Robin Summers

This is not a paranormal book, as the title and cover seem to hint at. It is a serial murder mystery.

Devon is a lost soul. She's been on the run for most of her adult life--from a terrible nightmare that only she is privy to. By her own wits and through sheer luck, she has always managed to stay just one step ahead of the phantom in her life. But on the 12th year of her run, her luck finally runs out...

Fortunately, she has a savior in Jordan, a physically and emotionally wounded cop. Devon finds in her a kindred soul, someone who believes, understands, and is actually in a position to help. And for the first time in her seemingly hopeless life, there is a flicker of light at the end of her long, dark tunnel.

As a thriller, this novel just works. The book takes you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions--horror, alienation, anticipation, passion, terror, exhilaration, despair. Then, just when you think everything starts to fall into place, the author yanks the rug from under you.

4.5 stars

P.S. For me, the most unforgettable scenes from the book are the encounters between Devon, Jordan and Mel, a one-time lover of Jordan. Their sizzling scenes together crackle off the page, as Devon and Mel 'do battle' over their prized catch. :)… (mehr)

Although set in a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by an incurable virus, this book is more of a character study of a woman who's suffered horrific trauma, escaped disease and survived beyond all odds.

As is typical of post-apocalyptic worlds, lawlessness abound and it's pretty much a survival of the fittest. The book begins with the woman Taylor's arrival in a seeming oasis, a rural farm run by a benevolent leader Buck who tries his best to maintain a sense of normalcy for the few survivors who seek refuge on his farm. But even within the farm, sympathy and sharing exist side by side with greed and bigotry. Much of the book deals with Taylor's emotional journey from a traumatized victim with the help of her lady love, the wonderful Kate, who understand Taylor fully but doesn't take any BS from her. Their interactions are the highlight of the book, especially the slapping incident. A number of well-drawn out, engaging supporting characters and their own journeys round out this well-balanced tale. Major spoiler: I wished Taylor had played a bigger part in the resolution of the mutiny. She seemed to always need saving by other people. So it was a bit of a surprise for me when Buck asked her to take over the farm. I would've qualified that with 'only with Kate at your side' :)

4.4 stars

P.S. I would give this book 5 stars but for the fact that I had expected it to be a more of a thriller, an action/adventure type of tale. But it is just my personal preference so the rating doesn't reflect on the quality of the book. Another post-apocalyptic book I really liked is [b:The Gunfighter and The Gear-Head|15842240|The Gunfighter and The Gear-Head|Cassandra Duffy|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1345673764s/15842240.jpg|17573282], a semi-serious action-filled steampunk tale. But for me the gold-standard for this sub-subgenre is [b:The Growing|1294993|The Growing|Susanne M. Beck|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1357406403s/1294993.jpg|1284113]--a perfect combination of action, angst, end-of-the-world thriller with a sprinkling of paranormal. It is not available in ebook format, but I had read it a long time ago while it was still available for free online. The paperback is selling for about a hundred bucks on amazon but our best friend google might come in handy. :)

… (mehr)

I seem to be reading quite a few novels that deal with police officers out on leave recently. This one is about Jordan, a homicide Detective on the Pittsburgh force who is on indefinite leave while recovering physically and psychologically from a gunshot. Devon is a waitress whose bosses at the diner where she works get killed. That strikes fear deep into her soul because she's been on the run from something for more than ten years.

Then there's the killer. From the beginning we know for the most part who the killer is/will be. The mystery in this mystery/thriller is more the why of his killings. And I liked how that worked in this novel. It was more of a mystery/thriller lesbian fiction than I've read in a while. There was a good balance between the mystery/thriller aspects and the romance/relationship ones.

Other than the main characters I did also like the secondary characters. Henry, Jordan's Lieutenant and former partner was a good character and was written in a way that I would up caring about his story too. That was mostly true for all the characters in the novel. I even wound up liking the rookie in homicide, Detective Lawson, which surprised me, since I didn't like him at the very beginning of the story.

Of course, the fact that the killer was written well meant a whole different thing. And the killer was written amazingly. Sometimes authors don't go all the way crazy evil with their bad guy because they'd have to inhabit the guy or gal while writing the character, and so I'm always impressed by a layered, deep and human (evil human, but still human) character. And Summers made the killer all that. By the end I definitely wanted to knock his block off too.

A great book that I flew right through and found myself engrossed in during every minute I read it.

I got this advanced galley through Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books.… (mehr)