Ratings Overall: 9 Sensuality: 2 Suspense Element: 8

This is an Official Review by a Suspense Romance Writer Official Reviewer

Review for Last Known Victim
Author: Erica Spindler
Date of Review: 07/24/07
Reviewed by: Stacy

Reviewer Comments: In 2005, Captain Patti O’Shay lost her husband during Hurricane Katrina. He was found shot to death and it was assumed that he had interrupted looters. As if that weren’t enough, a serial killer is on the loose. A refrigerator is found containing six right hands; all the hands belonged to women.

Two years pass, during which both cases become cold. It’s now 2007 and a dead woman is found missing her right hand. Underneath her lifeless body lay Captain O’Shay’s dead husband’s badge.

There are several layers to Last Known Victim. The first is the hunt for a serial killer. No one knows when the killer will attack or who will be victimized. The second is a stalker who is following a stripper. Is he real or is the girl crazy? Third are the familial relationships. Captain O’Shay’s nephew works in her department and there is their relationship, as well as his relationship with fellow cop, Stacy. Several other lines exist but these three are the most obvious.

Readers familiar with Ms. Spindler’s books may recognize the Stacy and Malone from See Jane Die. Despite this, the book is definitely a stand alone. Jane, from the previous book is only mentioned in passing.

The pacing is fast. The characters are interesting. I love that the characters are aged anywhere from early twenties to late fifties because it broadens the allure for the readers by giving more people to identify with.

The character interaction along with the setting is brilliant, realistic and believable. Only in post-Katrina New Orleans could a serial killer be discovered by a clean up crew in a refrigerator graveyard. The different discoveries were logical and worked to fill in the pieces of the large puzzle that was Last Known Victim.

I felt invested in the story and would recommend this book to anyone interested in a good suspense story.