Suspense

(2012) Another good detective story involving Ellie Hatcher that turns into a convoluted family saga. Kirkus:
Burke (Long Gone, 2011, etc.) resurrects Ellie Hatcher, an NYPD homicide detective who followed in her father?s footsteps.

Ellie?s father?s death, which police claimed was at his own hand, makes the callout to a young girl?s suicide even more difficult for Ellie. The girl?s grieving mom is a socialite and the wife of a mover and shaker in the music industry, and she?s pulled strings to get the homicide division on her daughter?s case. Teenager Julia Whitmire, privileged and spoiled but left on her own by her self-involved parents, was found dead of a combination of drugs, alcohol and wrist-slashing in the tub of her bathroom. Everyone, from the EMTs on the scene to the medical examiner who responds to Ellie, writes it off as a clear-cut suicide. Julia even left a note that is undisputedly in her own hand. However, pressure from the bigwigs sends the increasingly impatient Ellie and her partner, Rogan, back to the crime scene to work the case as a murder. In the course of their investigation, Ellie and Rogan meet a motley group of street kids, the family of Julia?s best friend, Ramona, and stumble onto a blog written by Ramona?s mom, Adrienne, that centers around her own sexual abuse while she was a child. Burke keeps it real by having Ellie unconvinced that Julia?s death was anything but a suicide, but her stubborn refusal to envision that the girl was murdered hinders, rather than helps, the probe. Ellie also suffers personal issues in that her boyfriend, an assistant district attorney, wants a little more out of the relationship, and Ellie remains afraid to take that step. In Ellie, Burke has built a likable, flawed heroine trying to leave the things that have haunted her behind and not succeeding very well. Burke?s prose falls into an easy, natural rhythm when she enters Ellie Hatcher?s world, and her plotting rarely disappoints.

A smooth, compelling read that is proof positive that Burke continues to mature as a writer; this entry in the Ellie Hatcher series sings.
Pub Date: June 19, 2012

ISBN: 978-0-06-199916-1

Page Count: 352

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

As with the first three in the Ellie Hatcher series, you will find a good storyline and good characters, a mix of thriller and police procedural and a solid and quick read. Ellie Hatcher is a great character, and in this fourth of the series you get a peak into her personal life and learn more about her.

I do hope that at some point Burke plans to revisit the story of her father. Threaded throughout the whole of the series, his story colours Ellie's perspectives and decisions, both in her police work and her personal life. It would be a great read. ( )

Never Tell by Alafair Burke is a superbly crafted and intriguing mystery that is quite suspenseful and full of secrets. To read my review in its entirety, please visit http://www.bookreviewsandmorebykathy.com/2012/05/17/never-tell/ ( )

This audiobook kept me entertained on a long trip. I'm a fairly new fan of Alafair Burke and this is my second book of hers that I've read. I really like the character of Ellie Hatcher and look forward to reading the rest of the books in this series. I've recently bought a signed edition of her newest, The Ex, and am looking forward to reading that as soon I can get through the stack of 15 library books next to my chair! ( )