Heather Osborne

This book was written in three segments. I have to be honest and say that I had to force myself through the first part. I hated Luke right away as he evaluated every woman and bemoaned being without one. I thought Melinda was strong, but she fell into the ridiculous romantic gibberish and sex scenes willingly. Ugh. This was not a mystery! There was the potential for a great mystery so I made it to part two where we are introduced to Rae Hatting and her family. Thank you very much! The book got much better and my hope is so will the series. I'm crossing my fingers that the sad doo of a man, Luke, will be a man a pay attention to solving murders in any further books.… (mais)

Luke Thompson is a police detective who solved a string of serial killer cases, and then sought a more peaceful life as a detective with the police in Mendocino County, California.

Unfortunately, after a deceptive lull, he finds himself hunting a serial killer again, someone who dresses his victims as figures from fairy tales. He also finds love, in the person of an FBI profiler

Then tragedy strikes too close to home.

Luke is thrown into a tailspin, but the serial killer is still at work.

Rae Hatting, an FBI agent who is done, she thinks, with homicide investigations, is called back in for this one. She's got a double task, finding the killer, and pulling Thompson out of his funk.

It's a complicated story, with complicated characters. Everyone has a thornier background than you initially suspect. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, but both the Mendocino police and the FBI are shown as made up of people who at their core are dedicated to protecting the public and doing their jobs. It's ultimately positive without being syrupy. I'm not sure I was really up for a serial killer story when I started reading this, but in the end I'm glad I read it, and will probably read more from Osborne.

Recommended.

I think I bought this book, but this is one of those occasions when I honestly don't really remember.… (mais)

This is the third book in the Rae Hatting series, and it's just as good as the first two. You can read my reviews for the first two here.
Rae and Luke are now partners, and they’re assigned to a case where a serial killer is leaving bodies positioned like Tarot cards. Their investigations take them to New Orleans where a national convention for psychics and mediums has been scheduled. Along the way, they meet some interesting characters, like Sabine's grandmother, Evangeline. As they follow the clues, it dawns on them they might be dealing with someone in law enforcement. And they could be the next target.
Rae and Luke’s characters evolve more in this book, as their mutual attraction sets them at odds against each other. Not a lot of tension, but enough to make it tantalizing. I really enjoyed the bathroom scene.
The story traveled along at a good pace, it was well-written and the characters were well-developed. Between the grisly deaths, and surprise revelations, the book kept me entertained.
What I didn’t like: the switching of first POV from Rae and Luke. Most authors who use that method, do it at each chapter. Osborne does it during the same chapter, which can be confusing . Because of that, I couldn’t get quite as involved in the story as I wanted.
If you love a good thriller or serial killer tale, then you need to read this story. I’m looking forward to following Rae and Luke in their adventure. I give my 4 feathers.… (mais)