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Taylor Jackson #5
The Immortals
It is Samhain--the Blood Harvest. Nonbelievers call it Hallowe'en. The night when eight Nashville teenagers are found dead, with occult symbols carved into their naked bodies. It's a ritual the killers believe was blessed by Death himself.
When children are victimized, emotions always run high, and this case has the public both outraged and terrified: a dangerous combination. Recently reinstated homicide lieutenant Taylor Jackson knows she has to act quickly, but tread carefully.
Exploring the baffling culture of mysticism and witchcraft, Taylor is immersed in a darkness that threatens to unbalance the order of her world, and learns how unchecked wrath can push a killer to his limits.
400 pages, Paperback
First published September 21, 2010
231 people are currently reading
2257 people want to read
About the author
J.T. Ellison
81 books6,865 followersJ.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 30 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of the literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.
With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards They have also been optioned for television, and published in 28 countries.
J.T. lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens, one of whom is a ghost, where she is hard at work on her next novel.
With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards They have also been optioned for television, and published in 28 countries.
J.T. lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens, one of whom is a ghost, where she is hard at work on her next novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 190 reviews
March 7, 2017
Loved rereading this book, dealing with the covens and magick, and then also Baldwin's case that sent him to Nashville after the deaths of his team members and the affair with Charlotte!
*First read May 29th 2011*
Great 5th book in the series, great murder mystery! Glad to have read it :)
*First read May 29th 2011*
Great 5th book in the series, great murder mystery! Glad to have read it :)
June 7, 2014
Let me just say that I have really been enjoying this series. This time the crime is the unexplained deaths of 8 teenagers all living within a few blocks of one another and all on the same afternoon. LT Taylor Jackson and her homicide team from the Nashville Police Department definitely have their hands full on this one. There are satanic symbols left at the scene. Very intense and very good book.
March 20, 2021
Not my favourite book of the series. I found J.T. Ellison a bit verbose at times - repetitive and I am not a big fan of the succubus genre or paranormal and yes I know it was all based around Hallowe'en and teenagers.
The writing got better after the halfway mark and I did like finding out more about John Baldwin's earlier days with the FBI.
The writing got better after the halfway mark and I did like finding out more about John Baldwin's earlier days with the FBI.
January 19, 2011
The Immortals (Taylor Jackson) by J. T. Ellison (Mass Market Paperback - Oct 1, 2010)
In this sometimes confusing and sometimes unsuspensful, suspense novel we catch up to Taylor Jackson just as she has been reinstated to the Nashville PD and as the ceremony finishes, congratulations are passed around and they are off to celebrate Taylor gets called to the scene of a crime. A horrific ritualistic murder involving a teenager. Then she is called to another murder, then another and another and so on. At the same time, her fiancé Baldwin has been called back to Quantico to deal with something that had happened a number of years ago.
This is the 5th book in the Taylor Jackson series and some readers may find it a bit difficult to understand fully what is going on and who is who and how they relate to Taylor since the book is sprinkled liberally with references from earlier books.
What could have been an exciting fast paced novel of suspense and thrills just based on the types of murders they are, quickly can become frustrating to the reader when the reader realizes that this is not going to be able to be read as a stand alone
One of my problems with a few novels is some authors ability to pull a reader so far out of the main story by telling a second story that has absolutely no bearing on the main theme. And that is what I felt happened with "The Immortals". Every time the suspense started to build and it finally was becoming a page-turner, Ellison would break from the main story to tell a secondary story that mostly took place many years ago.
While I understood that the protagonist was a teenager and that sometimes teens have ego issues, I found "Raven" to be especially pompous, a blow-hard, overly erudite and annoying beyond the normal feelings that one has for a possible murderer.
Unfortunately, though I really wanted to enjoy this novel just based on the ideas laid out in the description, I just could not get into it and find anything to recommend to anyone.
Edited to add this********SPOILER ALERT*********
If you have issues with incest you may want to stay away form this book---while it's not a huge part of the theme of the book, due to the nature of the sex scenes it may be of concern to some.
In this sometimes confusing and sometimes unsuspensful, suspense novel we catch up to Taylor Jackson just as she has been reinstated to the Nashville PD and as the ceremony finishes, congratulations are passed around and they are off to celebrate Taylor gets called to the scene of a crime. A horrific ritualistic murder involving a teenager. Then she is called to another murder, then another and another and so on. At the same time, her fiancé Baldwin has been called back to Quantico to deal with something that had happened a number of years ago.
