Struggling to put her life back together after almost being murdered, OR nurse Annie Collins agrees to help homicide Detective Alex Frost investigate a troubling number of patient deaths in the ICU step down unit at her hospital. The deaths are not unexpected, but Annie and Frost wonder whether someone is helping patients die. Assistant district attorney Angel Cisneros, Annie’s close friend and … and neighbor, worries about her involvement with Frost’s investigation and about her well being after all she’s been through. His worry escalates after a person from her past contacts her. His feelings for her make dealing with the repercussions of both difficult. Will Angel go from girl-of-the-month to something serious with Annie? Dangerous enemies are one thing Annie and Angel have in common. Angel and another ADA are the targets of tire slashing, vandalism, and harassment that may or may not be related to a trial and its verdict. Is it juvenile payback for the verdict by an unhappy friend or relative of a defendant, or is it more deadly than that? As both Annie and Angel discover, paybacks are hell. Be sure to read the first book in this series, The Mad Hatter’s Son, and stay tuned for the third in the series due Fall of 2019.
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No Pity in Death is book #2 in the Annie Collins Mystery series. Here the main character – Annie Collins – is still recovering from her close brush with death at the hands of someone she loved. Her neighbor Angel, along with several close friends, have brought her back from the edge – but she is in no way healed. Back at work Annie struggles to deal with flashbacks, nightmares and the fear her former lover – a psychopath who has vowed to end her life – will find a way out of prison to finish the job.
Then three things happen. First there is a whiff of something wrong at the hospital she works at. There is a spike in patient deaths. Yes they are old and/or sick, yes their time is limited, yes the deaths could be natural – but the numbers hint at an angel of death. Second is the unexpected delivery of a package that is definitely from her former lover. She panics thinking he’s out. When it’s confirmed he’s still there the search turns to find out who is helping him harass her. And third, Angel’s life may be in danger. His boss was harassed, then dies in a questionable auto accident. Now Angel is facing the same threat.
With three mysteries threads being followed the reader is led to question, are they related in any way? Will each have a solution, or in the final pages will they tie together in some unforeseen way. Well, you’ll have to read to find out.
Once again, Annie finds herself in the midst of a situation that requires her to be alert and on guard and follow her instincts. DNR (Do Not Resucitate) patients in the hospital she’s working at seem to be dying after looking like they are recovering.
While it’s not necessary to read the first book to get into this one, it does help to see the character progression, especially of Annie. While she comes across as a loose cannon in Book 1, the trauma of her almost-murder seems to have had its affect on her. She’s still struggling with the after effects but is finally convinced to go for counselling.
As the mystery of the deaths begin to unravel, we’re also given an insight to how Annie’s mind and heart begin to heal.
The author’s style of story-telling, the characters and the real world setting of this story, make it a very enjoyable medical mystery.
This is a series and it should be read in order. There are things that happen in the first book that if you do not know you will be very confused as you read the second book. I love Annie and Angel. I love books with medical knowledge in them and that makes this one very good. I love that they get in to how to help someone with PTSD. There was less of a mystery in this one and more in how to help Annie overcome what happened in the first book of the series. I look forward to reading the third book. I received a copy of this book from the ireadbook tour fir a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.
I have had the pleasure of previously reading the first book of the Annie Collins Mystery series by Helen Starbuck, The Mad Hatter’s Son. So, I was excited to have the opportunity to read the next installment, No Pity In Death. I enjoyed catching up with Annie Collins and seeing where she is at now. She is such a great character getting to know. She is so entertaining from start to finish. There is mystery and suspense that had some twists and turns that I did not see coming. And like book one, I believe it is not one that could be easily predictable as I never knew what was going to happen in the following scenes. Even though this one is part of a series, I think it can be read as a stand alone.
I was able to listen to the audio version of No Pity In Death. The narrator, Suzanne T Fortin, once again did a great job performing this tale. It was wonderful hearing their adaptation and how they were able to bring this story to life. I was captivated with this version throughout and was able to hear the whole book in one day.
No Pity In Death is getting a four and a half stars from me. I recommend it for readers who enjoy reading books well written mysteries. I look forward to the next book in the Annie Collins Mystery series, The Burden of Hate. I am curious as to see where Helen Starbuck’s imagination will take her readers following this one.
I received the audio version of No Pity In Death from the publisher. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.