They know exactly when he’ll strike… They just have to find him first. In all their years working for the Baywood police department, detectives A.L. McKittridge and Rena Morgan have never seen anything like it. Four women dead in forty days, each killed ten days apart. With nothing connecting the victims and very little evidence, the clock is already counting down to when the next body drops. … body drops. A.L. and Rena will have to act fast if they’re going to find the killer’s next victim before he does.
But identifying the killer’s next likely target is only half the battle. With pressure pushing in from all sides, a promising breakthrough leads the detectives to Tess Lyons, a woman whose past trauma has left her too damaged to appreciate the danger she’s in. Unwilling to let another woman die, A.L. and Rena will put everything on the line to keep Tess safe and end the killer’s deadly spree once and for all–before time runs out again.
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TEN DAYS GONE by Beverly Long is a police procedural and the first book in the A.L. McKittridge series. It is largely set in Wisconsin with a couple of scenes in Minnesota and Illinois. The two main characters in the story are Detectives A.L. McKittridge and Rena Morgan. The book starts with the death of a fourth woman in forty days. Each was killed ten days apart and so far, the clues to the identity of the serial killer are eluding the Baywood, Wisconsin police department.
The characters are compelling and felt three-dimensional and very relatable. The author gave enough background of the two protagonists to set the stage for future novels in the series. Identifying the next person slated to be a victim gave a sense of urgency along with the ten day deadline. Therefore, there was enough at stake to keep me engaged throughout the story. There are a number of themes running through this novel including murder, family relationships, friendship, physical abuse, divorce, alcoholism, lies, communication (and lack thereof), and even a hint of a romance.
Overall, this is the best first book in a police procedural series that I have read in a long time. The plot was intriguing, suspenseful, ominous and well-paced. I would recommend it to those that enjoy police procedural novels and want to get in on the first book of the series. I look forward to reading the next book in this series.
Thanks to Harlequin – Trade Publishing (U.S. & Canada) – Mira and Beverly Long for a digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley and the opportunity to provide an honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.
A little slow in spots, but the story picked up and finished with a bang. A who-done-it, the story strays into the personal lives of the detectives. All in all, a good story, all though l figured the bad guy out almost from the beginning. Good read.
A good solid thriller read that kept me interested with a mix of suspense, personal backstories, with well written characters and plot. The two detectives are real people, each with their own personal problems which make them relatable. The characters worked well together and didn’t take away from the other character. I didn’t have the serial killer figured out beforehand and certainly not the reasoning. Looking forward to the next book.
I thought this was a good book, it was fast paced and kept me guessing who the bad guy was. I really enjoyed it and look forward to more in the series. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy
Thank you Net Gallery for providing a free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Ten Days Gone is a romantic suspense book that was slow to start. It started to pick up halfway through, so it became tolerable to read. I am not that into books with romance in it, and had I realized that that was what this book was, I would not have picked it to read.
Overall an okay read, not great and not horrible. Definitely not a book for those who do not like “romantic” books.