This is the 5th book in the Taylor Jackson series and some readers may find it a bit difficult to understand fully what is going on and who is who and how they relate to Taylor since the book is sprinkled liberally with references from earlier books.
What could have been an exciting fast paced novel of suspense and thrills just based on the types of murders they are, quickly can become frustrating to the reader when the reader realizes that this is not going to be able to be read as a stand alone
One of my problems with a few novels is some authors ability to pull a reader so far out of the main story by telling a second story that has absolutely no bearing on the main theme. And that is what I felt happened with "The Immortals". Every time the suspense started to build and it finally was becoming a page-turner, Ellison would break from the main story to tell a secondary story that mostly took place many years ago.
While I understood that the protagonist was a teenager and that sometimes teens have ego issues, I found "Raven" to be especially pompous, a blow-hard, overly erudite and annoying beyond the normal feelings that one has for a possible murderer.
Unfortunately, though I really wanted to enjoy this novel just based on the ideas laid out in the description, I just could not get into it and find anything to recommend to anyone.
Edited to add this********SPOILER ALERT*********
If you have issues with incest you may want to stay away form this book---while it's not a huge part of the theme of the book, due to the nature of the sex scenes it may be of concern to some.
October 23, 2010
I would really give this one a 2.8. Just couldn't bring out a 3 from me. Love the author, but this one was not quite up to her usual page-turning intensity. The whole Goth/Wicca scene was a drag. Found my mind drifting while reading it. Not a good sign. Thought Cold Room captured and kept my attention much more. Hope she holds true to form with her next one since I have found her books alternate between fabulous and ho hum.
June 18, 2015
Although some might hesitate at the supernatural twist to this installment in the Taylor Jackson series, I found it just riveting! That twist made it uniquely different. It added a whole new concept to the murders and pushed Taylor's character to show some insecurities that made her more human to the reader. This is one story where the killer is a complete surprise, also - at least until the very end and that's makes for some awesome late night reading!
May 22, 2025
“Nonbelievers call it Hallowe'en. The night when eight Nashville teenagers are found dead, with occult symbols carved into their naked bodies. It's a ritual the killers believe was blessed by Death himself.
When children are victimized, emotions always run high, and this case has the public both outraged and terrified: a dangerous combination. Recently reinstated homicide lieutenant Taylor Jackson knows she has to act quickly, but tread carefully.
Exploring the baffling culture of mysticism and witchcraft, Taylor is immersed in a darkness that threatens to unbalance the order of her world, and learns how unchecked wrath can push a killer to his limits.”
When children are victimized, emotions always run high, and this case has the public both outraged and terrified: a dangerous combination. Recently reinstated homicide lieutenant Taylor Jackson knows she has to act quickly, but tread carefully.
Exploring the baffling culture of mysticism and witchcraft, Taylor is immersed in a darkness that threatens to unbalance the order of her world, and learns how unchecked wrath can push a killer to his limits.”
April 28, 2020
2,5/5. Alleen het verhaal van Baldwin was nog enigszins "leuk". het hoofdplot met Taylor gaat over vampieren, hekserij en helderziende. Not my cup off tea. Ontzettend teleurstellend. Ben beter gewend van deze auteur
May 7, 2018
Her BEST BOOK of the series... hands down. Onto #6!
May 25, 2023
I have liked the LT Taylor Jackson, Nashville, series a lot but this was the most violent book I have ever read. I struggled. Halloween in Nashville was a horror with 7-8 children dead! Witches, Worlocks and a lot more!!! I can't even begin. Read at your own risk !!!
July 2, 2023
Great book, great series.
Detective Taylor Jackson has just been reinstated as lieutenant of her "murder squad ". Her team is back in place, she has her job back, all she wants to do is celebrate. Unfortunately, a murdered teenager calls them back to work. Within a few hours of discovering the first body, seven more are found. All teenagers, who appear to have been drugged and all have the same symbol carved into their abdomen. If that's not bad enough, it's Halloween, a holy night for some, a night to just be crazy for others.
