Wednesday, March 10, 2021

BLOG TOUR - The Fragile Ones

 

DESCRIPTION:

“Please Mommy, can Tessa and I go play on the swing by the creek?” the little girl begs, pushing a blonde curl from her eyes. “We’ll stay together, and we promise to be safe.” Hours later, their mother waits anxiously for her darling girls to arrive home with a list of reasons why they are late. But the front door never opens…

When the bodies of eleven and twelve-year-old sisters, Tessa and Megan, are found at the bottom of a ravine—dressed in matching pastel summer outfits, their small bodies broken from the fall—Detective Katie Scott is called to one of the most shocking and heartbreaking crime scenes of her career.

Carefully picking through the fragile remains, Katie makes the first of many disturbing discoveries: the girls were not biological sisters. The youngest, Megan, is a DNA match to a kidnapping case years before. The tiny number burnt into her skin the mark of a terrifying killer intent on keeping count of his collection.

Her PTSD from the army triggered, Katie is left reeling as she maps other missing children in the local area. Has this twisted soul found a way to stay nearby his victims? Could he be watching now as Katie hits one dead end after another?

A wild storm building, matching a fiber found during the autopsy to a nearby boatyard is the break Katie needs. But when another girl goes missing, just as lightning strikes and the power goes out, Katie only has her instincts, her team and her service dog to rely on. As time runs out for Katie to finds the stolen child alive, who will become the next number on this monster’s deadly list?

Fans of Lisa Regan, Rachel Caine and Melinda Leigh, you better buckle-up for the ride of your life! BEWARE – this gripping crime thriller is guaranteed to keep you up all night!

BUY LINKS:
Amazon: https://bit.ly/37VtJUM
Apple: http://apple.co/33Qo547
Kobo: http://bit.ly/39VSrWy
Google: http://bit.ly/39PZY9w

MY THOUGHTS:

Title
:   The Fragile Ones
Author:  Jennifer Chase
Publisher:  Bookouture
Series:  Detective Katie Scott #5
Genre:   Mystery Thrillers
Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:   299
Date of Publication:   March 8, 2021
My Rating:   5 Stars

Detective Katie Scott certainly has her hands full when it comes to finding out who murdered two pre-teen sisters, Tessa and Megan. As things uhunnfold, this case proves especially difficult for Katie, and the deeper she digs into the case, the more unsettling facts she discovers. For one thing, DNA proves that the youngest girl was indeed a kidnapping victim from years before. Then there is the killer's signature, another disturbing fact Katie learns.

All while Katie has been working difficult cases such as these, she is coping with the often crippling affects of PTSD. Although in treatment for this, sometimes the triggers are still quite overwhelming. Katie is not alone during this case, or in life. While Katie toured in Afghanistan as a K9 handler, her German shepherd Cisco was her partner. Blessedly, she was able to bring Cisco home with her and he remains at her side. Also, Katie lost her parents years before and was raised by her uncle, who is her boss as the town's Sheriff. Then there is her trusted partner McGaven. Lastly, and most blessedly, is her long-time friend and now loving boyfriend Chad. Considering the trauma Katie still experiences as a result of the war, having all of this support is a true blessing.

The intensity if the current case builds rapidly, especially when another girl goes missing. Katie is determined to find the missing girl, no matter the cost. As always with this thrilling series, the book is told from Katie's perspective, allowing readers to see how thoroughly invested she is when solving cases, especially heart-wrenching cases where children are the unfortunate victims.

As this book reached a thrilling crescendo my heart was in my throat as Katie faced a critical danger point. The action was quite intense and kept me tapping my Kindle screen at a rapid pace. Readers could enjoy this book as a standalone as it focuses mainly on the case Katie is working on, as well as touching on her backstory. However, I highly recommend all the previous books in this series, Little Girls SleepingHer Last WhisperFlowers on Her Grave and Last Girls Alive. These are all exciting books that any lover of crime fiction would be sure to enjoy. The Fragile Ones is a very well-written book that kept my attention from beginning to end, making me more than eager to see how Katie fares in her next endeavor.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

YouTube video review:


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jennifer Chase is a multi award-winning and best-selling crime fiction author, as well as a consulting criminologist. Jennifer holds a bachelor degree in police forensics and a master’s degree in criminology & criminal justice. These academic pursuits developed out of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience with a violent psychopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in every story she tells.

In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and criminal profiling. She is an affiliate member of the International Association of Forensic Criminologists, and member of the International Thriller Writers.




6 comments:

  1. This book is everywhere at the moment. My interest in reading it is increasing with every awesome review I read for it.

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  2. Good to see you enjoyed it too. I think the series keeps on getting better. Great review.

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  3. Glad to know the series is still going strong.

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  4. So glad to see two positive reviews of this one in one day!

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  5. Oh my, I want to read this book now (well, the series)

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  6. Definitely on my TBR list now!

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