when a respected Muslim teacher enters the building to check out a silenced alarm and is killed in an explosion. After a month with no resolution, the Pashia family hires PI Charlie Mack and her team to find their father’s killers. FBI agent James Saleh returns to help the Mack Agency coordinate with the local police and multi-agency task force investigating these hate crimes. They quickly find clues pointing to an amateur group of wannabe haters known as the Turks, including a young tech genius named Robbie. They enlist Robbie's help to infiltrate the group with Mack employee Don going undercover as a bomb-making expert. Now it's a race against time to gain the group's trust and to thwart their plans on a bigger attack.
This was the first book I have read in the Charlie Mack Motown mystery series. Charlie, her team and the Task Force members are competent, engaging and determined to end this threat at almost any cost.
I received a digital ARC from Netgalley and Bywater Books with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.
But the latest attack on a mosque turns deadly when a respected Muslim teacher enters the building to check out a silenced alarm and is killed in an explosion. After a month with no resolution, the Pashia family hires PI Charlie Mack and her team to find their father’s killers. FBI agent James Saleh returns to help the Mack Agency coordinate with the local police and multi-agency task force investigating these hate crimes. They quickly find clues pointing to an amateur group of wannabe haters known as the Turks, including a young tech genius named Robbie. They enlist Robbie's help to infiltrate the group with Mack employee Don going undercover as a bomb-making expert. Now it's a race against time to gain the group's trust and to thwart their plans on a bigger attack.
This was the first book I have read in the Charlie Mack Motown mystery series. Charlie, her team and the Task Force members are competent, engaging and determined to end this threat at almost any cost.
I received a digital ARC from Netgalley and Bywater Books with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.
May 11, 2024
Head is at the top of her form with Book 6 of the Charlie Mack Motown Mystery series. This time she tackles, hate crimes, in particular Islamophobia. She does this by a deep dive into the recruitment,
the promotion of extreme ideologies that are outside of normal social mores.
It is now 4 years after Book 1 in the series. Set in 2009, residents of Oakland County Michigan have been plagued with a series of hate crimes beginning with graffiti and accelerating to a bombing which destroyed caused the death of a prominent Muslim professor. While law enforcement agencies from the police, FBI and a Task Force are involved, the family feeling 'foot dragging' has hired Charlies team. Reintroducing James Selah, from book 1, he serves as the go between between Charlies group and the Hate Crimes Task Force assigned to the case. Of note is the character growth shown with Don Rutkowski. Over the series, his point of view has represented the straight shooter LEO, who is often totally unaware of his white-male biases. Now he is willing to go undercover to expose the deadly machinations of this heinous group.
This compelling novel offers so much to the reader; in these times of censorship, and book burning. Head offers choices for civility and justice.
the promotion of extreme ideologies that are outside of normal social mores.
It is now 4 years after Book 1 in the series. Set in 2009, residents of Oakland County Michigan have been plagued with a series of hate crimes beginning with graffiti and accelerating to a bombing which destroyed caused the death of a prominent Muslim professor. While law enforcement agencies from the police, FBI and a Task Force are involved, the family feeling 'foot dragging' has hired Charlies team. Reintroducing James Selah, from book 1, he serves as the go between between Charlies group and the Hate Crimes Task Force assigned to the case. Of note is the character growth shown with Don Rutkowski. Over the series, his point of view has represented the straight shooter LEO, who is often totally unaware of his white-male biases. Now he is willing to go undercover to expose the deadly machinations of this heinous group.
This compelling novel offers so much to the reader; in these times of censorship, and book burning. Head offers choices for civility and justice.
July 20, 2021
This book was populated with great characters--you either love them (Charlie, Mandy, Judy, Don) or you want them excruciatingly dead (all the Bad Guys).
It started a little slow and I put it aside in favor of another book. But I did pick it back up, and it moves much faster about a third of the way in.
I had a couple of suspension of disbelief issues. Charlie talking about her confidential cases to her mother, who then turns around and talks to her new squeeze, is unprofessional and foolish.
I also wasn't quite sure how a kid eludes the FBI on a bicycle--multiple times.
