serial killer

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Post Script: Die Again – Tess Gerritsen

“Death was a rock star who always drew an audience.”

Die Again

Die Again

(Rizzoli & Isles 11)

Tess Gerritsen

Random House UK, Transworld Publishers

Bantam Press

ISBN: 9780593072431

 

 

Description:

With DIE AGAIN Tess Gerritsen proves that she is still at the top of her game. I love this fantastically gripping story and can’t wait for more’ KARIN SLAUGHTER

 

THE VICTIMS

In Boston, Detective Jane Rizzoli and Forensic Pathologist Maura Isles are investigating a bizarre murder. A man has been found gutted and hanging in his home. When the remains of another victim are found, it is clear that this murderer has been at work for years, and not just in Boston.

 

THE KILLER

Six years ago, a group of travellers set off on an African safari. None of them are seen again – apart from one woman who stumbled out of the bush weeks later, barely alive. The only woman to have seen the killer’s face.

 

THE SURVIVOR

Has the ‘safari killer’ resurfaced in Boston? Jane is sent to Africa to find the one link between the two cases – the only survivor – and convince her to face death once again…

 

Links

 

www.tessgerritsen.com

 

 

My View:

What a breath of fresh air this narrative is!

Loved the dual settings and the psychological suspense; twists and turns galore. The earlier story based in Africa is unique, compelling and will set your pulse racing…this is not so much a story about the gory details of death (though we are not cheated on the number of deaths within or the stark reality of death) but this is more a narrative about the impact of action/non actions, about friendship, trust, genetics, big cats, domestic cats and… a serial killer.

 

A brilliant and refreshing episode to add to the Rizzoli and Isles repertoire.

 

 

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Post Script: Hush – Anne Frasier

“The mind is such an amazing universe.”

Hush

Anne Frasier

Belfry Press

ISBN: 9781475094862

 

 

Description:

What’s your greatest fear?

It’s criminal profiler Ivy Dunlap’s job to unravel the psyches of the most dangerous men alive. None haunts her dreams more than the killer who took her son’s life sixteen years ago, then silently disappeared into the dark. Now an urgent request for help from the Chicago police has reawakened Ivy’s greatest nightmare. The Madonna Murderer has returned to fulfill his calling. This time Ivy understands the killer and will face her greatest fear to stop him from killing again.

 

Publishers Weekly

Few serial killers penned by suspense writers today are as warped or as fully realized as the Madonna Murderer, who preys on newborn baby boys and their unwed mothers. As if the crime itself isn’t bad enough, the killer leaves a musical snow globe that plays “Hush, Little Baby” in the infant’s crib as his calling card. It has been nearly two decades since Ivy Dunlap and her infant son were victimized by the Madonna Murderer. Unbeknownst to the killer, Ivy survived the assault. Her baby didn’t. Now a respected criminal psychologist, Ivy is called into service by the Chicago P.D. when the killer resurfaces after 16 years of dormancy. Her personal interest in the case takes on a sharper edge when she learns that her partner, Detective Max Irving, has a son named Ethan who is the same age her child would have been had he survived. When Ivy tries to rattle the Madonna Murderer by publishing a “dead-baby letter” in the newspaper, the killer becomes more daring; he befriends Ethan, sends Ivy a chunk of his skin bearing a tattoo and expands his profile of victims. Although some readers may be turned off by the novel’s graphic nature, a wealth of procedural detail, a heart-thumping finale and two scarred but indelible protagonists make this a first-rate debut.

About the author:

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR

USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR

BARNES & NOBLE BESTSELLING AUTHOR

RITA AWARD AUTHOR (SUSPENSE)

AMAZON.COM BESTSELLING AUTHOR

 

My View:

 

 

I was drawn to this book by the amazing cover art and discovered a fantastic police procedural/psychological thriller. This book has great pacing, in-depth character development, a creepy villain and protagonists you will empathise with and enjoy reading about; I really enjoyed this read.

 

And the point of difference in this particular read is that the writer acknowledges the pain and effect that being party to a serious crime, whether as a witness, whether that be discovering a victim, whether you are one of the first responders, or work in a crime related field or are related to the victim of a crime “ that touch left latent prints that would never, ever go away…no matter what they’d gone through – loss of a parent, loss of a sibling- they wouldn’t be able to understand the darkness and fear.”

