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The Hunted Girls by Jenna Kernan Also by this author: A Killer's Daughter
Series: Agent Nadine Finch #2
Also in this series: A Killer's Daughter
Published by Bookouture on 25th May 2021
Genres: Crime, Psychological, Suspense, Thriller
Pages: 415
Format: eARC
Source: from Netgalley
Goodreads
Amazon Kindle
Stumbling through the pitch-black forest, twigs scratching her bare feet, she sobs as she imagines her children crying for their mommy to put them to bed. By now everyone will know she is missing. Please, please let me find the way home. Before he comes back.
As Agent Nadine Finch rushes to investigate the murder of newlywed Nikki Darnell in Ocala National Forest, Florida, fear floods her body. She swore she’d never set foot here again, not since the case fifteen years ago which tore her life apart. But taking in the triangular cuts scarring Nikki’s perfect pale skin, she knows she must put her own traumatic past aside to find justice for Nikki’s inconsolable husband.
Discovering water in Nikki’s lungs, and certain the triangular wounds were made by arrowheads, Nadine must convince her team of her terrifying theory: that Nikki was hunted down and drowned before being left for them to find. But what monster would do such a thing? And why? Then another woman, a mother of two, is discovered in the woods, tell-tale arrow marks all over her body.
Recognizing the victim as a local waitress, Nadine fears the killer has started attacking women known to her. And the moment she traces the arrow heads to a nearby outdoors store, her own partner disappears.
Frantic, Nadine follows the trail to a lonely cabin deep in the Florida wetlands where she finally learns the heart-stopping truth. To save one of her own, she must confront a deadly hunter obsessed with the case that’s haunted her whole career. Will Nadine have to make the ultimate sacrifice to stop him taking more innocent lives?
Jaw-dropping, packed with twists and turns, and impossible to put down until you reach the final page. Fans of Robert Dugoni, Lisa Gardner and Rachel Caine will be totally addicted to The Hunted Girls.
Thank you to Bookouture for my copy of this book via netgalley and for letting me take part in this tour. I really loved the first book in this series so I was excited about the next book. While this is the second book in the series you can read it as a standalone.
Nadine has had a complicated life and she really struggles to let people in. She is so fearful that her family legacy is going to catch up to her that she keeps people at arm’s length. Some might see her as cold but she is just trying to protect others. She is an excellent profiler. She is determined, hard-working and very caring. She has already grown so much from the first book and I can’t wait for her to get stronger and more confident in her abilities.
I loved Nadine’s little team that she has created. This very much reminded me of the BAU team in Criminal Minds. I love seeing the psychological aspects of the profile and this team clearly trust each other. I can’t wait to see them become an official FBI team as the series continues.
This book is definitely not for the faint-hearted. The killer is psychologically disturbed and there are a few graphic scenes. There was one scene in particular that really made me cringe with the pain this victim must have been going through. Jenna’s descriptions are so easy to imagine.
Jenna’s writing style makes it very easy to read this book. I thought this story was addictive and fascinating. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series!
About Jenna Kernan
Publishers Weekly bestselling author Jenna Kernan is a two-time RITA nominee and winner of the Book Buyers’ Best award. Prior to signing with Bookouture, she published over thirty novels including her popular APACHE PROTECTOR series, and is a member of numerous writing groups, including International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Florida Mystery Writers and Novelists, Inc. and frequently attends conferences on police procedure at the Writers Police Academy and MurderCon. Jenna currently lives on Florida’s Gulf Coast with her husband. A natural redhead, she has recently increased her sunblock to SPF 50.
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@JennaKernan Thank you!
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