Killer Heat

A missing person search leads a private investigator into trouble, as police--and her ex--track a serial killer that may be the same case.

This is a very loose series, mostly unrelated, at least so far. ( )

The third book in the Department 6 series, and I'm not sure it's the last. Let me rephrase it, I'll be sorry if it's the last. Brenda Novak hit her stride (finally) in this book. The subject though is nothing new, the suspense however oozes out every page. We are introduced right from the start the suspects, or I'd rather say a family of suspects. We know the killer has to be from this pool of people, but the author does an excellent job of keeping us guessing. The dynamic between the h/h is much more intense than the first two books because of their much much more conflicted/explosive past. Or,it could be that I'm a sucker for cheating/redemption storyline (master example: see Not Quite a Husband, Sherry Thomas).

I never read Brenda Novak before. What I discover from this series is that she has a real knack for creating memorable villains. Not only are they bone-chillingly bad, they have their own distict quirks. They also get their last words on many encounters they have with the protagonists. Isn't that refreshing? (Although this was overly done in Body Heat) ( )