Genre:- Thriller

Publisher:- Bookouture

Date published:- will be published 10th June 2021

No. of pages:- 445 pages

Rating:-

The girl was beautiful, even in death. Her skin was translucent beneath the sliver of moonlight peeking through the bare branches of the surrounding pines, and her chestnut hair had tumbled around her pale shoulders. Around her, smoke twisted in the air, curling into the inky sky.

The remote town of Crooked Creek has barely recovered from its most recent tragedy when wildfires tear through the mountains. Detective Ellie Reeves is grappling with her own heartbreak––she has just discovered she was adopted and that her childhood was a lie.

Under the scorching summer sun, Ellie is called to a river where a body has been found. She spots a lone woman’s shoe caught in a nearby tangle of vines, and a pearl necklace scattered by the water’s edge. The remains are surrounded by a circle of stones, which Ellie is certain means something. Was the victim––whoever she was––caught in the fire or is something more sinister at play?

The Fourth of July usually means festivals and fireworks, but when another body turns up the town is left in tatters. A young girl with dark hair lies dead, surrounded by stones, smoke drifting in the air. Thanks to an engraved silver necklace, Ellie identifies the body as eighteen-year-old Katie Lee Curtis, and the diary she finds hidden under the teenager’s mattress could get her close to the killer.

With two victims in less than twenty-four hours, it’s clear Ellie’s up against a serial killer, and she vows that no more innocent girls will be sacrificed. For her, every day is a battle to come to terms with her past, but when this case becomes personal, will she win?

A totally gripping and utterly addictive page-turner that will have you racing through and reeling at the twists. Perfect for fans of Melinda Leigh, Lisa Regan and Kendra Elliot, it’s best read with the lights on!

Detective Ellie Reeves is back!!

This is the third book of the Detective Ellie Reeves series and seems to be taking place immediately after the end of the second book. It started with Ellie, who is on the quest of finding her biological mother wants to contact the social worker, Gillian who had handled her adoption, only to find that Gillian had gone missing and had left the office in a hurry, carrying the adoption files with her…including her own file. Meanwhile, a deranged killer is murdering women and then burning them in the forest, arranging the stones in a peculiar fashion. Ellie then sets out to find this mysterious killer and then enlists the help of FBI agent Derrick to solve the case.

As usual, this was such a roller coaster ride! From the beginning of the chapter to the end of the book, I was literally hooked into the story, with all the drama, crimes and the quest of finding the killer, what with you have know idea who the hell is killing all these girls or women.

Let’s start with the plot–the plot was intriguing, engaging and really unique that I was hooked from the beginning. Though the book was about 400 pages long, I didn’t even feel that long as this was such a fast paced thriller with twists and turns you didn’t expect while reading! In fact I stayed up all night, finishing this book, and the story is so engaging that the author did a good job gripping the reader into the story! I must say, quiet an interesting plot and an unputownable thriller!!!

In all the three books I have read, it seems Ellie Reeves doesn’t seem to have a rest as she faces one series of murders to another, followed by a couple of dramas on the way with her friends and loved ones being hurt in the process. Ellie is actually one of my favorite characters in the book and shows what a brave and courageous girl she really is!

Overall, a fast paced thriller that will take you on a roller coaster ride filled with twists and turns that you didn’t expect! Guaranteed you will stay up all night to finish this book!!! An unputdownable thriller–worth five stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author Rita Herron fell in love with books at the ripe age of eight when she read her first Trixie Belden mystery. But she didn’t think real people grew up to be writers, so she became a teacher instead. Now she writes so she doesn’t have to get a real job.

With over ninety books to her credit, she’s penned romantic suspense, romantic comedy, and YA novels, but she especially likes writing dark romantic suspense and crime fiction set in small southern towns.

For more on. Rita and her titles, visit her at http://www.ritaherron.com. You can also find her on Facebook/ritaherron.com and Twitter @ritaherron.