Book safety, content warnings, and tropes & tags down below.

He’d hated them all once he’d grown old enough to understand what they’d represented. Slavery. Possession. Their wearers pawns in a chess game they didn’t fully understand until it was too late.

This one of those books where I own the ebook, audiobook, and the paperback. I listen to it somewhat regularly, and I don’t get tired of it. Romantic suspense is my favorite genre, and this is probably my very favorite one so far. It’s got multiple POV, with the two main love interests of course, as well as the killer and some of his victims. The timeline in this is really short, which brings this feeling of urgency to the entire thing, and the tension just keeps building and building.

There was something between them, call it chemistry or whatever. But she could soothe him. And he her. She could take care of herself, but it was so nice not to have to.

I have to mention the romance aspects as well. Our MMC, Gideon, is one of my favorite men in the M/F genre overall. He’s vulnerable, is able to show his feelings, he can admit when he’s wrong, and he’s just not one of those creepy and toxic men. Daisy is a really really good FMC, but Gideon totally stole the show for me. It doesn’t hurt that he’s 30 ish, and has a lot of white in his black hair and beard. I think that’s really neat. Like I mentioned above, the entire plot happens in a few days, but somehow their connection makes sense, and it’s quite believable, considering everything going on. Both MCs have really interesting backstories, one of which kinda fuels the rest of the series. HFN for the couple, sort of series ‘cliffhanger’. Ugh, I just really love this book.

“Are you feeling ignored, girl?” Gideon frowned. “Girl? She’s a girl? Why did you name a girl dog Brutus?” “I couldn’t think of a girl name that was as mean. She’s little and sweet. I wanted her to feel big and tough on the inside.” Gideon didn’t look convinced. “If you say so.”

The murdery aspects are really creepy and graphic as well, and I *love* it. It is quite heavy on some triggers other than the normal ‘serial killer’ ones, so definitely check those out if you need to. I think a well written book in this genre can make you feel things for the villain other than disgust and anger, which Karen Rose absolutely nails. The author also did a ton of research and had help for pretty much every aspect of this book that requires expertice, and it shines through. Highly recommend for fans of the genre.

⬇️ Blanket spoiler warning ⬇️

⚠️ Tropes & tags ⚠️
Serial killer
Romantic suspense
Grown up in a cult
Found family
Past trauma
FBI agent MMC
Multiple POV
Family friend
Crime
Mystery thriller

⚠️⚠️ Content warning ⚠️⚠️
Explicit sexual content
On page murder
Mentions of sexual assault (not detailed, past and present)
Attempted murder
Recovering alcoholic FMC (no relapse)
Past trauma
Graphic violence
Death of a side character
Brief mentions of suicide (off page)
Mentions of drug overdose (family member, past)
House fire
Kidnapping
Mentions of child abuse
Grooming and sexual abuse of a child (off page, few details, side character)
Mentions of child marriage
Brief mentions of pedophilia and child pregnancy

*I’ve tried to list every warning I could think of, but I may have missed some.

⚠️⚠️⚠️ Book safety ⚠️⚠️⚠️
Cheating: No
OM/OW drama: No
Third-act breakup: No
POV: 3rd person, multiple POV
Genre: Romantic suspense, M/F
Strict roles or versatile: N/A

Daisy pulled his head to her shoulder and, sinking back against the arm of the sofa, pulled him down with her and wrapped her arms around him. “That she loved you,” she whispered, and he nodded, helpless to stop the tears. Daisy held him, stroking his hair, not saying another word. Daisy didn’t tell him it would be all right. She didn’t tell him not to cry. She didn’t make any soothing noises or promises that meant nothing. She just lay back against the arm of the sofa, holding him until he could breathe again. He sighed, exhausted. “I’m sorry.” “Don’t be,” she murmured into his ear. “Please don’t be.”