I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale.
The Girl from Silent Lake by Leslie Wolfe Also by this author: Beneath Blackwater River, The Angel Creek Girls, The Girl on Wildfire Ridge, Missing Girl at Frozen Falls
Series: Detective Kay Sharp #1
Also in this series: Beneath Blackwater River, The Angel Creek Girls, The Girl on Wildfire Ridge, Missing Girl at Frozen Falls
Published by Bookouture on 19th February 2021
Genres: Crime, Psychological, Suspense, Thriller
Pages: 375
Format: eARC
Goodreads
Amazon Kindle
“Please, not in front of my daughter,” she pleaded. “She’s just a little girl.” He leaned closer, so close she felt his heated breath on her face. The blue jays that had been filling the valley with their chirping fell silent all at once when the woman’s cry ripped through the clear mountain air…
Detective Kay Sharp vowed she’d never return to her childhood home. On the night of her thirteenth birthday her broken family was shattered beyond repair, and leaving was the only option. Unable to fix her own past, she’s been an FBI profiler for over a decade, desperate to save others.
But now Kay’s back and only she can solve the crime that has rocked the tight-knit community of Mount Chester to its core. A dead woman has been found by Silent Lake under the dew-covered Fall leaves, her hair braided and her body wrapped in a blanket. This small town may be a stranger to murder, but Kay recognizes the signs of a serial killer. She’s certain that the ritualistic nature of the scene means it’s just a matter of time until he strikes again––unless she catches him first.
As yellow do-not-cross tape flaps in the biting wind, another woman is reported missing. Kay leads a frenzied search for out-of-towner Alison Nolan and when she locates her car, Kay’s blood turns to ice as she shines her flashlight on the backseat and sees a teddy bear. Alison’s six-year-old little girl, Hazel, has vanished too.
Kay knows the missing-person investigation could turn into a murder case at any second. But as she hunts for the culprit, her own past closes in on her. Can she find the killer before it’s too late? And will the secret she thought she’d buried stay that way?
Thank you to Bookouture for my copy of this book via Netgalley and for letting me take part in this tour.
Kay Sharp is moving back home and has A LOT of ghosts in her home town. She left for university and never looked back. While her family understood now, she has to return home. There was a lot of mystery around why Kay had to return and what happened to her when she was younger. Leslie did an excellent job of hooking me into the story with this mystery.
I really liked Elliot, Kay’s “partner”. He’s funny, hardworking and an all-round good cop. He’s a little self-deprecating. He does need to believe in himself a bit more. I think he has some good character development ahead of him.
The case was disturbing. The Unsub is very mentally disturbed and the way he can act so normal in public is terrifying. There were enough hints to guess who the killer was for me. While I do like to be surprised there is also some satisfaction in being right. There were some real complex elements for Kay and Elliot to uncover. There was a lot that just didn’t make sense. I liked the flashbacks and the different POVs. It really helped to get an all-round insight into the characters.
The story was very fast-paced and never really let up. I sped through the story in less than 24 hours! Leslie had me hooked from the beginning and I needed to find those women and children just as much as Kay and the team.
I loved the chapter headings, little things like that are always a bit different which I like. I hope this continues for the rest of the series. I’m excited to read the next book which comes out in April!
About Leslie Wolfe
Leslie Wolfe is a bestselling author whose novels break the mold of traditional thrillers. She creates unforgettable, brilliant, strong women heroes who deliver fast-paced, satisfying suspense, backed up by extensive background research in technology and psychology.
Leslie released the first novel, Executive, in October 2011. It was very well received, including inquiries from Hollywood. Since then, Leslie published numerous novels and enjoyed growing success and recognition in the marketplace. Among Leslie’s most notable works, The Watson Girl (2017) was recognized for offering a unique insight into the mind of a serial killer and a rarely seen first-person account of his actions, in a dramatic and intense procedural thriller.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
@LWNovels Thank you!