Taylor's fiancee, John Baldwin, a profiler with the FBI, is called back to Quantico to answer to a review board regarding a case his team worked on several years earlier. It involved a serial murderer, and child molster, who kidnaps very young blonde girls. Questions arise when a former team member, Charlotte, was killed by the understudy of a serial killer from an earlier book, who was called the Snow White killer. As it turns out Charlotte has a connection with Snow White, one no one was aware of. During this investigation, Baldwin and Charlotte have a brief but very intense affair. Charlotte left notes implicating Baldwin in a plan to plant evidence to catch the child molester. The out come of this hearing could cost Baldwin his job, but more important, his lies could cost him his relationship with Taylor.
As Taylor and her team begin to gather evidence, it points to a small coven of goth teenagers who worship the God of death. And they have sacrificed in his name. It is quickly learnedly that drugs are also involved. A woman claiming to be a witch shows up in Taylor's office saying she can help the investigation. Taylor has a hard time believing in what she is saying but she needs help, and will take it wherever it comes from.
This story takes place over just a couple of days. It's fast paced and intense. There's a small twist thrown in towards the end. But this was just a well written mystery /thriller. I loved it just like all the rest of the books in the series.
Detective Taylor Jackson has just been reinstated as lieutenant of her "murder squad ". Her team is back in place, she has her job back, all she wants to do is celebrate. Unfortunately, a murdered teenager calls them back to work. Within a few hours of discovering the first body, seven more are found. All teenagers, who appear to have been drugged and all have the same symbol carved into their abdomen. If that's not bad enough, it's Halloween, a holy night for some, a night to just be crazy for others.
Taylor's fiancee, John Baldwin, a profiler with the FBI, is called back to Quantico to answer to a review board regarding a case his team worked on several years earlier. It involved a serial murderer, and child molster, who kidnaps very young blonde girls. Questions arise when a former team member, Charlotte, was killed by the understudy of a serial killer from an earlier book, who was called the Snow White killer. As it turns out Charlotte has a connection with Snow White, one no one was aware of. During this investigation, Baldwin and Charlotte have a brief but very intense affair. Charlotte left notes implicating Baldwin in a plan to plant evidence to catch the child molester. The out come of this hearing could cost Baldwin his job, but more important, his lies could cost him his relationship with Taylor.
As Taylor and her team begin to gather evidence, it points to a small coven of goth teenagers who worship the God of death. And they have sacrificed in his name. It is quickly learnedly that drugs are also involved. A woman claiming to be a witch shows up in Taylor's office saying she can help the investigation. Taylor has a hard time believing in what she is saying but she needs help, and will take it wherever it comes from.
This story takes place over just a couple of days. It's fast paced and intense. There's a small twist thrown in towards the end. But this was just a well written mystery /thriller. I loved it just like all the rest of the books in the series.
December 3, 2010
For Detective Taylor Jackson’s part in helping to stop “The Conductor”, a horrible serial killer, Taylor has recently been reinstated. Detective Jackson is putting her team back together again. Taylor does not have much rest time before she is needed. While heading home after celebrating, Taylor receives a phone call from dispatch of a possible homicide. Detective Jackson and her team head over to the scene. While investigating, they receive another report of a homicide. Before Taylor knows it, reports of homicide are coming in from every direction. When it is all said and done, there are eight young teenage bodies. Each one with strange occult symbols carved into their bodies. Can Taylor piece together all the pieces before the killer strikes again?
The Immortals is the fifth Taylor Jackson novel. The Immortals I thought was a bit darker and grittier than the prior novels. It moved slower than the other ones. While I started this series with reading book three and have enjoyed every book since, I must admit that this book took me a little longer to get into than usual. Not saying that this book was bad as it was up to par with the rest of the prior novels. Detective Jackson is one tough cookie. She can hang with the big boys. No matter how big or scary the killer is…Taylor always makes sure to get her man. Mrs. Ellison does know how to serve up a good mystery novel with The Immortals! I can not wait to read the next Taylor Jackson novel.
The Immortals is the fifth Taylor Jackson novel. The Immortals I thought was a bit darker and grittier than the prior novels. It moved slower than the other ones. While I started this series with reading book three and have enjoyed every book since, I must admit that this book took me a little longer to get into than usual. Not saying that this book was bad as it was up to par with the rest of the prior novels. Detective Jackson is one tough cookie. She can hang with the big boys. No matter how big or scary the killer is…Taylor always makes sure to get her man. Mrs. Ellison does know how to serve up a good mystery novel with The Immortals! I can not wait to read the next Taylor Jackson novel.
