A relaxing weekend away for Dr Sara Linton and police chief Jeffrey Tolliver turns into a nightmare when they are called to the scene of a deadly shoot-out involving Jeffrey’s best friend.

Twelve years later, a brutal attack in the sleepy town of Heartsdale threatens to tear Sara and Jeffrey’s lives apart once again.

Whilst the two events seem unconnected on the surface, it soon becomes clear that the pair have been targeted. Because the past is finally catching up with them. And this time, they may not be able to run…

I didn’t even give myself a break between finishing book 3 and starting this book 4. I read half of it yesterday and the rest today and as an overall story, it did have me gripped where I was sitting.

This book has a dual narrative. It has the of Sara and Jeffery visiting his hometown of Salacauga in the past and then the present-day events. I mentioned in my review of book 3 that I was uncertain at the relationship between Sara and Jeffery and where the series would next put them. This book gave me a more in-depth and detailed account of their past and allowed me to view them differently. It definitely changed my opinion on the two characters.

For the first time in the series, Lena wasn’t a focal point and that was desperately needed. I’d started to feel like I was reading the ‘Lena series’ and not the ‘Grant County series’ and having her character take a step back from the plot in this book was a breath of fresh air. I still don’t know how I feel about her character, I seem to swing wildly left to right depending on her situation and how she has been written.

In terms of the plot – I did guess what was happening very early on in my reading and while this usually leads me to be disappointed with the book on the whole – I didn’t get that same feeling here. There was only one area of the story that I had more than 1 suspect on but even then, I managed to correctly guess before the reveal came. I think because I was invested in learning about Sara and Jeff from the time before the series started, I was a little laxer about working out the plot before the climax because I was invested in different aspects of the characters.

My respect, or lack thereof for the relationship between Sara and Jeffery also changed within this book because I was afforded a more detailed glimpse into the characters. Through reading I began to understand their actions and behaviours a little more and the knowledge helped to put certain things into perspective. They’re a dysfunctional couple that shouldn’t work but somehow manage to fit together like odd puzzle pieces.

Sometimes, dual narratives can seem a little confusing – at least I can have difficulty in processing them – but with this work it was easy to identify the two stories but also to see them flowing together as one complete whole. It made for great storytelling.

Compared to the crime elements in the previous books of this series, this felt a little calmer, which is ironic because I think more people die in this book than any other the others – but if you get round to reading it, you’ll see what I mean. It’s still an intense read. I don’t think any of Slaughter’s books are anything less than intense and I’m not sure I’d read her if they weren’t. It’s definitely something I’ve come to associate with her writing.

The surprise is returning around 4pm today and I’ve been up since 5:30am with a clingy fidgety doggy who has been missing his pack. I refuse to nap and miss the arrival of the surprise – I will no doubt post about this surprise this week – and to an extent reading this has kept my mind active and absorbed in something that has willed the hours away quite quickly.

I do have the next book in the series (bk5) and then there is Bk6 which I haven’t got but after that I don’t think there has been any more releases to the series. Which means I’ll probably move onto the Will Trent books I have or pick another book from my TBR shelf.

I give this book: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