Reviewed by Keith Julius for Readers' Favorite

The Ephemeral File is the third book in The Adam Fraley Mystery series by author Henry Hoffman. Fraley is a Florida-based detective operating in 1995. The story begins as the detective reluctantly takes on a case brought to him by his office manager, concerning an elderly man from her aunt's church. As Roland Westwood explains to Fraley, now that the end is near, he would like to make amends and reconnect with his "first love." The story he relates dates back to 1943 and a young woman named Staci Carew, whom Roland last saw when he left for World War II and hasn't seen since. He would like the opportunity to say goodbye properly, something he never had the chance to do when the war intervened 52 years earlier. The simple case, one of reconnecting lost lovers, becomes something much more when Fraley discovers Staci had a twin sister, Kati, who died under mysterious circumstances shortly before Roland Westwood left for the war.

This is my first introduction to Adam Fraley, but the fact that I never read the first two books in the series didn't detract from my enjoyment of this one. Author Henry Hoffman depicts a believable, true-to-life detective with The Ephemeral File following the oftentimes mundane tasks a detective would logically be expected to pursue in search of the truth. The plot moves along nicely, the characters within the book readily perceived as the type of people you would expect to meet in real life. They have realistic feelings, speaking in dialogue that resonates from the page, giving the impression that these are the types of everyday people you would encounter not only in Florida but in anywhere, USA. Though there are few real surprises in store, and none of the action you might expect from a detective story, this is an enjoyable read and an excellent portrayal of a slice of life that started with a "first love" but went horribly wrong along the way.