May 23, 2013
Although this fifth volume in the Taylor Jackson series is a little hokey with its witchcraft angle, it remains a fast-paced and exciting read. The supernatural elements just feel particularly false because the previous four novels really do not provide any sort of foundation for the series to take a turn to include the real power of witches. Ellison even provides a shout-out to John Connolly, who has done an excellent job of weaving in a supernatural element to his mystery series starring his private investigator, Charlie Parker. But, the witchery aside, this is still an interesting plot. And as Taylor works to solve this Halloween spree of murders, a significant chunk of Baldwin’s past is revealed both through his testimony at a hearing and in his own sort of flashbacks on the case that brought him together with Charlotte. As more of that side story unfolds, some truly shocking information is introduced - promising challenges for the couple in future novels.
More time is spent here setting up for the Pretender - so it seems that the final showdown will be coming soon! I am really looking forward to it! And at least the cliffhanger for this one is more of an uplifting one than usual! This is a fun series with great characters! I am going to be sad to be completely caught up with it!
More time is spent here setting up for the Pretender - so it seems that the final showdown will be coming soon! I am really looking forward to it! And at least the cliffhanger for this one is more of an uplifting one than usual! This is a fun series with great characters! I am going to be sad to be completely caught up with it!
October 7, 2010
With a keen understanding of what her fans crave, JT Ellison swiftly paints a pulse-pounding tale with the introduction of her newest thriller “The Immortals”. Delving into an unexpected sub-culture—the occult—Ellison ratchets up the fear with each spine-tingling page, as much loved Jackson confronts a strange and mysterious veil of evil.
As night falls, Lieutenant Taylor Jackson should be kicking back with a beer and her team, basking in the success of her reinstatement to the homicide division, instead they’ve received an emergency call that will change the fabric of the community. Panic has set in—in a well-off Nashville suburb—as one teenage victim after another is discovered.
It is Samhain—the Blood Harvest or what most recognize as Halloween and the ghouls have come out to play. Only this night, the game is vengeance and the consequences are deadly.
www.suspensemagazine.com
As night falls, Lieutenant Taylor Jackson should be kicking back with a beer and her team, basking in the success of her reinstatement to the homicide division, instead they’ve received an emergency call that will change the fabric of the community. Panic has set in—in a well-off Nashville suburb—as one teenage victim after another is discovered.
It is Samhain—the Blood Harvest or what most recognize as Halloween and the ghouls have come out to play. Only this night, the game is vengeance and the consequences are deadly.
www.suspensemagazine.com
August 19, 2016
Ich hab in einer Thrillerreihe einen Band noch nie so vollkommen außer der Reihe gefunden wie diesen hier.
Normalerweise bin ich ja ein Fan von Hexenzeug oder Satanisten in einem guten Thriller, aber hier passte das Thema sowas von nicht zu der ganzen Reihe. Kann es nicht mal richtig erklären. Fühlte sich für mich einfach vollkommen fehl am Platz an. Hab die meiste Zeit nur gedacht...wtf.
Das Beste am Buch waren wirklich noch die ganzen Rückblenden zu Baldwins altem Fall.
Hoffe ja, dass der nächste Band dann wieder gewohnt sehr gut wird!
Normalerweise bin ich ja ein Fan von Hexenzeug oder Satanisten in einem guten Thriller, aber hier passte das Thema sowas von nicht zu der ganzen Reihe. Kann es nicht mal richtig erklären. Fühlte sich für mich einfach vollkommen fehl am Platz an. Hab die meiste Zeit nur gedacht...wtf.
Das Beste am Buch waren wirklich noch die ganzen Rückblenden zu Baldwins altem Fall.
Hoffe ja, dass der nächste Band dann wieder gewohnt sehr gut wird!
July 23, 2017
This was my 4th J T Ellison book and I was very disappointed with this one The chapters relating to the investigators were just fine but the chapters relating to The Immortals were just plain weird and not credible.
