Once Upon A Crime

A serial killer is stalking the streets of Fort Worth. P.G is targeting sex offenders and taunting Detective Madison Chase with bad poetry, and leaving headless pedophiles as a calling card. Hunting down the killer would be just part of her job, but unfortunately, this killer soon sets its sights on Maddie’s 4-year-old daughter, Emily, and makes it personal. Stopping the killer and preventing her daughter from being either kidnapped, or worse, turned over to her useless ex-husband by the courts, has the detective on her toes, but it’s just a matter of time until P.G slips up, and then Detective Chase will stop the vigilante’s killing spree for good.

An intense story told from three points of view, readers will get caught up in the minds of Maddie, her ex-husband, Don Wilson, and the killer, as the cat and mouse game begins with a Halloween beheading. Despite the switch between POV, the pace remains steady through the book and the plot is well developed. The emotions and slow mental breakdown in at least two of the points of view add to the tension, but without causing confusion. Although, there is little doubt that Maddie will catch the killer in the end, and the story does lack that added spark, a surprise twist combined with brief periods of action and drama do keep the reader invested. Additionally, while most of the gore is kept off screen, the reader is left in no doubt what is happening, upping the danger. Overall, this is a good detective novel and should be perused by fans of this genre.

Sarah E Bradley