Thank you #SuzyApprovedBookTours #partner, for the advanced copy of The Kind to Kill in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Severn House
Published: December 6, 2022
Summary:
A missing tourist spells trouble for Senior Investigator Shana Merchant in this page-turning twisty mystery set in an atmospheric island community with a small-town vibe.
Former NYPD detective Shana Merchant is a skilled Senior Investigator keeping New York’s beautiful Thousands Islands community safe. She’s a loving partner. A strong woman. A survivor.
She’s also bound by blood to a serial killer. And after months of concealing the truth from the world as she hunted Blake Bram down, her secret is finally out.
Shana just wants to get on with her life and win back her community’s trust. But as Alexandria Bay fills up with tourists in advance of the annual festival known as Pirate Days, a visitor goes missing, and the case threatens to destroy not just the celebrations, but what remains of Shana’s reputation.
Shana’s not to blame for the killer in her family, but people are starting to whisper that she attracts trouble. That A-Bay was safer before she arrived. And as the investigation deepens, Shana starts to fear that they may be right.
Because while Bram is gone, he is far from forgotten.
My thoughts:
This is the fourth book in Tessa Wegert’s Shana Merchant series and let me just say this series is one of my favorites! I love that each book is better than the last. It really is the perfect combination of police-procedural and psychological thriller…and I cannot read them fast enough!
While this book totally could be read as a stand-alone, I highly recommend reading the series as a whole. Yes, there is a self-contained case for Shana and her team to solve, but this one in particular relies heavily on the continuing thread that was started in the first book and has been building ever since. This thread really is a crucial part of the current case and while the author does give a bit of the backstory for those who are new to the series and haven’t yet read the previous books, you will have a much richer reading experience if you have. But maybe if this is your first time reading a Shana Merchant book, it will leave you eager to go back to the beginning!
What I really loved about this particular installment was the continued character development that we still get, even at book four. Seeing Shana recover from her PTSD and how it has affected her has really made this series and takes center stage here. The idea that a copycat is looming wreaks havoc on Shana, especially knowing that Bram is gone. Why would someone be doing this and is it at all connected to Shana?
This book kept me glued to the pages and was easily a binge-worthy read. I had so many theories as to who might be behind things, and it wasn’t until right before the reveal that I started to figure it out. That in no way detracted from my enjoyment – it only enhanced it because I had to know the why! So many good twists and turns and red herring to really keep you on your toes, and I loved that even with a serial killer we still get a look at the psychology of things. This is just such a well-crafted story, and I cannot recommend it enough! If you love a good cat and mouse game, where nothing is as it seems, this one is definitely for you!
I do hope this isn’t the last of this series…I need more Shana, especially with that ending!
Books in this series:
- Death in the Family
- The Dead Season
- Dead Wind
- The Kind to Kill
