Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell, #3)

Evil at Heart (Archie Sheridan & Gretchen Lowell #3)

3.97 of 5 stars 3.97  ·  rating details  ·  5,169 ratings  ·  607 reviews
Chelsea Cain’s novels featuring Portland detective Archie Sheridan and serial killer Gretchen Lowell have captivated fans through two nail-biting entries, Heartsick and Sweetheart, both of them multiweek bestsellers in The New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly.

Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose. These days, she’s more of a cause célèbre than a feared killer,...more
Hardcover, 308 pages
Published September 1st 2009 by Minotaur Books (first published January 1st 2009)
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Marvin
While Heartsick was a nifty twist on the serial killer novel and Sweetheart was a good if predictable follow-up, the third installment of the Grechen Lowell series loses the excitement. Evil at Heart misses on many levels. Gretchen Lowell barely shows up, Archie Sheridan descends from tragic to pathetic and the author seems to be wingin' it through 80% of this novel. Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the book is the author's choice to make an indictment of our society's habit of glorifying m...more
Katie(babs)
Evil at Heart is the third book by Chelsea Cain that showcases the barely forty year old homicide detective Archie Sheridan who fell victim to serial killer Gretchen Lowell. For two years Gretchen has been Archie’s everything. She has been in his thoughts, much like a drug that he craves everyday even though he knows if he has her, she will be the death of him. She almost killed him once, by holding him captive for ten days and torturing him in the worst ways imaginable to the human mind. Archie...more
Michele Shimp
I am a big fan of murder mystery series, thrillers, serial killers (in books), interesting and flawed detectives... basically the entire murder mystery genre. It's always been my favorite type of book and I've read a bunch of them. So when I say that this Heartsick series by Chelsea Cain has jumped to the top of the list of favorites, know that it bypassed quite a few great books![return][return]I received Evil at Heart by Chelsea Cain from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. When I realized...more
Felicia
Listened for Fun (Library Copy)
Overall Rating: 4.00
Story Rating: 3.50
Character Rating: 4.60

Audio Rating: 3.50 (not part of the overall rating)

First Thought when Finished:Evil at Heart got really good the last 1/2! I couldn't put it down (or turn it off).

Story Thoughts: Chelsea Cain is brilliant at writing totally off-their-rocker characters. Her serial killer Gretchen is one of my favorites. Evil at Heart gave us another twist in the Gretchen/Archie storyline! It was full of twists,turns, and ac...more
Lyn
Gretchen Lowell is a psychopath and a serial killer. She is also gorgeous and intelligent. Now she's a celebrity thanks to the media who call her the 'Beauty Killer.' Fan clubs spring up on the web celebrating the number of days since her escape and waiting for her to strike again.

In this third novel of the series, Detective Archie Sheridan remains in a psych ward months after their last encounter. Archie promised not to kill himself as long Gretchen agrees not to murder anyone else. When the m...more
Danielle
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Christine
Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose and Archie Sheridan is still looking for her. But is he looking for her as a cop, or as a lover? Gretchen is a female serial killer who could stand toe to toe with Hannibal Lector and Archie not only is the detective on the case but a victim she chose to let live … the only victim she released as far as we know. They had an affair while he was held captive and tortured, so is it love or is it a game of cat and mouse. As beautiful Gretchen’s face is splashed...more
Courtney
Chelsea Cain's serial killer novels are like Twizzlers or Tootsie Roll Pops. Unlike Snickers or Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, not everyone is going to like these "lesser" candies, but like those better-selling big-name brands, they still have their fans. Sure, they lack nutritional value. But what's the harm, as long as you don't forget to get some fiber and nutrients from other literary sources? At roughly 300 pages apiece, they're quick reads, too.

"Evil at Heart" is not as strong the first two n...more
N. Hamilton
Chelsea Cain’s third novel again features Gretchen Lowell, a Portland female serial killer, who masquerades as a psychiatrist. Being a Portland psychiatrist myself, as well as a novel junkie, I find this whole notion of a psycho psuedo-therapist rather creepy. That is the point, of course. This super thriller should not be read after eight o’clock at night by anyone who wants to sleep. For the committed insomniac: read away.

