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Ya'll know Leslie Kelly, right? She writes sexy, funny Blaze romances for Harlequin. Her books are fun, flirty and a little outrageous. I'd like to introduce you to Leslie Parrish, her evil twin sister. If you've read any of Leslie Kelly's work, forget everything you know. FADE TO BLACK took my breath away. Literally and figuratively. Leslie has explained her reasons for changing her pen name and adopting this new persona as she embarks on a darker path. That said, let's get down to the nitty-gritty. Trust me. It is nitty. And gritty. Dark, violent, and filled with details and descriptions that leaves a taste of evil in your mouth. Leslie cooks up a tale of depravity that could be ripped from the headlines. Her characters are real and evocative, layered and tempered by the past and present. I've worked with officers like Dean Taggert and Stacey Rhodes. I've confronted evil ladled from the same cauldron as the Reaper.
From the opening paragraph to the very last sentence, I was drawn into the world of the Reaper and the desperate attempt of a dedicated group of federal agents intent on hunting him down. The Reaper plays in cyberspace. I have a little experience with imaginary worlds on the net, though nothing like the Devil's Playground, thankfully. I know places like it exist. People like him exist. Leslie conveys the horror of his crimes in chilling prose. She paints his psyche with the finesse of a criminal profiler.
I understand Sheriff Stacey Rhodes-her PTSD, her need to leave behind the real world of "big" crime for the idealized world of her childhood where dealing with punk kids from the high school and stopping to pick up donuts for the office are the busy spots in her day. Special Agent Dean Taggert wears his swagger like the standard issue suit that is the "uniform" of a federal agent. But the depth of this man is real and good and big-hearted. Rather than clash, as so many small-town cops and big-city agents often do, these two fit together like a practiced hand on the well-worn grips of a favorite pistol.
The buffet of light and dark, good and evil, contempt for life and demand for justice brought to the table by Leslie Parrish is rich and satisfying yet still induces goosebumps and a sense of dread. Don't read it without a night light, but definitely read it!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.FBI Special Agent Dean Taggert leaves the Violent Crimes Unit to join the newly created Cyber Action Team; the mission is to investigate Internet-related murders.
Dean has seen a lot of ugliness when he worked VCU, but nothing in his experience has him prepared for the current web case. The Reaper, a psychopath, hosts Satan's Playground, where this maniac murders victims for his members to see live on the Internet. Shockingly Satan's Playground's groupies bid on the method of death that the Reaper employs. Clues send Dean to Hope Valley where he hopes to prevent another on line killing with the help of local Sheriff Stacey Rhodes.
The first Black Cats romantic suspense thriller is a terific tale that uses the two lead characters even their attraction to one another to emphasize the gritty cyberspace serial killer theme; mindful of the movie Untraceable. The story line is fast-paced with Dean as the Black Cat agent working the case; he and Stacey are a formidable pair but their opponent is one hell of a villain and his groupies will remind the audience of the Manson family. Leslie Parrish opens her new saga with a great police procedural.
Harriet Klausner
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Everyone wants to move to a small town for the peace and quiet. Certainly ex-state policewoman Stacey Rhodes saw it as a haven when she came back to serve as sheriff of Hope Valley like her father and his father before him. Having witnessed the carnage of the attack at Virginia Tech, she wants no more of blood and madness.
Dean Taggert was recovering from a divorce that left him more shell-shocked over the loss of his son than any breakage of heart. He hopes that his move from the FBI's violent crimes unit to the seemingly more calm cyber crimes unit will give him some peace and more time to spend with his son.
But a madman who is auctioning sadistic kills on a secret website shatters both Dean and Stacey's try for peace. And their investigation into just who amongst a small town's residents might be the "Reaper" will set them on a race against the clock to save the next victim from a torturous death.
Parrish who writes sexy/funny as Leslie Kelly does a terrific turnaround in this 3 book Black CATs series (Pitch Black & Black at Heart) delivering a darkly sensual romance with a scary and sadistic killer waiting to strike. Great stuff!
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Posted December 29, 2009
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Overview
After transferring out of violent crimes and onto the FBI’s Cyber Action Team, Special Agent D ean Taggert is shocked to encounter a case far more vicious than any he’s ever seen. A cold and calculating predator dubbed “The Reaper” is auctioning off murder in the cyber world and is about to kill again—unless Dean and beautiful sheriff Stacey Rhodes can stop him.