March 4, 2013
Holy mother this one was something else, love it. J. T. Ellison is one of my favourites now, highly recommend this one, actually highly recommend the whole series
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February 1, 2022Categories
Crime Thriller, Police Procedural Mystery & Detective, Women Sleuths Mystery & Detective Fiction, Suspense
Miniseries
A Taylor Jackson Novel (Book #5)
Crime Thriller, Police Procedural Mystery & Detective, Women Sleuths Mystery & Detective Fiction, Suspense
Miniseries
A Taylor Jackson Novel (Book #5)
September 7, 2017
Oy. What to say.
I really like Taylor Jackson. She's a no-nonsense cop who rarely has the time or inclination to feel sorry for herself.
The bad guys, though...more than once I thought about quitting this one, because no matter how much research is listed in the back of the book, the information about Wicca in this book is flawed at best. Yes, some of it is supposed to be wrong, because the bad guys are misusing magic and witchcraft, are supposed to have misinterpreted some of the basic tenets. I warred between wanting to keep reading and wanting to chuck my Kindle across the frakking room.
About half the book is set in the past, because Baldwin has to appear before the FBI's version of the OPR, and his "testimony" is presented as if it's happening now. I'm afraid I bored with that quickly. I didn't give a rip about how his relationship with Charlotte started or ended, and the entirety of that part of the plot could have been summed up in one word: suspension.
Then, on top of everything else I didn't particularly like, Baldwin has been keeping a giant secret from Taylor, and when I read that line, I rolled my eyes. Secrets ALWAYS come back to bite you in the ass, my fine friend, and for this one, Taylor is going to throw one HELL of a fit.
I almost have to read it just for that. Taylor and Baldwin hardly ever fight, and this promises to be a knock-down, drag-out. Might even buy some popcorn.
I really like Taylor Jackson. She's a no-nonsense cop who rarely has the time or inclination to feel sorry for herself.
The bad guys, though...more than once I thought about quitting this one, because no matter how much research is listed in the back of the book, the information about Wicca in this book is flawed at best. Yes, some of it is supposed to be wrong, because the bad guys are misusing magic and witchcraft, are supposed to have misinterpreted some of the basic tenets. I warred between wanting to keep reading and wanting to chuck my Kindle across the frakking room.
About half the book is set in the past, because Baldwin has to appear before the FBI's version of the OPR, and his "testimony" is presented as if it's happening now. I'm afraid I bored with that quickly. I didn't give a rip about how his relationship with Charlotte started or ended, and the entirety of that part of the plot could have been summed up in one word: suspension.
Then, on top of everything else I didn't particularly like, Baldwin has been keeping a giant secret from Taylor, and when I read that line, I rolled my eyes. Secrets ALWAYS come back to bite you in the ass, my fine friend, and for this one, Taylor is going to throw one HELL of a fit.
I almost have to read it just for that. Taylor and Baldwin hardly ever fight, and this promises to be a knock-down, drag-out. Might even buy some popcorn.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2019
So, I've reached the fifth LT. Taylor Jackson book. I started reading them on the recommendation of my wife, who read them some time ago and enjoyed them. I noticed several things while reading this book.
The editing of the series makes it hard for me to read them. I can only assume that J.T. Ellison intended to have the story follow a stream of consciousness from the mind of characters who don't think clear thoughts. The punctuation is what really gets to me. There are many commas where they should not be and even more missing from where they should be. There are numerous run-on sentences. I understand keeping up tension with disjointed, crashing thoughts, but narration could still be grammatically correct and build the story. Ellison also uses ten dollar words where five dollar words would suffice, but maybe that says more about me than her.
At first I thought that Ellison had changed her writing style completely, and I didn't like it. After reading a few chapters, I realized that she was writing about absurd characters, and she was doing such a good job with their absurdity that it stood out.
Maybe it's just me, but I think LT. Jackson is actually becoming a worse person and police officer. I think she is missing opportunities with her personal biases. Also, the Highsmythe nonsense from the last book is still lingering. Based on LT. Jackson's behavior up to this point, I can only imagine that a massive breakdown is imminent.
The editing of the series makes it hard for me to read them. I can only assume that J.T. Ellison intended to have the story follow a stream of consciousness from the mind of characters who don't think clear thoughts. The punctuation is what really gets to me. There are many commas where they should not be and even more missing from where they should be. There are numerous run-on sentences. I understand keeping up tension with disjointed, crashing thoughts, but narration could still be grammatically correct and build the story. Ellison also uses ten dollar words where five dollar words would suffice, but maybe that says more about me than her.
