Alone, held captive, and left in the dark, a woman’s worst fears come true in this gripping thriller by the award-winning author of Expose.San Francisco medical examiner Annabelle Schwartzman has spent eight years looking over her shoulder. Stalked by her vengeful ex-husband, Spencer, she’s always known they’d meet again. Has her nightmare come true? Abducted, blindfolded, yoked, and tethered, … yoked, and tethered, she’s being held prisoner in an isolated cabin in Idaho. But it’s the unknown that terrifies Annabelle now. Because the man’s voice in the dark, though eerily familiar, is not Spencer’s.
Annabelle’s partner and lover, Inspector Hal Harris, knows in his gut that Annabelle’s disappearance is tied to the past. Except Spencer is fifteen hundred miles away. To save Annabelle, Hal is tracking every move Spencer makes. But is it drawing him closer to finding Annabelle? Or is it luring him farther from her desperate cries for help?
As a cruel game of retribution begins, Annabelle must rely on her wits, her will to survive, and a plan of escape. But time is running out. And her captor’s three chilling words make her fear that the worst is yet to come: sweet dreams, Bella.
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Sophisticated, edge-of-your seat thriller that will keep you guessing (and up all night) until the final scenes, with a very satisfying ending. I love Girard and have enjoyed this series.
Excellent writer and plots with fantastic characters
Ms Girard is definitely a wordsmith in so many ways. She can grab your attention quickly and continue to hold it with back stories, action, and angst for the characters in her book. I’ve read all of this series and would like to see it continue with Hal and Anna and family! I was glad that Anna’s mom finally saw what Anna/Hal had been telling her about Spencer. Sometimes, in our grief and uncertainty of what’s next after a love one has passed, we tend to lose our hold on reality for a brief period of time. I think Georgia did that and almost ruined the relationship of mother/daughter connection.
I truly enjoyed the ending of this one. It does open a door for further exploration into the relationship of Anna/Hal and the supporting cast. Well done, Ms. Girard!!
A Fast Paced Thriller That Immediately Captured My Attention And Delivered
Expire opened with Spencer MacDonald doing what he likes best, killing someone. Spencer is Annabelle Schwartzman’s ex-husband and has stalked her and attempted to kill her through the first three novels. Then, this novel takes off where the previous novel, Expose, left off. Anna finds herself a captive in a snowbound cabin, with a tight collar secured to a cable, and all liquids appear to be drugged. She suspects that she is pregnant and fears for the life of the child she may be carrying. She fights not to be drugged and find a way to escape.
The other main storyline thread is led by Hal Harris, an Inspector in the San Francisco Police who works regularly with Anna. He saw the results the home pregnancy tests that Anna took but did not see the results before her abduction. Hal was fairly sure that Anna was carrying his child. From this point, he has only one mission in life — rescuing Anna. He seems frustrated at every turn. He takes vacation time to travel to San Antonio where currently Spencer was meeting with an investor. He works with an FBI Special Agent that looked like he is a 12 year old whose ways are more methodical and too slow for Hal. Anna’s mother, who still is close with Spencer, believes that he can do no wrong.
These two threads are fast-paced and captured my attention immediately. I followed Anna’s exploration of her prison and Hal’s every effort to find her with the efforts of the FBI, an unenthusiastic Greenville Police, and Anna’s police friend from South Carolina. This is a thriller that does not use twists, turns and misdirections as the target is well known. This novel uses some progress, no progress, delays and dead ends all the while the clock is ticking.
The B-storyline is very rich in this novel. The author provides more insight into Anna through her moments of self-reflection and, at times, despair during her captivity. The depth of Hal’s feelings for Anna is shown in his actions to find Anna and through the actions of and sympathy from his coworkers. The reader will learn more about Anna’s mother relationship to Spencer. The author weaves these B-storyline threads seamlessly into the cloth of the main storyline threads into a very captivating novel.
There are not any graphic sex scenes. There are only a few instances of foul language. While the murder in the first chapter is what I call, first person, in that the violence is described as it happens. All of the terror inflicted on Anna in her captivity also is described in the first person. This adds edginess to the narrative. Other violence is described in the third person as it is described by reports or person relaying the information, and, therefore, not as intense.
This novel continues the storyline from the end of the third book. I do believe that you can read this book without reading any of the previous three novels. Adequate background to explain relationships is provided. If you have read the previous novels, this novel does explain and tie up quite a few aspects in the previous novels so it is richer for those who did read them. For information, I have read only two of the previous three novels. I purchased and currently am reading the novel I missed when it was published.
I liked the edginess of Anna’s and Hal’s characters that peaked my interest and kept me reading more when I should have been doing other things. The only aspect of this novel that left me wanting was that one of Spencer’s murders that didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of his murders.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this novel that captured and maintained my interest throughout the entire novel. With the minimum of issues, I rate Expire with five stars. I believe that you would enjoy reading this novel also.
I have received a free kindle version of this novel through NetGalley from Thomas & Mercer with a request for an honest, unbiased review. I wish to thank Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read this novel early.
EXPIRE by Danielle Girard is a dark psychological thriller of a woman stalked by her abusive ex husband. Now she’s kidnapped by someone else? This is a nonstop ride of emotions and you really do want to take it.
