I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Only Girl Alive by Holly S. Roberts Series: Detective Eve Bennet #1
Published by Bookouture on 13th January 2023
Genres: Crime, Suspense, Thriller
Pages: 276
Format: eARC
Source: from Netgalley
Goodreads
Amazon Kindle
As day breaks over the Tanner family home, the house is deadly silent and the door is firmly closed. Upstairs, the whole family lie cold and lifeless in their beds. All with the same look of fear in their unblinking eyes…
Detective Eve Bennet takes a steadying breath as she enters the main bedroom of the Tanners’ modest home in the tight-knit town of Hilldale, Utah. Mrs Tanner’s high-collared nightgown and her long plaited blonde hair are soaked in blood. Next to her, Mr Tanner’s hands are clasped together in a final prayer.
Filled with dread, Eve forces herself towards the children’s rooms. But instead of two children, she only finds one. Where is the youngest daughter, Hannah? And why are there long scratches across the walls?
Eve tracks Hannah down to her uncle’s house nearby. But he won’t let her step foot in the house. Eve knows what it’s like to be held captive by a family member, and fears for Hannah’s safety. What is he terrified Hannah might reveal?
Back at the Tanner home, Eve makes a shocking discovery in the dust covered attic. Mr Tanner was hiding a dark secret from the rest of the community—the kind of secret someone would kill for.
Realizing another family could be in danger, Eve runs from the house and stumbles into the path of the one man she spent years trying to forget— and he won’t let her get away this time. Can Eve escape the evil that has haunted her whole life? And will she catch the killer before another innocent family is murdered?
This is the first book I have read by Holly. I loved the premise and I am always open to a new detective series.
Eve Bennet is quite the detective. She has chosen to work in a field that will constantly remind her of the horrors she went through as a child. She braves her bullying stepbrother on a regular basis and somehow walks away without killing him. Eve does all of this to help stop others from going through what she went through. I think this makes her extremely brave and strong.
I love Eve’s team. They all have their own reasons for being part of the team. Eve has carefully picked this group to be the best. The team works so well together. They all contribute to the case differently due to their different backgrounds. They all respect each other and know not to judge each other.
I found the case itself equally fascinating and horrifying. I was fascinated by the cult and its many rules but equally horrified by them. How anyone could stand to live like that I do not know. I love to challenge things and I don’t think I could be one of those sweet women. The more Eve and the team uncovered the more I was shocked by the willingness of the church to cover things up.
Holly is an excellent writer. I was so gripped by the story and so engaged. The character and plot are well thought out. The pace was spot on. There wasn’t any point when I thought the story was lagging. Holly also clearly has a good knowledge of police procedures as a retired detective.
An excellent start to what I hope will be a very addictive series.
About Holly S. Roberts
Holly Roberts began writing to alleviate stress in her day job, that of a homicide and sex crimes detective. Romance was her go to genre because she required a happy ending. She also touched on cozy mysteries and added six books to her forty book romance repertoire. Now that she’s retired and her mind at peace, she decided to delve into crime thrillers using her background and thirst for research to write the Eve Bennet series.
Holly has two movie/television options under her belt for her amazing life story. Part of the reason is Holly became a police officer at age 45 and led two high profile cases, one involving a serial killer. Now she enjoys the excitement of writing about crime while sitting at home with her two dogs, laptop, and a cup of hot tea close by.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
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