I personally prefer a neater ending where ALL the Bad Guys get what's coming to them. This disappointed me. However, I think Ms. Head is trying to be more true to life, and we all know things don't get tied up neatly in real life.
It started a little slow and I put it aside in favor of another book. But I did pick it back up, and it moves much faster about a third of the way in.
I had a couple of suspension of disbelief issues. Charlie talking about her confidential cases to her mother, who then turns around and talks to her new squeeze, is unprofessional and foolish.
I also wasn't quite sure how a kid eludes the FBI on a bicycle--multiple times.
I personally prefer a neater ending where ALL the Bad Guys get what's coming to them. This disappointed me. However, I think Ms. Head is trying to be more true to life, and we all know things don't get tied up neatly in real life.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 28, 2021
My favorite so far, #6 in a series I really love. Charlie's whole team gets to shine, and also to deal with their own challenges. I also admired how well the experience of being inside a radicalized young white guy's head worked (I usually dislike the parts of crime fiction where I ride along with the bad guy). The ambivalent view of working with, becoming entrenched in, and dealing with the consequences of helping a hate group hurt people in his own community provoked me to think and reflect, not just say ick and distance myself from that character.
Haven't read the first 5 Charlie Mack mysteries? You can totally jump in here. However, they are all worth reading and starting with #1 (Bury Me When I'm Dead) and working through them in order does provide an opportunity to get to see the characters grow and change - especially Charlie.
Haven't read the first 5 Charlie Mack mysteries? You can totally jump in here. However, they are all worth reading and starting with #1 (Bury Me When I'm Dead) and working through them in order does provide an opportunity to get to see the characters grow and change - especially Charlie.
April 10, 2023
The Charlie Mack Motown series is fantastic! Each is better than the last as they build on the characters, the history, and our modern realities to give the reader a real sense of urgency to stem the tide of racism, sexism, anti immigrant ignorance, homophobia, and all the real ills confronting the United States and the rest of the world.
The sixth novel was so compelling I had to put it down and take a breather as I found myself actually frightened of the white nationalist home grown terrorists at the core of the drama.
Read the entire series IN ORDER to get the very best from this wonderful author. And don't forget to read the semi-autobiographical novel, Time's Undoing, by Cheryl Head as well. It's remarkable and will remain in your thoughts for quite a while.
The sixth novel was so compelling I had to put it down and take a breather as I found myself actually frightened of the white nationalist home grown terrorists at the core of the drama.
Read the entire series IN ORDER to get the very best from this wonderful author. And don't forget to read the semi-autobiographical novel, Time's Undoing, by Cheryl Head as well. It's remarkable and will remain in your thoughts for quite a while.
August 8, 2022
I initially found it slow going but the end really packed a punch. I also found the characters well rounded and interesting.
May 16, 2024
A great series!
August 16, 2021
Charlie Mack at it again
Charlie Mack & her bad a$$ crew of private investigation co-partners are at it again!! This time they're facing the domestic terrorists determined to carry out an attack in the D.
…Why do people think that the way to save the country they claim to love so much is by destroying it??
Charlie Mack & her bad a$$ crew of private investigation co-partners are at it again!! This time they're facing the domestic terrorists determined to carry out an attack in the D.
…Why do people think that the way to save the country they claim to love so much is by destroying it??
September 9, 2021
First book I have read of Cheryl Head and her mystery series- saw book at library and saw it was written about Detroit. I enjoyed the book very much- since it is about an area I am similar with. I might go back and start at the first book of the series but there seems to never be enough hours in the day to read all the books I want too.
July 15, 2021
Action conquers hate
This is the best of the series yet, Don is bring a better Don, Judy is worth her weight in gold and Charlie is the brain trust. This is a timely topic and a quick read, Waiting for more!
This is the best of the series yet, Don is bring a better Don, Judy is worth her weight in gold and Charlie is the brain trust. This is a timely topic and a quick read, Waiting for more!
July 1, 2021
Great.
I really enjoyed Warn Me When It’s Time. Charlie Mack is a great character. This book certainly is timely. Reflecting the state of America today.
I really enjoyed Warn Me When It’s Time. Charlie Mack is a great character. This book certainly is timely. Reflecting the state of America today.
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