Chelsea Cain’s novels featuring Portland detective Archie Sheridan and serial killer Gretchen Lowell have captivated fans through two nail-biting entries, Heartsick and Sweetheart, both of them multiweek bestsellers in The New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly.
Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose. These days, she’s more of a cause célèbre than a feared killer, thanks to sensationalist news coverage that has made her a star. Her face graces magazine covers weekly and there have been sightings of her around the world. Most shocking of all, Portland Herald reporter Susan Ward has uncovered a bizarre kind of fan club, which celebrates the number of days she’s been free.
Archie Sheridan hunted her for a decade, and after his last ploy to catch her went spectacularly wrong, remains hospitalized months later. When they last spoke, they entered a détente of sorts---Archie agreed not to kill himself if she agreed not to kill anyone else. But when a new body is found accompanied by Gretchen’s trademark heart, all bets are off and Archie is forced back into action. Has the Beauty Killer returned to her gruesome ways, or has the cult surrounding her created a whole new evil?
Chelsea Cain continues to deliver heart-stopping thrills and chills in the latest entry in this dynamic bestselling series.
CHELSEA CAIN lived the first few years of her life on an Iowa commune, later moving to Washington State. The author of a weekly column in The Oregonian, Chelsea Cain lives in Portland, Oregon. Her first two novels featuring Archie and Gretchen, Heartsick and Sweetheart, were both New York Times bestsellers.
Det. Archie Sheridan is back, and if he promises not to kill himself, Gretchen, the serial killer with whom he shares a mysterious bond, won't kill anyone else. But a copycat killer complicates things. With a one-day laydown on September 1; stock up. Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
Just two months after serial killer Gretchen Lowell, aka the "Beauty Killer," escapes from police custody (see Sweetheart), body parts begin showing up in random Portland, OR, locales. Meanwhile, devastated Det. Archie Sheridan continues to languish in a mental hospital, while irrepressible journalist Susan Hunt longs to save him and her story. Her story—and the essence of this thriller—goes beyond Gretchen's certifiable status as a psychopathic killer and instead examines society's morbid glorification of gruesome, ritualistic killings. Have Gretchen's despicable acts spawned more evil? Archie reemerges, determined to kill Gretchen this time, but then puzzling inconsistencies suggest that a copycat killer is at work. Archie and Susan match their wits against the opposition, meeting people who defy all the rules and experiencing horrors beyond comprehension. VERDICT This sequel can't top the jaw-dropping horror of Cain's Heartsick, but her snappy pace and sustained creepiness keep the pages turning at a steady clip. Not for the faint of heart, this addictive thriller will be quickly devoured by serial killer addicts. Gretchen Lowell has taken on a persona not unlike Hannibal Lector. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/15/09; library marketing campaign and 200,000-copy first printing.]—Teresa L. Jacobsen, Solano Cty. Lib., Fairfield, CA
[Page 64]. Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
Gretchen Lowell strikes again—or does she?—in bestseller Cain's grisly third thriller to feature the female serial killer who takes sadistic pleasure in taunting Portland, Ore., detective Archie Sheridan (after Sweetheart and Heartsick). A violent attack that leaves body parts in a rest stop bathroom, along with Lowell's signature heart design, persuades Sheridan, a recovering Vicodin addict, to leave rehab and rejoin the hunt for Lowell. As he and newspaper reporter Susan Ward dig deeper, they discover that while the corpses cropping up around town are reminiscent of Lowell's nasty handiwork, they might also point to one of the myriad fan clubs dedicated to the killer, who has become a media sensation since she escaped from prison in Heartsick. Even though readers may wonder how much longer this extended game can play out, Cain delivers her usual blend of organ-ripping, blood-soaked gore and compelling flawed heroes—and antiheroes. (Sept.)
[Page 118]. Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
