The cottage sits pretty with ornate stone walls and embers still glowing cozily in the fireplace within, the remnants of a happy, sheltered life. But a woman’s body lies still on the floor, her frozen face smeared with blood-red lipstick.

Detective Morgan Brookes thinks she’s seen it all, but goosebumps prickle her flesh as she walks inside a beautiful limestone cottage in Rydal Falls to find an innocent young woman strangled to death. The killer has applied lipstick to Rachel Hart and pressed her lips to a letter to seal it with a kiss.

Scrawled handwriting confirms this killer has already chosen his next victim, but the careful, calculated scene only frustrates Morgan when she finds no more clues. Rachel’s solitary life, dedicated to her tabby cat and barely speaking to her sister, yields no suspects. Until Morgan finds out about an argument between Rachel and her cleaner. Did the ex-employee murder her in cold blood and cover his tracks?

Finding two photos of Rachel in a Ziplock bag inside the cleaner’s home, Morgan’s team locks him up. And when Morgan receives a hysterical call from a mother after finding her only daughter strangled, another letter buried at the scene, she should be able to tell the woman justice has already been served. But something about this case just doesn’t feel right. The timelines don’t add up, and Morgan feels watched in her own home. Can she uncover the truth and find this killer, or is she already too late to save the next victim?

Fans of Angela Marsons, Lisa Regan, and Rachel Abbott will devour this unforgettable rollercoaster of a crime thriller late into the night.

.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

.

She smiled at him, but it wasn’t a kind one, it was an I-dare-you-not-to kind of smile. He shrugged, not wanting to argue with her because she would wipe the floor with him and not pause for thought while doing it.

Everyone blames it on perimenopause, but I’m just knackered and the woman next door has this cat that thinks it’s in a boyband.

I’m tired of this, tired of misogynistic men thinking they have the right to do this to women. It sets a rage burning inside of me that no amount of Chardonnay can extinguish. And that’s without the perimenopausal symptoms on top of the seething fury.

It’s like someone hired an entire sixth form and set them free with handcuffs, fast cars and the navigation skills of Jack Sparrow.

.

My Review:

.

This was an action-packed installment on the trail of a clever serial killer with a red lipstick fetish. Tension thrummed off my Kindle, yet the storylines were well-balanced with generous lashings of wry humor to keep us entertained and smirking. I have enjoyed getting to know these characters and am eagerly looking forward to more of the same.