The Christopher Killer (Forensic Mystery) (original 2006; edition 2008)

A fairly standard murder mystery but still entertaining. ( )

Interested in forensic science, seventeen-year-old Cameryn Mahoney assists her father in the autopsy of a local murder victim. Cameryn begins to further investigate the murder and becomes dangerously involved in finding the killer. This is the first book in the Forensic Mystery series

There are scenes in this book that might be a bit graphic for some but for those who have an interest in the world of forensics it's right on target. I'm curious to see where the author is going with a few of the relationships developed between characters. ( )

I am so proud of myself for reading outside of my normal genre. The Christopher Killer is a realistic forensic murder mystery… A far cry from my normal fantasy books. Even though this is not my usual type of read, I enjoyed it.

One of the things I noticed right away about this book was the level of detail that went into developing the plot. If I were writing a forensic mystery novel, I would base my entire content off of what I saw on CSI and Law and Order. Seriously. The author spent a lot of time doing her homework to make sure that her details and facts were accurate and believable. That really made the difference in this book.

The plot was well developed and had a nice twist at the end that I am anxious to see develop more in the remaining books. The characters complimented one another nicely and were believable. Cammie was not perfect, which made her perfect. I love reading about smart main characters, but it’s not believable when a seventeen year old knows everything about life. Those of us that are over the age of seventeen know how ridiculous that concept is. But Cammie wasn’t like that. She was super smart and crafty, but she also thought with her emotions. She was conflicted, which made her a great main character.

There really wasn’t much of a relationship aspect in this book between the characters (at least not romantic relationships). Cammie’s family dynamics were interesting. I’m sure that will continue to develop in the future books, adding to the complicated subplot in the book(s). I am also curious to see what happens between Cammie and Justin (if anything). There seem to be sparks, so I hope my gut is right!

If you are the type like always gravitates towards contemporary reads, you’ll enjoy this book. It’s not a mushy summer romance book, but it is 100% believable (and that’s scary). If you’re like me and tend to stick with one specific genre, it’s time to branch out and try something new. Live on the edge! You’ll enjoy The Christopher Killer. ( )

I read this book as an outside reading book for my high school mysteries class and being such a big fan of forensic science I was excited to of found this series yet I was disappointed with book. I loved the descriptive nature of the crime scenes and the vast amount of forensic information but parts of the story were so cliche. Yes it was different to read a story about a seventeen year old who wanted to investigate her own friends death and be her fathers assitant who just happens to be the county coroner but I feel as though the storyline of her grandmother not wanting her to become assitant and her best friend being one of the victims and the fact that her mother is not present in her life are all storylines that are far too overdone. Don't get me wrong, I somewhat enjoyed reading the book but it was more to find out more things about forensic science than to find out the killer because that was the biggest disapointment. From the beginning the killer was blaringly obvious so then I began to expect there was going to be some big plot twist or something at the end but the killer turned out who I had always expected it to be. ( )