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Leaving a trail of brutal and bizarre murders, the police force is no closer to finding the latest psychopath than Detective Inspector Kurt Lancer is in finding a solution for his daughter's disability.
Thrust into the pressure cooker of a high profile case, the struggling single parent is wound tight as he tries to balance care of his own family with the safety of a growing population of potential victims.
One of whom could be his own daughter.
Fingers point in every direction as the public relations nightmare grows, and Lancer's only answer comes in the form of a single oak leaf left at each crime scene.
ChristineRains
Posted January 2, 2013
Detective Kurt Lancer is on the trail of a serial killer. A killer becoming famous for the brutal and unusual ways of murdering his victims. The last thing London needs is a murderer on the loose with the Olympic Games about to start. Kurt wonders who might really be the killer when his home and daughter are targeted. As the nightmare and body count grows, he has to find who's behind it all or lose everything that matters to him.
This is an incredibly written thriller that pulled me along with every page. The tension was drawn tight at the beginning, and every time I felt it easing up, it was jerked taut again. Great pacing. What I loved most about the book was the characters. No stereotypes or cardboard cut-outs. These are real people with amazing depth. Kurt Lancer is a single father trying to raise a daughter with a growing disability. It made my heart ache to see the good and bad of the parent-child relationship. Kurt's partners, Sam and Tom, are extremely likable and the perfect complement to his rougher edges. The delinquent brother and sexy neighbor have more to their characters than originally meets the eye.
I wasn't surprised by anything that happened and I predicted where the story was going, but I thoroughly enjoyed the journey. Wonderful detail, interesting Greek mythology, and spectacular characterization. Oracle is the debut novel for J.C. Martin, and she makes it look so easy.
JenniferReviews
Posted August 25, 2012
About a month or so ago, I was sent a copy of Oracle by the publisher, and was asked to do a review. It sat in my inbox for a while. I had too many books that I WANTED to read, and I really didn’t want to trudge through a police-case style mystery.
Honestly, reading the blurb, the story didn’t really interest me, but after being disappointed by a few novels that I actually paid for, I decided to give this one a try.
Overall, the characters in this story are very believable. We have a detective who is a single dad facing his own personal problems who is put on a murder case that develops into a serial killer case. JC Martin did a great job of portraying a man devoted to his family, but dedicated to finding a killer. The sideline characters are also well played out. None are stale and forgettable. Even the rough and tough boss gets to show her soft side, giving us a giggle. Well Done.
Points of view: (Minor Spoiler) The novel starts in the POV of a magician. It was fine, until the end of the first chapter. Let’s just say he’s no-longer in the story anymore. Okay… he’s dead. I said it. Yes, he is victim #1.
From here, we are thrown into chapter #2. This chapter is first person “I” from the POV of the detective. To me, it was very jarring. Moving ahead, we will be inside the head of the detective, the killer, and also in the POV of each victim right before they get killed. After a while I got used to it, but it did bother me in the beginning.
Pacing: For the most part, the pacing was great, but I did get a little impatient in the middle. Somewhere right before the climax, I was thinking. “Wait, there’s gonna be another murder? Get on with it.” Now, I am perfectly willing to admit that I read a few novellas before this, and may have become accustomed to a faster read… but I did get a little impatient in the middle of the story. This could just be me, though, so I’m not faulting the author’s style on this.
Believe it or not, I Actually liked this novel. Not loved, but liked it. On a great note, I thought I picked out the “killer” early on in the story. (I tend to do this a lot) And I thought I was right until the last few pages. If I was right, I would have been mad and hated the novel. I really enjoyed that JC Martin gave enough plausible suspects to keep us guessing. Well Done.
POV Switching… while I didn’t like it at first, I did get used to the different POVs once I realized what she was doing. If I was suddenly thrust into a random person’s head I thought: “Okay, this one’s a gonner,” and I moved on. It worked.
Writing style. JC Martin’s style is sleek and very readable. She pulls you in to the story, and keeps you reading. Normally, I am a chapter a night kind of reader. Frequently, I’d read for longer. Especially during the climax. I didn’t want to put the book down. I kept jumping and biting my nails. Nicely done.
J.C. Martin captures the very essence of a mystery thriller in her debut novel, Oracle! It's twisted and elusive murderer keeps suspense building as each crime takes its toll on lead detective Kurt Lancer and his determined partners.
Not only will Martin scare the living daylights out of her readers, but she will also give the story a sense of reality that only comes from having all the pieces of a mystery come together in the most unexpected ways. Oracle is a mystery that doesn't just focus on closing the case, but also takes into account the personal life of the characters. Lancer feels the pressure stemming from his daughter's declining eyesight and the urgency to catch a crazed killer. His partners Blaize and Holloway both battle with personal secrets that may or may not effect their work. With all that's going on with the cast, Martin still manages to make the 'Oaksecutioner' case the story's main focus.
As the kind of story that will really make brain gears turn during investigation, Oracle proves to be the thriller of all thrillers as it's plot moves to a heart-racing and mind-blowing conclusion!
Originally posted on Lovey Dovey Books
*ebook provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review*
Overview
Leaving a trail of brutal and bizarre murders, the police force is no closer to finding the latest psychopath than Detective Inspector Kurt Lancer is in finding a solution for his daughter's disability.
Thrust into the pressure cooker of a high profile case, the struggling single...