Scream for Me

This book falls into the genre of “romantic suspense,” a genre I ordinarily eschew. But I won this book in a contest, so there it was, calling out to me from my TBR pile. It was interesting to realize that if you excised all the scenes involving "romantic" encounters between "ruggedly handsome" Daniel Vartanian and "beautiful, full-lipped" Alexandra “Alex” Fallon, you’d still have a pretty good suspense novel AND not really notice the difference.

Daniel Vartanian (of ruggedly handsome fame) is a Special Agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, called in to help with a brutal murder in Arcadia, Georgia because the locals lack the resources to deal with it. It is immediately clear that the case is a copycat crime of one show more committed thirteen years previously, when Alicia Tremaine was found dead in a ditch.

Alicia’s twin, Alex, was seriously traumatized by the crime, although, as indicated above, she managed to grow up to be beautiful and full-lipped. As if the brutal murder of her sister weren't enough, it was quickly followed by her mother’s apparent suicide. Alex’s aunt took her away to live in Ohio. Alex, now 29 and a nurse, comes back to Arcadia because her stepsister Bailey is missing. Alex is afraid Bailey is a victim of the copycat killer and contacts Daniel.

Daniel too has a painful family history, and he and Alex bond at once, first spiritually, then physically. The descriptions of sex were kind of cheesy but displayed two attributes I appreciated: (1) a dearth of anatomical descriptions; and (2) Daniel uses a condom: yay!

Meanwhile, bodies continue to turn up apace in various ditches around town, all exhibiting the same modus operandi. Will Daniel, Alex, and the others involved figure out what is going on before they all end up dead?

Evaluation: We know the killer’s name and mindset from the very beginning, as he speaks in alternate chapters along with other characters, some of whom are identified and some not. In spite of the reader being fairly well-informed, the level of suspense stays high in the book, and it also manages to be rather scary, even though there isn’t much in the way of graphic description (thank Heavens). I came away with the impression that if the author sacrificed the “romantic” part, which would include ditching the provocative title and cover, she could attain mainstream acceptability, i.e., among that part of the mainstream that enjoys books about serial killers preying on women. show less

GBI special agent Daniel Vartanian is still reeling from the deaths of his brother Simon, a well-known serial killer, and his parents, who died at the hands of Simon, when called back to his hometown to investigate the brutal murder of a young woman found in a ditch, wrapped in a blanket. This murder is similar to that of Alicia Tremaine 13 years earlier. Daniel is shocked when he meets Alicia’s identical twin sister, Alex Fallon, who approaches him for help finding her stepsister, Bailey Crighton. Daniel believes his brother Simon was involved in the murder 13 years earlier, and when more women are killed in the same manner, suspects someone is acting on Simon’s behalf. Daniel becomes attracted to Alex, who appears to have been show more targeted by the killer, and is determined no harm will come to her. To complicate matters, important men in the community are turning up dead. Could these murders be tied together or are there two separate killers?

This romantic suspense is a very good read although readers may become distracted by the numerous characters and the two ongoing investigations. The chemistry between Alex and Daniel, two emotionally damaged people, is well-done. Characterization is in-depth and revealing, although the suspense at times becomes lost in the complicated plot. show less

This romantic suspense title stars Alex Fallon who is an Emergency Room nurse. After the murder of her sister, her mother's suicide, and her own attempted overdose, Alex was taken away from Dutton, Georgia, to live with her mother's twin sister and her family in Ohio. She has buried her memories of that troubled time in her life which has cost her her marriage. Things are brought back to the surface when she is contacted by social services to take custody of a small child who is the daughter of her stepsister Bailey who is missing.

Agent Daniel Vartanian of the Georgia Bureau of Investigations is also a Dutton resident. He's back home after the deaths of his parents and his brother Simon who was a serial killer. Simon left some very show more troubling pictures behind. Daniel has a current string of murders that mirror the murder of Alex's sister to solve.

Alex and Daniel work together to solve the murders, find Bailey, and recover Alex's lost memories. Along the way they fall in love. This story is told from multiple viewpoints including that of the current killer and other local villains.

I enjoyed this story. I liked reading it better than listening to it. I found the narration of the audiobook difficult mainly because the narrator was not very good at the male voices which made it hard to separate who was talking in any scene. Also, the quick jumps from character to character and setting to setting also seemed to work better for me when I was reading rather than listening. show less

This romantic suspense title stars Alex Fallon who is an Emergency Room nurse. After the murder of her sister, her mother's suicide, and her own attempted overdose, Alex was taken away from Dutton, Georgia, to live with her mother's twin sister and her family in Ohio. She has buried her memories of that troubled time in her life which has cost her her marriage. Things are brought back to the surface when she is contacted by social services to take custody of a small child who is the daughter of her stepsister Bailey who is missing.

Agent Daniel Vartanian of the Georgia Bureau of Investigations is also a Dutton resident. He's back home after the deaths of his parents and his brother Simon who was a serial killer. Simon left some very show more troubling pictures behind. Daniel has a current string of murders that mirror the murder of Alex's sister to solve.

Alex and Daniel work together to solve the murders, find Bailey, and recover Alex's lost memories. Along the way they fall in love. This story is told from multiple viewpoints including that of the current killer and other local villains.

I enjoyed this story. I liked reading it better than listening to it. I found the narration of the audiobook difficult mainly because the narrator was not very good at the male voices which made it hard to separate who was talking in any scene. Also, the quick jumps from character to character and setting to setting also seemed to work better for me when I was reading rather than listening. show less

A welcome sequel to Die for me, which resists the temptation to revisit the main characters but instead cleverly links a subplot of Die for me and the characters involved in that plot into a new and fresh, and very scary thriller.

Good romantic suspense with plenty of action that moved right along including some chilling events. I particularly liked the teamwork of the law enforcement as they worked to solve the crime. Nurse Alex takes responsibility for her niece while looking for her missing step-sister and crosses paths with special agent Daniel in his investigation.

Bailey Crighton is being held captive. Her step sister Alex Fallon is her only hope. Alex thinks history is repeating itself as her twin was murdered thirteen years ago. Special Agent Daniel Vartanian brother had photographs of young girls being raped which is the connection to what's going on.

My Thoughts:

When I pick up a Karen Rose novel I know exactly what to expect. There will be high body count and plenty of romance thrown into the mix. This book is no different.

I quite enjoyed this book and what I do like is how all the characters cross over from other books. What I don't enjoy is the length of the books. I do feel that sometimes these books are way too long. I also feel that there are too many characters. I feel myself getting show more lost sometimes and can't keep up with whose who. What with the length of the book and the many characters the book did at times become never ending.

As I said though I did enjoy the majority of the book and for me its the romance. I enjoy romantic thrillers and there are plenty of authors out there that I enjoy as well as Karen Rose. show less