You know when you’re reading something and hope there will be more of this and then realize IT’S A SERIES! That was my thrilled experience when I left Grace Hartwell’s Jacksonville-cop world and came up for air. What a gripping and satisfying read. Grace is a homicide detective who keeps to herself, relying on her smarts and independence to be the best there is. Here she’s faced with two cases, one of which may not even be a murder—a building inspector has been found dead at the bottom of an under-construction building. There’s an empty bottle of whiskey by his side, so maybe this will be an open-and-shut accident. But nothing can be simple for Grace. Then there’s the much bigger deal of a couple who are found tortured and dead in their home. The husband turns out to have been quite the ladies man, so maybe a jilted lover did it? But when more victims are found, there may be a serial killer—oops, a pattern killer, as she’s been instructed to call them (less media frenzy). A real job is portrayed here with more than one responsibility and workplace politics to boot, and working both cases takes Grace and readers on a breakneck and emotional ride through terrifying danger and the excitement of a tough puzzle and chase. Get this on your TBR now.—Henrietta Thornton