At first I thought that Ellison had changed her writing style completely, and I didn't like it. After reading a few chapters, I realized that she was writing about absurd characters, and she was doing such a good job with their absurdity that it stood out.
Maybe it's just me, but I think LT. Jackson is actually becoming a worse person and police officer. I think she is missing opportunities with her personal biases. Also, the Highsmythe nonsense from the last book is still lingering. Based on LT. Jackson's behavior up to this point, I can only imagine that a massive breakdown is imminent.
March 15, 2011
Behold the power of Twitter! I found J.T. Ellison because TV’s Andy Levy included her in a #FollowFriday Tweet way back when I first joined Twitter, in March of 2009. She was funny, engaging, and personable. (Like her live-Tweeting of some Nashville Predators hockey games! And her Tweets back and forth with her husband Randy? Adorable!) So when her books came up on one of those Amazon.Com 4-for-3 promotions, I just had to check them out. All The Pretty Girls is without question the single best debut novel, of any genre, period, that I have ever read; I cannot emphasize that enough. The protagonist is a strong woman without being cliché, the supporting characters are fully developed in their own right, the villain is horrifying yet believable, the writing is simply divine, and the Nashville scenery smolders in the background. I want to visit! But not stand-outside-her-house-with-a-boombox visit, because that would be creepy.
I was hooked! J.T. Ellison’s superb level of writing transcends the pure guilty pleasure thriller. Think less Daniel Patterson, more Harlan Coben. So when The Immortals came out just in time for Halloween, I was beyond excited.
On the surface, Ellison’s premise seems hardly believable. A coven of “evil” teenage goth-types perverting the beliefs of Wicca and murdering a slew of their fellow “good kid” classmates? *eyeroll* In the wake of this year’s recent suicides by both gay and straight victims of bullying, it seems like a “Law & Order” ripped-from-the-headlines type of ploy. But Ellison’s narration pushes and pulls and whispers and seduces you down their perverse rabbit hole of thought. Teenagers are kind of assholes when they want to be. Ramped up in the groupthink of a cult, revenge-murder seems…logical. Her writing gets under your skin more slowly in this novel, I think, because those under 18 are thought of as children. Kids are not archetypal villains, even when we have events like the Columbine High School shootings from 12 years ago as a part of the cultural lexicon. (I would like to stop and say SPOLIER ALERT for the rest of my review!)
http://mkisstacked.wordpress.com/2010...
I was hooked! J.T. Ellison’s superb level of writing transcends the pure guilty pleasure thriller. Think less Daniel Patterson, more Harlan Coben. So when The Immortals came out just in time for Halloween, I was beyond excited.
On the surface, Ellison’s premise seems hardly believable. A coven of “evil” teenage goth-types perverting the beliefs of Wicca and murdering a slew of their fellow “good kid” classmates? *eyeroll* In the wake of this year’s recent suicides by both gay and straight victims of bullying, it seems like a “Law & Order” ripped-from-the-headlines type of ploy. But Ellison’s narration pushes and pulls and whispers and seduces you down their perverse rabbit hole of thought. Teenagers are kind of assholes when they want to be. Ramped up in the groupthink of a cult, revenge-murder seems…logical. Her writing gets under your skin more slowly in this novel, I think, because those under 18 are thought of as children. Kids are not archetypal villains, even when we have events like the Columbine High School shootings from 12 years ago as a part of the cultural lexicon. (I would like to stop and say SPOLIER ALERT for the rest of my review!)
http://mkisstacked.wordpress.com/2010...
April 18, 2024
Engaging - I picked this up understanding that I was starting in the "middle' of a police procedural series (something I often do). I was more than pleasantly surprised. The crime writing aspect was tight and Ellison does a great job of melding a past situation (perhaps told in real time in an earlier book?) with the current. Drawing in the "supernatural" side was also an enjoyable respite from the regualr serial killer trope of these kinds of series. Ellison did a solid job researching Wiccan & Goth groups and did an admirable job of portraying things pretty realistically, as opposed to how badly Hollywood usually botches things. I don't know about the Nashville scene but am well familiar with it in my area- it's pretty on-point. Bottom line is, this left me 1) wanting to know what happens next with Jackson & Baldwin (& MacKenzie needs more page time especially his back-story), and 2) willing to go back & read the first 4 books in the series. An all round worthy read.
