From Publishers Weekly
First introduced in Sullivan's Law , Ventura County probation officer Carolyn Sullivan is put to the test again as the body countβand list of suspectsβquickly rises in Rosenberg's latest confidently plotted thriller. This 3o-something single mom with a narrow waist and wide-ranging intelligence has a special gift for getting perps to talk, and two days before Christmas, she faces an especially frightening inmate, Raphael Moreno, who decapitated his own mother, killed his sister and decimated a family of five. Though he's not talking, she thinks he had an accomplice. Before she has a chance to fully crack Moreno, however, the plot thickens: late that night, her younger brother, Neil, a meth addict but also a successful artist, calls for help, having just discovered his girlfriend Laurel's body floating in his swimming pool. Though Neil will be considered a suspect, his alibi, a rich, conniving, sexually avid ex-girlfriend who lured him into bed that night, refuses to clear his name. Soon, another woman is murdered just a few blocks from Neil's house, raising the prospect of serial killing, and a full-scale investigation begins to link the homicides to Moreno's case. Thriller enthusiasts will relish the intricate plot, accelerating action and novel climax of this gripping ride.
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From
Ventura County probation officer, law student, and single mom Carolyn Sullivan, first introduced in Sullivan's Law (2004), has a truly sinister criminal as a client this time. Sullivan is known throughout the county for her remarkable ability to get perps to talk--about why they did the heinous things they did. Meanwhile, it's Carolyn's brother, Neil, who causes her the most anxiety; he's an artist and a dreamer, which Carolyn finds endearing, but he also lives dangerously close to the edge, which unnerves her. Too close, it turns out, when he calls Carolyn with the news that his girlfriend was found dead in his pool. Sure, he's eccentric, but is he a killer? Carolyn has been protective of Neil since their father's death, but when a family secret is revealed, she begins to doubt how well she really knows him. Still, she resolves to help him. This is a bit of a departure for Rosenberg, more psychological thriller than police procedural, but the sense of authenticity is still present, and the author's ability to generate narrative drive still holds readers. A dark, perilous, and compelling ride. Mary Frances Wilkens
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