Andrea Kane

I know this author from her psychological thrillers but I have never read one of her historical fiction stories. When I read the author's biography I realized that the author actually started out as a historical fiction writer before turning to her psychological thrillers. I read mixed reviews about this book so I was not sure about it going into it from the beginning. Yet, I was on the side of enjoyment. Alexandria is full of hellfire. I loved her willingness to stand up to Drake. She sure show more matched him wit for wit. They were a match made in love. Although, I know that Drake's nickname for Alex was "princess" to tease her but by the end it turned into a cute term of endearment. The moments when Alex and Drake were alone was great. I could really feel the love between them. Another person that I enjoyed seeing in this book was Smitty. Drake's right hand man. He was so kind and was a man of wisdom. After actually enjoying this book, I want to continue on with the next book and get to know Drake's younger sister, Samantha even more in book two. show less

The Forensics Instincts' (FI) crew are back and this case is quite convoluted and touches home in more ways than one. It all begins when Ryan McKay's younger sister, Fiona, a budding jewelry designer, visits one of her favorite antiquities contacts for information and finds the elderly woman's murdered body instead. This is followed by Fiona's apartment being ransacked and her computer hacked. What could an antiques dealer and a jewelry designer possibly have in common? The more the FI crew show more investigates, the more they realize this may be tied to a McKay family heirloom. As more clues are uncovered, they begin to realize that everyone they're coming in contact with have secret pasts they want to keep hidden. Some tied to the IRA and events in the mid-1980s in Ireland and others tied to the McKay ancestors and their immigration from Ireland to the US in the 1920s. Is it possible that Ryan and Fiona's great-grandmother put clues into the tapestry she created all those years ago? Will they be able to piece together the clues before someone else dies, perhaps one of the McKays or a member of the FI team?

One of the things I enjoy about all of the Forensics Instincts books are the suspense and how well the team works together. They may seem to be a mishmash of disparate personalities and abilities, but they work well together and just seem to fit. The president of the business is Casey Woods, a millionaire who puts her money to work for good and fur-momma to Hero, the FI human-scent evidence bloodhound. Marc Deveraux tempers Casey's tempestuous nature and is often second in command. Marc is a former Navy SEAL as well as being a former FBI behavioral analyst. The team's security expert, Patrick Lynch, is another former FBI agent. Ryan is the team's computer expert, tech guru, and creator of their awesome AI teammate, Yoda. Claire Hedgleigh is Ryan's girlfriend and the team's psychic or claircognizant. Emma Stirling is the newest member of the investigative team and a reformed pickpocket. They definitely have diverse skill sets, but like I said before, it works. This time around, Claire uses her abilities to "detect" what she can by touching the McKay family tapestries. The subtle clues she's able to pickup, help direct the team, along with the little information they were able to glean from documentation received from Rose Flaherty, the murder victim. This story incorporates a lost treasure hunt, greed, intrigue, Irish history, Irish politics and nationalism, along with secret pasts. There are stories within stories and it was fascinating to see the layers uncovered and the secrets revealed. For those of you that have read any of the previous Forensics Instincts books, I encourage you to go and grab a copy of No Stone Unturned to read. If you haven't read any of the Forensics Instincts books in the past, you can start with No Stone Unturned (trust me on this one folks) and work your way backwards. There's enough backstory provided that you won't be lost. I enjoyed this adventure, especially the opportunity to get to meet Fiona McKay (btw, you can actually shop her jewelry line at fionamckayjewerly) and other members of the McKay family. I look forward to reading more in this series in the future.

Happy Reading y'all! (Please stay safe out there and follow all health guidelines and restrictions.)

This review originally posted on 03/21/2020 at https://www.thebookdivasreads.com/2020/03/2020-book-94-no-stone-unturned-by.html. show less

The Stranger You Know is a disturbing psychological thriller with a serial rapist/murderer intent on making Casey Woods, team leader of Forensic Instincts, his ultimate prize. Casey has built an impressive team at Forensic Instincts and between them and the skills they bring to the table, they are a formidable force. The idea of a team of maverick investigators who, at times, cross lines that the police cannot is intriguing. While they often work alongside the police, this group is full of show more specialists (a former Navy SEAL, a retired FBI agent, a behaviorist, a tech wizard, an intuitive) who work out of a brownstone in New York City and are called on to consult with traditional law enforcement agencies. This time they are being taunted by an imprisoned serial killer who has a partner on the outside brutally raping and murdering red headed college girls.

This is a chilling story made even more horrifying because the reader spends time following the thought processes of a serial killer and rapist as he plans and justifies his crimes. He's a very sick individual so the plot is disturbing and descriptions are mildly graphic. The psychopath is one step ahead of them all the way, until the very end. The story is told from the point-of-view of each of the members of the Forensic Instincts team as well as that of the killer, giving us rich character development and a back-and-forth that is easy to read.

I found myself caught up in the plot, which is tightly written and compelling. Andrea Kane knows how to build suspense, leaving tantalizing clues for the reader as she constructs a plot that makes you want to turn the pages even faster. Just when it seems that they have finally caught a break in the cold cases, they discover that they have only played into the hands of a convicted serial murder. This is the third of four (currently) Forensic Instincts suspense novels and I certainly will read the next one as soon as I can. show less

The Line Between Here and Gone is the second book in Andrea Kane's latest suspense series featuring Forensic Instincts, an investigative team comprised of a behaviorist, a former Navy SEAL, a techno-wizard, an intuitive, a retired FBI agent and a human scent evidence dog. When Amanda Gleason learns the father of her dangerously ill newborn son may still be alive she hires Forensic Instincts to find him. As the team digs into Paul Everett's latest development project and his past, they show more discover links to shady businessmen, a Congressman on the take and the mob. If Paul is alive, is he a criminal or a victim and will the team find him in time to save Justin's life?

It takes the talents of the entire Forensic Instincts team, who aren't afraid of bending the rules a little, to solve this case. I hadn't read the first book so this was my introduction to the characters and I like the mix of personalities, even though they are fairly to type. Kane shares a little of the teams personal lives to give them some depth, there is a budding romance between two members and the odd allusion to past lives.
The story is well plotted involving conspiracy and corruption with a clever twist revealed near the end. There is a quite a tangle for Kane to work out, which she does bringing the threads together, it's a MIRA title so a happy ending is unsurprising but satisfying nevertheless.
Forensic Instincts are under time pressure as the infant's health worsens which ensures the pace of the book is steady though it doesn't really find momentum until about half way through, partly because the some of the work is necessarily tedious as the team mines personal records, interviews suspects and searches for evidence. I would have liked a bit more action earlier in the story to break that up but I also appreciated the realistic approach to the investigation. Forensic Instincts resolve the mystery with hard work and evidence rather than blind luck.

I think had I read the first in the series I might have been more invested in this novel, but it works fine as a stand alone. I enjoyed The Line Between Here and Gone, its a solid story of suspense and mystery with appealing core characters. show less