To be perfectly upfront, this is the third book in the series but you don't have to read the previous two to get into this one. Truly. I have read the other two so I knew already that John Verdon is an excellent writer who can weave a very captivating story.

Basically we have a serial killer who essentially gets away with his murder spree ten years ago, but the spotlight is back on the crime when Kim the young reporter is on the scene. She's doing a documentary on the families of the victims of the Good Shepard and how they've coped and what life has been like for them knowing the murder has never been caught. Reporting aspirations turn into absolute fear once strange things start happening to seemingly scare both her and Dave Gurney away from doing the documentary. Then once the people who are participating in the documentary start being murdered, it ups the ante. Throw in competing police departments and a pissing contest with the FBI and more "facts" that don't make any sense, and you have a very well written crime novel. I basically couldn't fall asleep until I finished it. I pretty much thought I had the killer figured out but I was so completely wrong and I actually forgot about the character and the ending was as screwed up as every good crime novel ending should be.

The only thing I will say is that some parts were a little overwhelming with crime facts and it just solidified that no matter how much Law & Order I have seen, I would not make a very good detective because I wouldn't think of half of the stuff Dave was questioning about the original murders. And Kim's character was a little too dtizy, damsel in distress for me in some parts but her role playing at the end won her over as not a total flake for me.

I so highly recommend that you read this one AND John's other novels- you won't be disappointed at all.

**If you want to win your own copy, go here and enter by August 6! http://strandupdate.blogspot.com/2012...