September 10, 2017
This is third novel of this series I have read. I want to like this series. But the characters are predictable, cookie cutter projections of "smart gorgeous cop and FBI agent who adores her" fantasies. When I compare her characters to those of Elizabeth George, Denise Mina, Rendell, Gillian Flynn, Laura Lippman and others who have created intriguing, complex, imaginative characters who are flawed and compelling, her series falls short. Her standard issue "bad Wiccans" of "the Immortals" are not imbued with the elegant depths of Joe Hill's steeped in the dark pleasures of writing. I will try what seems to be a stand alone novel of hers hoping that if released from a best selling template of plot and character Ellison may create a book that is riveting. I so want to find an author to read.
August 10, 2021
Baldwin is called back to his prior duty station for a hearing about his actions when his three co-workers died, the incident that has haunted him. Taylor investigates the deaths of 7 teenagers in Nashville which appear drug-related after the autopsies show a cocktail of drugs. A psychic, Adriane, helps Taylor and is injured and raped when confronting the young man, Raven, believed to be behind the murders. Taylor ultimately has to shoot Raven when he is threatening classmates. Baldwin continues the search for Fitz after the hearing and locates him. That story is largely a sequel to this book.
April 15, 2024
perhaps it was the occult aspects of this story, but I had a difficult time accepting that these kids could get away with any of this.
I listened to the audiobook since the paperback copy I ordered never arrived. It was difficult to follow due to some of the names of the young adults and the Raven and his group.
This again has gratuitous violence, and disturbing descriptions.
A police procedural, it also throws in two locations and time disparity, which makes the audiobook almost impossible to follow.
Wish I could have read a hard copy, I might have liked it better.
I bought the audiobook from Audible.
I listened to the audiobook since the paperback copy I ordered never arrived. It was difficult to follow due to some of the names of the young adults and the Raven and his group.
This again has gratuitous violence, and disturbing descriptions.
A police procedural, it also throws in two locations and time disparity, which makes the audiobook almost impossible to follow.
Wish I could have read a hard copy, I might have liked it better.
I bought the audiobook from Audible.
October 17, 2020
#5 in the Taylor Jackson series. With Fitz still missing, The Pretender still on the loose, & Baldwin having to be back in Quantico, Taylor is overrun with a new murder. 7 teenagers in one neighborhood. Sifting through evidence, motive, & the occult has Taylor & McKenzie trying to figure out the who's & whys while trying to keep an open mind on the witchcraft aspect. Meanwhile, the book delves into Baldwin's background & an old case involving him & Charlotte. Not as good as the other books in the series. Too much occult & witchcraft mumbo jumbo.
February 12, 2019
Parents come home from work to find their teen-aged children murdered in their Nashville homes on Halloween.
Lt. Taylor Jackson and her team respond to one scene, only to be called to another and another until there are eight murders at six locations. Many of the victims have occult symopbols carved on their chests.
It's a fast-paced thriller and a very good entry in this series. And it gives Taylor a new witch friend along the way.
Lt. Taylor Jackson and her team respond to one scene, only to be called to another and another until there are eight murders at six locations. Many of the victims have occult symopbols carved on their chests.
It's a fast-paced thriller and a very good entry in this series. And it gives Taylor a new witch friend along the way.
April 12, 2019
Vampires? Yes. The occult? You betcha. Incest? ... wasn’t looking for it necessarily, but totally worked.
This is my favorite in the series so far... It focused mostly on the the case. Taylor got to be an investigator rather than the focus of a deranged serial killer (which was in the periphery). We got a glimpse into the past... Baldwin’s misguided affair with the wench and a disturbing child murder case.
I loved every second of this book.
This is my favorite in the series so far... It focused mostly on the the case. Taylor got to be an investigator rather than the focus of a deranged serial killer (which was in the periphery). We got a glimpse into the past... Baldwin’s misguided affair with the wench and a disturbing child murder case.
I loved every second of this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2018
This is by far my favorite book of the Taylor Jackson series, however, that doesn't say much. The ending was emotionally brutal. I did find the story line to be interesting though, and there were a few twists I didn't see coming. This is still not my favorite series, but this book was the easiest for me to get through.
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