This was an awesome book!!! It was filled with mystery, thrillers and lots of suspense. There was also lots of medical and police procedure attention involved but without having an overwhelming amount where I had to look up the procedures definitions so I knew what she was talking about so I could know what was going on. It actually added more mystery to story. This is definitely on of those suspense books that you have to keep reading because you just have to know what’s going to happen next and it ended great. I made the mistake and didn’t realize that this was the fourth book in the Dr. Schwartzman Book series, which didn’t hurt in the way of understanding what was going on, but the book was so great that now I definitely need to read the first three books. I would recommend this book to all the genre categories for mystery, thriller,suspense,medical and police procedures and just anyone who wants to read a book they can’t put down.
A Smart Page-Turner
Danielle Girard’s Expire novel is one that will keep you up reading in the night. I fell in love with the smart heroine, Anna, as she fought against captivity using her wit, determination, and heart. Everything in this book, from the heroine’s extensive forensics medical knowledge to the police and FBI investigative procedures are well- researched and fascinating. But it is the characters that kept me entranced until the last page.
Highly recommended!
I fretted with Anna and Hal throughout the ordeals they went through in this book! I enjoyed the supportive characters, old and new! Spencer’s exit was strangely satisfying! Now will we get a glimpse at the twins and new parents?
Wow ! Book was a heart pumping book , a page turner , great thriller !
Very good book! This is the 4th book in this series but can be read as a stand alone. If you want to know more about the characters and how they came to be where they are in life then I would suggest reading the other books in this series as well. The main storyline about Anna and her ex stalker husband spencer goes through all the books but can be easily understood in this book without reading others first. In this one Anna is kidnaped and held captive by a collar on a cable in a remote cabin. she has to try and survive while dealing with poisoned water and cruel treatment at the same time worrying if she is pregnant as well. Her significant other Hal is a detective and tries to find her while dealing with prejudice in the south. Very good storyline honestly had to stay with it until I read it all kept me hooked until the very end. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that like on the edge reading!!
That ending… It was perfect. And even so, I cried. Reading the story was a roller coaster ride with a lot of fear. Fear for Anna, but also for Hal and even for Georgia. Everything felt really dark for a while and I could only hope for someone figuring it out and help. So, there was a lot of holding my breath, calming my racing heart and taking deep breaths. I read the book in one sitting. It’s impossible to put it down, it grips you from the start and all you can do is hanging on for the ride.
What a great ending to this series! I’ve been a fan since the first book and it’s been such a great journey. You will not be disappointed. This story is told through multiple viewpoints – Anna’s, Hal’s, Spencer’s and Georgia’s (Anna’s mother). I was surprised that some of the most interesting parts to me involved Georgia. We get to see her evolve in ways I didn’t think possible.
The parts with Hal involve most of the action, searching for Anna and trying to convince the police and the FBI to allocate as many resources as possible. He’s taken to various locations across the country, following Spencer as closely as possible. He works with a young FBI agent in Dallas and Harper (who we’ve met previously) in South Carolina. Anna spends her time in captivity trying to determine how to safely survive being chained up in a cabin with little food, no safe water and no weapons.
The only thing that I would have changed would have been trimming a bit from Anna & Hal’s narratives, as it began to feel repetitive. We know Anna is resourceful and that Hal is desperate to rescue her but there could have been less pages devoted to these aspects. I liked when Anna reflected on past autopsies and their curious findings. The medical angle tended to drop off the more the series progressed.
I hope this author creates a new series, as she’s great at developing characters that feel incredibly real and that you are invested in every step of the way. .
Fantastic read! Anna and Hal go through hell at the hands of her ex-husband. The story is told from several characters point of view which makes the story flow quickly. It also makes the telling more interesting. As the scope of the danger increases you can feel the anxiety increasing as you turn the pages. It is gut wrenching to read in places but you will enjoy every moment.
I have not read the first books in the series but the author gave enough background that I did not feel lost. This book is a fast-paced thriller with lots of suspense. I liked the characters and the relationship between Annabelle and Hal was enhanced by their actions. This was a very entertaining read.
This is book 4, if you haven’t read book 3 (which I haven’t) it’s like being thrown into icy water. If you read book 1 and 2 (which I have) you have a knowledge of the 4 main characters and that’s it. Still floundering in the icy cold water. Book 3 appears to be the bridge. That being said, keep swimming. This is a heck of a ride, Thriller showcasing the strength and tenacity of. Anna. The dogged determination of Hal and their love. The ending with Anna, well overdue and well done, Kudos. The epilogue helps to ease the stress, the despair that we endure with Anna on this ride. Well done. Thank you for the Arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own and we’re unsolicited.
From the first page, Ms. Girard had me engaged & on the edge of my seat. I wasn’t able to put this story down until I was finished. Hal & Annabelle’s torment engaged my sympathies from the beginning. The characters were well defined & realistic. The plot was fast paced & believable.
This is the first in this series I’ve read & I didn’t feel lost or confused in the slightest. There is enough background given via flashbacks or memories to fill the reader in on past events. I’m intrigued enough to go back & read the first three in the series.