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Post Script: Hunted – Elizabeth Heiter

Unbelievably good – this is my kind of read!

Hunted

Elizabeth Heiter

Harlequin

Harlequin MIRA

ISBN: 9780778315841

 

Description:


FBI rising star, criminal profiler Evelyn Baine, knows how to think like a serial killer. But she’s never chased anyone like the Bakersville Burier, who hunts young women and displays them, half-buried, deep in the woods. As the body count climbs, Evelyn’s relentless pursuit of the killer puts her career—and her life—at risk. And the evil lurking in the Burier’s mind may be more than even she can unravel.

Terror is closer than she thinks… 

The Bakersville Burier knows he’s got an FBI profiler on his trail. He knows who she is and where to find her. And he’s biding his time, because he’s planned a special punishment for Evelyn. She may have tracked other killers, but he vows to make this her last chase. This time it’s her turn to be hunted!

My View:

What a fantastic FBI procedural from debut author Elizabeth Heiter. I loved this book- the pace, the characters, the plot, the twists, the action, the tension…I loved it all.

Evelyn Baine is a great female protagonist – smart, dedicated, resourceful, a wonderful FBI profiler with a personal history that steers her life – personal and professional.  Heiter sets a great crime scene and the office banter and politics adds a further dimension to the narrative. I can see a TV show waiting to explode onto our screens.

Heiter gets all the essential elements of a great crime read spot on.  I cannot wait for her next book…due out in the New Year, “Vanished” which follows an important story line in Hunted.

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Post Script: Promise – Tony Cavanaugh

Promise, Tony Cavanaugh

Tony Cavanaugh

Promise

Hatchette Australia

ISBN: 978073362847

Description:

Top Homicide cop Darian Richards has been seeking out monsters for too long. He has promised one too many victim’s families he will find the answers they need and it’s taken its toll. Now retired, a series of disappearances see him return to the gun. On his terms. But he knows, every promise has a price to pay. If you love Harry Bosch and Dave Robicheaux you’ll love Darian Richards.

Top Homicide cop Darian Richards has been seeking out monsters for too long. He has promised one too many victim’s families he will find the answers they need and it’s taken its toll. After surviving a gunshot wound to the head he calls it quits and retires to the Sunshine Coast in an attempt to leave the demons behind. But he should have realised, there are demons everywhere and no place is safe. A serial killer is prowling the Sunshine Coast area and Darian tries to ignore the fact his experience could make a difference hunting him down.

All he wants is to sit at the end of his jetty on the Noosa River and ignore the fact that girls from the area have vanished over the past fourteen months. All blonde and pretty. Youngest: 13. Oldest: 16. He knows they are all dead but the cops were saying ‘missing’ or ‘vanished . That s what you have to say if you don t have a body.

Jenny Brown was the first. She vanished sometime after 4 in the afternoon, Saturday 15 October the previous year. Except for her parents and her friends and everybody who knew her, it was thought she was just a runaway. Especially by the cops who allowed a good two or three minutes before arriving at that conclusion. By the time they d reached the gate to the front yard of her house, before they d even walked across the road and climbed into their cruiser, they would ve forgotten Jenny Brown even existed.

But then others disappeared and they couldn t call them all runaways. Darian can t sit idly by and he decides he is going to find the killer and deal with him … his way.

My View:

A truly macabre murder mystery that gives the reader a terrifying glimpse into the evil that men can do to each other; the voice of the villain was malignant, terrifying and freaky and I am glad this was a work of fiction! The hero, Darian Richards was a personable yet manipulative character, worn down by his career in Victoria’s Homicide Squad, seeking a quiet life without the nightmares that accompanied his past work and not averse to taking the law into his own hands. Mix the first person voices of these two characters together in one narrative and you get a fast paced tale of evil doer versus redeemer; the story of a despicable, evil, sadistic villain who hides in plain sight and a renegade, likable, battle worn ex cop who is on a mission to rid the town of this monster – and will do whatever it takes to achieve this, and you have a recipe for a exciting, paging turning, gritty read.