‘Every story one day comes to an end.’

As roommates, they met for the first time in college. Two of the brightest minds ever to graduate from Stamford Psychology University. As adversaries, they met again in Quantico, Virginia.

Robert Hunter had become the head of the LAPD’s Ultra Violent Crimes Unit. Lucien Folter had become the most prolific and dangerous serial killer the FBI had ever encountered.

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Now, after spending three and a half years locked in solitary confinement, Lucien has finally managed to break free. And he’s angry.

As ever, Carter’s background in criminal psychology is at the centre of his novel, which is all the more addictive and terrifying for it!

My Review

Welcome to post number ten on this fab #blogathon. I will be reviewing one book per month.

I’m conflicted with this one, though I still gave it 5 stars. It’s again very different as it’s a sequel to An Evil Mind, but it doesn’t follow the usual pattern of the other books in the series. We still have a psychopathic serial killer, but this time he has an agenda – revenge.

Lucien Folter – Robert Hunter’s ex-best mate from university – has escaped from prison, killing a number of guards along the way. He’s angry that he spent three and a half years in confinement, but also because the FBI took away his research papers, all 53 books of them. His life’s work, detailing his emotions while killing someone.

So when Lucien contacts Robert, leaving him with a riddle to solve, he admits that his next act of ‘brilliance’ will revolve around something he has never tried before. But even if the team of Robert, Carlos Garcia, Captain Blake, Tyler West of the US Marshalls, and FBI agent Pete Holbrook manage to decipher what it might be, they still need to work out where and when. And time is very short.

Lucien is a master of disguise, so catching him is an almost impossible task, even if they know roughly where he is. He could be the man sitting next to you, or the man on the bus. You would never know.

There is a scene near the end (without giving away any spoilers) that made me think of The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party from Alice in Wonderland, only a rather more gory interpretation. Even the riddle is very ‘Alice’. I could be getting carried away with the Alice references because of the bar Robert and Tracy go to.

I have to admit that I found the first part a bit frustrating – if you have read any of Chris’s novels, you know in how much detail he explains the methods of killing, the pathologist’s medical terms, police protocol etc. All that, combined with Robert’s back story, are things I’ve read before (ten times to be exact) and I needed to move on with the story. Once we got to the second half it was more exciting and I woke up at 5.30 in the morning and finished it at 8.15am!

Many thanks to @Tr4cyF3nt0n for inviting me to be part of the #CompulsiveReaders #blogathon.

About the Author

Born in Brazil of Italian origin, Chris Carter studied psychology and criminal behaviour at the University of Michigan. As a member of the Michigan State District Attorney’s Criminal Psychology team, he interviewed and studied many criminals, including serial and multiple homicide offenders with life imprisonment convictions. He now lives in London. Visit his website www.chriscarterbooks.com