โ Scribed by Kava, Alex
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
FBI special agent Maggie O'Dell is just starting a vacation when she gets a call from her friend, psychologist Dr. Gwen Patterson. One of Gwen's patients is missing on a trip to Connecticut. Can Maggie look into Joan Begley's disappearance?
At first Maggie dismisses Gwen's concern. But when the body of a woman is discovered in an abandoned rock quarry in Connecticut, Maggie heads to the small town on "unofficial" business. Soon the shocking news surfaces that more bodies have been discovered, and Maggie is drawn into a case that confounds both local law enforcement and a seasoned criminal profiler like her.
But where is Joan Begley? Is she in fact the woman discovered buried in the quarry? Or is she the unwilling guest of a killer obsessed with possessing an unimaginable prize from his victims?
**
The fourth novel in the Maggie O'Dell series (A Perfect Evil; Split Second; Soul Catcher) features a serial killer with a taste for grisly butchery. At the outset of a long overdue vacation, FBI special agent O'Dell agrees to investigate a simple missing person case for her good friend, psychologist Gwen Patterson. Coincidentally, in the quiet Connecticut small town where Gwen's patient was last seen, a barrel containing a dead body is discovered in an abandoned rock quarry. Maggie offers her services to the local sheriff because she needs to rule out the possibility that the victim is Gwen's patient. Professor Adam Bonzado, a forensic anthropologist and friend of the sheriff, is already at work; a dozen or more 55-gallon barrels have surfaced. As they're pried open, releasing the telltale nauseating stench, an odd assortment of cannibalized victims come to light, including a female breast cancer survivor-her breast implants cut out and removed-and an embalmed corpse, brain missing. Chapters narrated from the point of view of Gwen's missing patient (she's alive but in dire straits) and the paranoid killer alternate with accounts of the tedious work of the coroner and the anthropologist. As Maggie processes the information they provide, she also ministers to elderly but endearing Luc Racine, who lives near the quarry. His Jack Russell terrier keeps bringing him human bones, but since Luc is fighting Alzheimer's he may or may not be a viable witness. Kava's plotting is capable, but there's only a hint of romance and little humor to provide relief from the lashings of gore.
"Maggie is gutsy and appealing as an FBI agent facing constant danger." -- Library Journal
ES Index : 4
Max Index : 12
Number of Words in Auth: 2
Formats : EPUB
Number of Formats : 1
Has Cover : Yes
All Identifiers : amazon:B000O76NXM, goodreads:390301, isbn:9780778320555
Test Text Series Index: O'dell
Single Author : Alex Kava
Original Source : Mirc New Files Cleanup
Sorted Author by LN, FN: Kava, Alex
Title Length : 024
Title Parm D : At the Stroke of Madness
Title Parm F : At the Stroke of Madness
Num of Aut : 1
Title Parm B : (
Record ID : 9356
Template Work Area : O'dell
ES Name : Maggie O'dell
Uncomma Author : Alex Kava
ES Genre : Thriller
Title Parm A : At the Stroke of Madness
๐ SIMILAR VOLUMES
**In the tomblike silence of an abandoned rock quarry someone is trying to hide their dirty little secret. A secret that is about to be discovered.** FBI Special Agent Maggie O'Dell is just starting a vacation when she gets a call from her friend, psychologist Dr. Gwen Patterson. One of Gwen's pati
**In the tomblike silence of an abandoned rock quarry someone is trying to hide their dirty little secret. A secret that is about to be discovered.** FBI Special Agent Maggie O'Dell is just starting a vacation when she gets a call from her friend, psychologist Dr. Gwen Patterson. One of Gwen's pati