Taylor Jackson and Homicide Lieutenant and FBI profiler John Baldwin (whois also Taylors lover) have a tough case to crack with the Southern Strangler. His escalating violence and speed along with an ability to move across the southern states and leave no clues gives them a difficult case to crack. Add to this a serial rapist, and a drug dealer being released from a solid case and back out into the community and you have both a fast paced and enough plots to keep you thinking.
The 'best bit' for me was the characterisation, it's a long time since I have picked up a book and from the first chapter felt as if I knew the characters. They are all established in their particular professions and friendships - and really did feel as if they knew each other well. Whilst their backgrounds are given - they are not drummed into you as if you are 12 and reading your first big book, neither are they shallow and incidental. The police procedural and CSI stuff is covered but not laboured and whilst our murderer is viscious and violent none of it is gratified within the pages of this excellent first novel.
The only reason I gave it 4 out of 5 is; a) there is no 4.5 and b) I did guess the murderer - unusual for me, so I figured the clues must have been a bit too heavy.
Really looking forward to the next one, gread characters and good plot the whole thing flowed well enough to keep me up reading into the small hours of my Easter break.
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