Thomas Laird (2)

To say I'm now obsessed with Thomas Laird and this series is an understatement. This book is just WOW.

I've always had a fondness for a good crime novel/television show/film. My love of Bones, Kathy Reich's novels, 19-2, Chicago Fire/PD/etc, NCIS, Hawaii Five-O, and so many others are all stapled on my book shelf and DVD collection. What's always hard though, is finding a REALLY good book - and Thomas Laird made one.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I am desperate to get more of these novels. I don't know how Thomas Laird did it, but for me he made a hit. Yes, there were some slower parts of this book that dragged on, but when the book gets moving, it moves FAST. I love our lead and his romantic interest Natalie, and their little family side plots. I love the relationship between the department, and I love the side chapters of the killer. It's all fantastic!!

The chapters involving the killer show how sadistic this killer is, and it was a very interesting twist. Most of the novels or shows I've seen don't give much insight into the killer until the end! Yet this book does it just perfectly - a little hint of what the person is doing, but nothing to give away who it is.

This book is definitely close to R rated. There are some gruesome descriptions and some explicit sex/rape scenes - so this book isn't for the light-hearted. But it is an excellent crime story!! These brutal scenes fit in with the narrative and help tell the story - they aren't just in there for shock factor or to make the book seem "sexy" like some crime novels have done. These aren't passionate sex scenes, they are brutal and show how horrible the killer is.

Our lead character is a bit...interesting. He's a tough guy and uses some rough language, but it doesn't take away from the story. It seems to be more of a character development issue if anything. Reading other reviews people didn't like that part of the story, but for me it just highlighted what type of character he is. Not everyone is sunshine and roses in police departments, unfortunately. Just like everything other job in this world - no one is perfect and uses G-rated language all the time.

One thing I'm furious about - the ending. It was on a cliff hanger and MY GOODNESS DO I HATE CLIFFHANGERS. Knowing that I probably won't be able to find the second book in this series anytime soon makes it worse... Even with that cliffhanger though, the book was a definite recommended read from me. It's a spectacular crime drama that hits all the notes it needs to.

Overall - this dark, twisted crime novel is everything I wanted it to be and more. What a great fast paced thriller!

Five out of five stars.

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.… (meer)

A solid detective novel, that needs a bit of help.

I really liked the lead character, Detective Nick Karras and his partner Mara. Another great character was Nora who tried to help Nick with his investigation with her special talent….sensing things. The plot was interesting. The writing style was rigid. The author needed some descriptions of the places involved in the book. As an example; a detail description of the station he works out of. Possibly a bit more of character’s feelings in certain situation. Adding that to the writing would go a long way in making this a 4/5 star book instead of the 3 stars I gave it.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions expressed are
my own.… (meer)