The Last Echo (Body Finder Series #3)

by Kimberly Derting

Overview

In the end, all that's left is an echo.

Violet Ambrose always thought of her ability to sense the dead as more of a burden than a gift. Now that she's working with a special investigative team, she hopes she can use it to help people. But her instant connection with her mysterious partner, Rafe, is both confusing and unsettling, and creates tension with her boyfriend, Jay. When she discovers the body of a college student murdered by "the collector," Violet refuses to give up on the case. What Violet doesn't realize is that the serial killer is looking to add to his collection, and she may have caught his eye. Will the life Violet has to save be her own?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062082206
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/16/2013
Series:	Body Finder Series , #3
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	144,026
Product dimensions:	5.46(w) x 7.84(h) x 0.96(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kimberly Derting is the author of the Cece Loves Science series, the Body Finder series, the Pledge trilogy, and the Taking series. She lives in the Pacific Northwest, where the gloomy weather is ideal for writing anything dark and creepy. Her three beautiful (and often mouthy) children serve as an endless source of inspiration and frequently find things they say buried in the pages of their mother’s books. You can visit her online at www.kimberlyderting.com.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 9 Up—This entry in the series stands on its own. Seventeen-year-old Violet has the ability to feel "echoes," sensations that help her find dead bodies and killers, and she is part of a special team of psychic teens working on high-profile projects for the police. Its latest case involves women who are being murdered by the "collector," a serial killer who attacks victims and dresses them as if they were going on dates. The hunt for him places Violet in some tense situations. In a separate matter, she encounters James Nua, a man with strong echoes from murdering his girlfriend and children. When they make eye contact, he recognizes something about her that is key to the rest of the novel. Members of her team can divine facts from objects, talk to ghosts, and see the future, and they have successfully located bodies of missing persons and solved difficult mysteries, and Violet is grateful to have found a group of people with whom she doesn't feel like an outcast. However, Rafe, a brooding guy with secrets, confuses her by acting hot and cold toward her; when they come into physical contact they have some kind of energy that shocks them both. Do her complicated feelings about him mean that she is betraying her loyal boyfriend? The suspenseful ending will have readers tucking under blankets and imagining horror-movie scenarios. Tell them not to read this one right before bed.—Jessica Lorentz Smith, Bend Senior High School, OR

School Library Journal

Seventeen-year-old Violet returns in the third installment of the Body Finder series, this time working for a secret agency that specializes in using paranormal powers to fight crime. For the first time since she learned that she is drawn to the locations of murdered dead bodies, Violet feels less of a freak. Although she doesn't understand all the paranormal abilities of her crime-fighting teammates, she feels as though she fits with them. However, she still loves her normal boyfriend Jay, so she worries about the strong physical response she feels whenever she touches Rafe, a member of the team. Meanwhile, Violet doesn't know she's become the target of a terrifying serial killer. As in previous volumes, Violet continues to reject simple safety precautions and hides all her worries from her parents. Her personal irresponsibility does not cause the danger when the killer attacks, however, and she demonstrates maturity and courage, assisted by a few doses of deux ex machina, when she fights back. She finally emerges as a mostly sympathetic heroine, even with the flaws that Derting often highlights. As always, this author writes a gripping tale, although she takes her time getting to the final conflict. Personalities come across quite strongly, as several of the characters tend toward the eccentric. With another sequel set up, this intriguing series continues to provide great entertainment for suspense fans. (Paranormal suspense. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews