ROUTE: Greenville, SC to Wilmington, IL: 723 miles (699 loaded + 24 deadhead)
Friday May 1st, after completing the last assignment I drove 45 minutes to this shipper. I arrived at 8:00pm. They are a 24/7 facility and thought it is a simple drop-and-hook dropping the trailer was no easy task as it is a gravel lot with no lines painted on the ground for guidance. Worse even if that we need to leave the trailers with the doors open so fitting it into a tight spot is difficult and the possibility of knocking a door off is high, which is an expensive error. I left the shipper at 9:00pm and drove three hours to a mom-and-pop truck stop on I-40 in Hartford, TN, where I shut it down for my night at midnight. There’s not many places to park in the area.
Saturday May 2nd, I started my day at noon after performing the pre-trip inspection of the truck and having a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich for breakfast. I drove a total of ten-and-half hours that day to get to the consignee with a stop for the DOT Mandate thirty-minute break and lunch at McDonalds. I arrived at the consignee at 11:45pm. This is a 24/7 facility and it’s a drop-and-hook delivery.
BOOK REVIEW: What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena (2024), THRILLER – RATING (****)
The story starts with the discovery of the dead naked body of Diana Brewer, a seventeen year old popular high school senior and star of the cross-country team. I normally DNF at this point as I avoid books involving crimes to teenage girls, especially if found naked which presumes sexual assault. I trusted that Shari Lapena would handle the subject matter with dignity and she did.
There’s a certain levity as one of the story’s narrators is coming from Diana’s POV. She initially thinks she’s dreaming then realizes she is a fly on the wall as a ghost. She remembers her life but not the final moments leading to her murder.
Cameron, Diana’s boyfriend is the prime suspect as he was the last person to see her alive. Diana’s mom is distraught as she is a nurse working the night shift and was not there to protect her daughter. Diana’s two closest friends, Riley Mead and Evan Carr are trying to find the killer themselves. Detectives Stone and Godfrey are leading the investigation. The school principal and several of the staff also play a key role as well as a construction worker drifter.
Overall entertaining despite the subject matter. It is suspenseful full of twist-and-turns with a surprising ending, typical of Shari Lapena books. It is also compassionate stating the dilemma of Cameron’s parents as not sure of his innocence but weigh their responsibility to protect their son.
