The Rundown
This crime thriller is centered around Bonnie Benham, a steely detective who has been transferred from narcotics after succumbing to drug use herself. Now investigating a serial killer who rapes and murders very young girls, Bonnie and her fellow detectives Jensen and Lagrow are determined to catch the perpetrator before he strikes again. A small bead of sweat was found on the last victim, but it does not match any DNA in the police database. It’s up to Bonnie to convince the D.A to try a controversial method of DNA testing, known as familial testing. This procedure could potentially bring up another sample from a member of the perps family. While their superiors argue about the merit of this unfamiliar procedure, Bonnie, and her team attempt to hunt down the killer, who has a habit of targeting young girls who have been left home alone. This book is interesting and does a thorough job of following police procedures. I found it really fascinating at times. It starts to look like the killer might have regular access to these girls, some of whom come from a very nice gated community. Who is he and how is he gaining their trust? The personal story that runs alongside the detective action, did not quite do it for me. I wasn’t overly convinced by Bonnie as a character and I was not a fan of the many inner monologues the characters had with themselves. This was not enough to detract from a good story, however, and the author has certainly done his research with regards to the crime and police work. I was compelled to keep turning the pages in order to find out how Bonnie and her team nailed the killer.
The Recommendation
A thoroughly researched and genuinely compelling detective drama. The Death of Anyone introduces disgraced detective Bonnie Benham, who is determined to put her addictions behind her in order to solve a new case. A killer is targeting young girls and it’s a race against time to stop him before the body count gets any higher.
The Rating
3.5 Stars (out of 5): Pretty good. For the right audience, this could be great. Sure, there were some issues, but it was still worth the read.
The Pros & Cons
Pros: Page Turner, Plot, Strong World-BuildingCons: Character Developement, Dialogue
