Published
by Simon & Schuster,
14 July 2016.
ISBN: 978-1-4711-3225-4 (PB)
14 July 2016.
ISBN: 978-1-4711-3225-4 (PB)
Nicole is babysitting for friends
when she finds their “cousin Mark” in the kitchen. Five days later, her body is
found on the outskirts of Los Angeles. She’s been tortured to death,and her
body placed in a ritual position. Detective Hunter of the LAPD knows the killer
will strike again.
This
psychopath novel is cleverly constructed, moving from the deaths of the girls
to the police investigation. Hunter and his partner, Garcia, are interesting
charcters – Hunter an obsessive, intelligent workaholic, Garcia beginning to
find the demands of his job too much for the safety of his family. The police
background is detailed and well-realised – the author has experience as a
criminal psychologist, and has worked on police investigations. Extra sympathy
is evoked for the victims by who they are: a babysitter, an air-hostess, a
waitress who has escaped a difficult upbringing. A turn of the screw is added
by the key victim being a child. The torture is inventive, and described in
detail, not just once but again in each autopsy, and again through the child’s
eyes. The clever twist ending in part justifies this.
A
well-paced example of this genre, with truly nasty torture scenes on women and
a child, cut with a realistic police investigation.
------
Reviewer:
Marsali Taylor
Chris Carter
was
born in Brazil. He received his undergraduate and master's degrees from the
University of Oxford. He is the author of Science and Psychic Phenomena and
Science and the Near-Death Experience. Originally from Canada, Carter currently
teaches internationally. He now lives in London.
www.chriscarterbooks.com
Marsali
Taylor grew up near Edinburgh, and
came to Shetland as a newly-qualified teacher. She is currently a part-time
teacher on Shetland's scenic west side, living with her husband and two
Shetland ponies. Marsali is a qualified STGA tourist-guide who is fascinated by
history, and has published plays in Shetland's distinctive dialect, as well as
a history of women's suffrage in Shetland. She's also a keen sailor who enjoys
exploring in her own 8m yacht, and an active member of her local drama group. Marsali also does a regular monthly column
for the Mystery People e-zine.
A review
of her recent book Ghosts of the Vikings can be read here.
www.marsalitaylor.co.uk
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