Archie Sheridan, the detective who once captured Gretchen has spent mont...more
Abraham
Evil at Heart

By: Chelsea Cain

Plot:

Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose. These days, she’s more of a cause celebrity then a feared killer, thanks to sensationalist news coverage that has made her a star. Her face graces magazine covers and there have been sightings of her around the world. Most shocking of all, Portland Herald reporter Susan Ward has uncovered a bizarre fan club which celebrates the number of days she’s been free…Archie Sheridan hunted Gretchen for a decade, and after his last p...more
Billy
Strike Three!!! Not a good series...,

I've read all 3 of the books in this series. Heartsick, the 1st, was bad; 2 stars from this reviewer. Sweetheart, book 2, was bad; I gave 3 stars, but that was kind. So here is book three. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me; fool me three times, well... the book was free from Amazon Vine so I figured I'd finish the series (still, double shame on me).

Cain's style of writing is not engrossing. Her description of person and place are uninventi...more
Best Crime Books
Having never read Chelsea Cain I had not read the first and second instalment in the "Gretchen Lowell" series however this didn't' make the slightest bit of difference. There is enough history about the characters to be able to get a feel for the previous 2 books in this current story. Having said that I think I would like to go back and read the other two to get the bigger picture.

The story picks up with Archie Sheridan who is busy facing his own personal demons when Henry Sobol his old partner...more
Marcie
It’s been a while since I read the first two novels in Chelsea Cain’s twisted love saga of serial killer Gretchen Lowell and homicide detective Archie Sheridan. I loved those two crazy kids, she carving a heart in him, he throwing her in a prison cell.

Cain went to dark places, unafraid, as an author. Really hot, intense sex has a thread of violence and desperation in it. Sex and aggression, hero and villain, predator and prey. As Archie and Gretchen match wits, their roles switch back and forth....more
Angelakfox
Chelsea Cain’s third thriller in the “Heartsick” series, Evil at Heart, continues to follow the dangerous obsessions of detective Archie Sheridan and serial killer Gretchen Lowell. Though the (in)famous “Beauty Killer” makes very few appearances in the latest novel in the series, she wields impressive control over her fans and enemies.

Archie remains voluntarily hospitalized after his last encounter and tentative “bargain” with Gretchen, but finds himself leaving the supposed safety of the insti...more
Paul Pessolano
Chelsea Cain has invented a truly evil person in the likes of Gretchen Lowell. I can't recall anyone in literature that is more evil, more terrifing, more devious, and more interesting than Gretchen - and that includes Hannibal Lector.

Who else would torture someone to near death and call 911 to save his life, who would carve a heart in a person's chest to show her love for them, and who would leave a trail of bodies, that are still being counted, Gretchen Lowell that's who!!!

Gretchen came to the...more
Quinn
I will start by saying this was not a bad book, in fact if you like gore and brutallity it is right up there with the goriest books written. Chelsea Cain is one wicked sister with a warped, bubbled and blistered mind.

I gave this book two stars because there are so many flaws in the story but two really stand out and really irritate the crap out of me. The first being, you have one of the most prolific serial killers known to human history and somehow she escapes from prison? Stupid! The second...more
Kasia
Previous book in this series, "Sweetheart" was scorching hot but this was more of a drawn out tepid bath, it wasn't bad but it certainly lacked the spice. I recommend reading these in order, and for those who haven't read "Heart Sick "and "Sweetheart" this shouldn't be the starting place, that said I'm happy I got to read it but a bit disappointed to how it turned out. The sheer lunacy of Gretchen being a superstar in the media world was hard to believe, people are obsessed more than ever with t...more
Denise
3.0 out of 5 stars Evil is as evil does..., July 3, 2009

This review is from: Evil at Heart (Hardcover)

This is the third in the "heart" series about Gretchen Lowell, the "Beauty Killer" who has become so notorious that there are tours, web sites and fan clubs set up in her honor. Previous titles include Heartsick and Sweetheart.

What's her claim to this fame? She has kidnapped, tortured, and murdered many men and women through the years -- her most infamous escapade involved the near killing and...more
Brendan
The third book in this series seems hurriedly written and probably would have benefited by being more carefully edited. As the series has progressed, I have found myself liking Susan Ward less and less. She increasingly makes foolish "only-in-horror-movies" choices that seem especially unlikely for someone who has been in life-threatening situations with serial killers twice in the past six months. Plus I never find her one-liners funny and don't know why she insists on making them in front of k...more
Carmaletta Hilton
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Diane
Evil at Heart, by Chelsea Cain, is book #3 of a series which features serial killer, Gretchen Lowell, and Detective Archie Sheridan, who have played a game of cat and mouse in the first two books: Heartsick, and Sweetheart. Although the author uses flashbacks in each novel, which is helpful for recall, or to those who have not read the prior books, this series is so good, I'd recommend reading the books in order to get the full gruesome effect.

