St. Martin’s Press, August 22, 2017.
Four Stars
When she was fifteen, Randi Rader was kidnapped by a
stranger who picked her up hitchhiking – she escaped before too much damage was
done, but she was forced to leave another girl behind with the kidnapper. When
she went to the police for help, however, no one believed her story. Randi had
a troubled family life and several run-ins with the law, and she still carries
the guilt that because of her past, she will never know what happened to the
other girl that night.
Now an adult, Officer Miranda Rader works for the
police department in a neighbouring town in Louisiana. Despite her negative
experience with the police in the past, Miranda has vowed to use her sense of
honesty and integrity to protect innocent victims like she once was. Her current
chief of police was the only officer that believed her that night, and she
trusts him completely. So when he calls her to a crime scene in the middle of
the night, Miranda follows unquestioningly.
The crime scene turns out to be the ritualistic
murder of a well-liked local college professor with strong family ties to the
community. Because of the way he was found, Miranda immediately realizes that
the killer was intimate with the victim. She searches the house for clues, but
doesn’t find anything leading to the killer – instead, she finds a newspaper clipping
about her own childhood kidnapping. When Miranda’s fingerprints are later found
at the scene, she realizes that someone is trying to frame her for the murder –
but she has no idea how she’s connected to the victim.
Miranda soon becomes the prime suspect of another
murder – the death of the police chief who failed to believe her kidnapping
story on that night. Her current chief and friend is forced to suspend her from
duty, although his motives are becoming unclear – is he protecting Miranda, or himself?
Meanwhile, Miranda begins a romantic relationship with her partner Jake, who
seems to support her innocence, although there is no one she can completely trust.
Even her best friend becomes a suspect, and Miranda must question the
motivations of everyone around her.
This is a thriller, filled with twisty suspense and
edgy excitement. While the characters could have more depth, they are surprising
in many ways and often slip out of their stereotypical roles. It wasn’t
difficult to guess what was coming at the end, but it was still a completely
entertaining read. Miranda is able to trust her own instincts in order to survive
the final showdown with the killer, and with her own past. While this is a
typical thriller in many ways, the interesting characters and their individual
choices made this a satisfying summer read.
I received this book from St. Martin’s Press and
NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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