Abandoned
Talk about a psychopath. The serial killer in Abandoned is pure evil and abducts women and keeps them captive in cells for as long as seven years. If they are released, they are lobotomized first so as not to be able to tell their story or give clues as to who took them or where they were kept.
This will be the last of Smoky Barrett series I read. The subject matter of McFayden’s novels is just too gruesome and nightmarish for me.
Shock Wave
Shock Wave is the fifth novel in Sandford’s Virgil Flowers series. Flowers is an investigator with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. He is called to a small Minnesota town to investigate a series of bombings that are related to PyeMart (think Walmart). It turns out that many people and local groups are angry that the superstore chain is coming to town and Flowers has his work cut out for him while he tries to determine who is responsible for the killing.
I loved this book. It’s one of those stories that keeps you reading into the night. I couldn’t put it down.
The Breach
I was not a big fan of The Breach by Patrick Lee. While this is not in the science fiction genre, it was way too “out there” for my taste. One time cop and more recent ex-con Travis Chase travels out to the Alaskan wilderness for some much needed reflection. He stumbles upon a recently crashed passenger jet with murdered bodies inside, including the body of the First Lady of the United States. Before she died, the First Lady wrote a note with directions for the person who finds her. She hints at a missing item that must be found or the fate of the world is at stake. Travis and a CIA operative work together to locate the stolen artifact, fight the bad guys (even one in an invisibility suit!) and save the world. If you liked X-Files, you would probably like this.
The Darker Side
The Darker Side, by Cody McFadyen is what the title suggests. DARK. This thriller centers around FBI special agent Smoky Barrett and her hand picked crack team of agents. The story begins with the homicide investigation of a rather high profile woman who was murdered mid-flight on a passenger jet, and soon other women across the country have been murdered with the same MO. It turns out all the victims are all harboring a secret and the killer wants them to repent of their sins.
Smoky is an interesting character. She not only has lost her husband and 10 year old daughter to the hands of a sociopath, but she herself was violently attacked and her face savagely cut up. If that wasn’t tragic enough for one person to bear, her close friend was murdered as well. Smoky now cares for her friend’s daughter.
I gave this book 3 stars. It might have been 4 stars, were it not for all the religious references. I may not have loved this book, but it was a very quick read and I became attached to the main characters. I’ll definitely be reading future books in the Smoky Barrett series.