Gretchen is a sexy, serial killer, know as the "Beau...more
Shannon
I've started this review now four times and still have no clue what to say. So I'll start with this: I am a die-hard fan of Chelsea Cain, despite being someone who has avoided suspense/thriller/mystery novels for years. But I adore Cain's Archie Sheridan, with his tortured - literally - body and soul, a man who, while fighting to regain some sense of normalcy, has learned that defining "normal" is no longer simple. And Gretchen Lowell...is she a serial killer with a soft spot for Archie? Did she...more
Tim Niland
His ten plus year battle with serial killer Gretchen Lowell has taken a toll on Detective Archie Sheridan. As this novel begins he's under voluntary psychiatric confinement, reeling from vicodin addiction and a failed suicide attempt. His nemesis is on the loose, and when bodies start turning up in Portland, it looks like she has begin to strike again. Archie, the wounded warrior, leaves the hospital only to confront a strange subculture that has evolved: Gretchen Lowell fan clubs have sprung up...more
Boof
I loved this! I didn't realised when I picked this from Amazon Vine that
it was the 3rd book in a series and when it arrived I did wonder if it would be OK as a stand alone read. I needent have worried, it's fine on its own although it has now made me want to race out and buy the first two in the series.

The series is about a sexy, female serial killer, Gretchen Lowell, who in this 3rd book has escpaped from jail shortly before a new spree of killings begin. Police are not only trying to work out...more
Sue
This is the third book featuring detective Archie Sheridan and serial killer Gretchen Lowell. Gretchen, also known as the Beauty Killer, is on the loose. Archie is in a mental health facility attempting to recover from the physical and psychological wounds she has inflicted on him. The media has glamorized the vicious murderer and now Beauty Killer fan clubs are springing up left and right. When body parts start turning up at previous murder sites, Archie is called upon to help capture Gretchen...more
Ron
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Christiana
This book was a fast read. At first, I didn't really like the style or really how the whole situation was introduced. The family on vacation seemed a bit forced and some of the language seemed unrealistic.

However, having not been introduced to the characters in the other books, this one stands fine on its own and creates enough of a dynamic and intrigue to understand some of the motivations behind the characters.

I didn't like the constant flashbacks in the beginning being as the chapters were...more
Michael
It would be easy to compare Chelsea Cain's series featuring serial killer Gretchen Lowell to the best-selling series by Robert Harris featuring the unforgettable Hannibal Lecter. Both series have catapulted their respective authors to immense fame and respect within the publishing community and while Harris has the fame, Cain's series about Lowell is showing signs of having better legs for a long-run of stories. Or, at the very least, that Cain has some kind of plan and something new to say in t...more
Ash
I've seen from other reviewers that Evil at Heart was not the favorite. I agree with ome of the arguments made: it did seem a bit all over the place with no real and clear storyline. The gist of it is that someone is leaving body parts, mainly eyes, in areas where the victims of the Beauty Killer, aka Gretchen Lowell, were found.

It isn't a shock when the police and the media think that Lowell is killing again. She has been free for 67 days or so. However, things get murky when an I Love Gretchen...more
Amy Scissors
I can't help it: I love the twisty, over the top, complete implausibility of this book. Coincidence after coincidence keeps the plot moving swiftly along, and as long as you can suspend your disbelief for a couple hours, this is an enjoyable, quick read.

As this was a middle-of-the-series book, the overarching plot barely moves forward. Instead, Cain focuses on a series of copycat murders and throws in a couple of Gretchen/Archie sexytime flashbacks for good measure. I feel that, while the first...more
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What is this book about & where can I find it? 7 47 Feb 08, 2013 12:33pm  
Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell #3)
Evil at Heart (Paperback)
Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell, #3)
Evil at Heart (Gretchen Lowell, #3)
Gretchen: Thriller

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Chelsea Cain is the New York Times bestselling author of the thriller detective novels Heartsick, Sweetheart, Evil at Heart and The Night Season. Both Heartsick and Sweetheart were listed in Stephen King's Top Ten Books of the Year in Entertainment Weekly. Chelsea lived the first few years of her life on an Iowa commune, then grew up in Bellingham, WA, where the infamous Green River Killer was "th...more
More about Chelsea Cain...
Heartsick (Gretchen Lowell, #1) Sweetheart (Gretchen Lowell, #2) The Night Season (Gretchen Lowell, #4) Kill You Twice (Gretchen Lowell, #5) Confessions of a Teen Sleuth

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“Great. First the anonymous call. Now letters. Body parts all over town. It was like a scavenger hunt for psychos. Running after clues with a half-deranged, serial-killer-obsessed, recovering-addict cop was not a good idea. Then again...” 5 people liked it
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