Seven years ago, Dr.
Annabelle, although she prefers Anna, Schwartzman, left Spencer, her
abusive husband. Starting over was a struggle, but she finished
medical school and now has a job in Seattle as a medical examiner.
She loves helping the homicide team solve cases. Being part of a team
makes her feel safe, but when one of the cases brings back the horror
of her married life, she panics.
The murdered woman
looks like her, and when a necklace exactly like the one she always
wears is found around the woman’s neck, she can’t control her
fear. The homicide team rallies around her, but Anna no longer feels
safe and the coincidences leading to Spencer escalate.
The plot is
gripping. Spencer seems to have almost super human powers to frighten
Anna. The story moves swiftly from one encounter with his
machinations to the next. With that sort of stalker, Anna is
justified in feeling panicked. However, I thought her reactions were
over the top in some instances. She is always on the edge of hysteria
and sometimes doesn’t show good judgment. When confronted by an
individual the police want to talk to, she lets her walk away from
her office. That keeps the action moving but it, and other instances,
seem contrived to keep the story moving rather than enhance the
character.
I found the use of
technical medical language to be extreme. I doubt even medical
personnel think about their lungs in terms of a textbook description.
The author apparently did a lot of research, but it isn’t necessary
to show it all off in one novel.
If you enjoy a plot
that features a medical examiner, you may like this one. It’s not
in the same class with Patricia Cornwell’s books, but it’s
interesting.
I received this book
from Net Galley for this review.
No comments:
Post a Comment