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Reviews by Shelby L. (Hamden, CT)

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Her Last Breath: A Kate Burkholder Novel
by Linda Castillo
Some Doubts (5/21/2013)
I have never read any of the other books in the series and this was a wonderful introduction to Kate Burkholder, smart, empathetic, tough yet human with doubts and mistakes made in her life. The plot is satisfying although I didn't feel compelled to read it in one sitting as others did.

What troubled me was the ending [edited for plot spoiler], which was too neat. Although there were hints along the way as to who the killer could have been I was shocked and annoyed that it all came together so quickly.

Nevertheless it was a good read if you could accept it at "written value"
Close My Eyes
by Sophie McKenzie
Better Than Some (4/4/2013)
Gen is married to Art. Eight years ago she lost her baby as a stillborn or so she believes. For eight years she has whined, wept and hoped, not living her life.
If you can get through the first 100 pages or so of this book you'll find the character development superb, the plot twisty and suspenseful and very gratifying.
It just takes a while to get there and at times you'll wonder why Art or Gen's friends and family haven't insisted on therapy or hospitalization to help her through the quick sand of grief in which she is stuck.
I do wonder though when I give a book like this a 4 where would I rate something like Wuthering Heights or The Invisible Bridge? I think we need a wider number spread as on a scale of 1-10. I might then put this as a 7.
Rage Against the Dying
by Becky Masterman
Couldn't put it down (12/22/2012)
Hooray for Brigid Quinn and her creator Becky Masterman. As the title implies, Brigid will not "go gently into that good night" although she has been forced to retire from the FBI. At 59 years old she has created a quiet life for herself and husband but is drawn back into an unsolved case when the police find the supposed killer who confesses to the serial murders that happen yearly along Route 66. The prologue of the book grabs you and the book does not disappoint.
All of the characters are believable, the story plausible, the tension high. This is a winner of a thriller, up there with the best.
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