FIND ME

4 stars out of 5

This book, which I snagged as an Amazon FirstReads pick, is the first in a series - and after finishing it, I'm already chomping at the bit for the next. It features Daniel Ellis, a detective in San Bernardino, California; he took over the case of a serial killer from a retired detective. The killer, Benjamin Fisher, has been in jail for 30 years or so, but so far he's refused to reveal the locations at which he hid his victims' bodies.

Out of the blue, Ben asks to see Daniel - and this time, he says he's willing to take the police to the bodies. But only, he adds, if his daughter Reni, a former FBI profiler, comes along (they've been estranged ever since he went to jail). As a young girl, Reni's father used her to lure his victims - all women - to him for the kill. Needless to say, that left Reni traumatized, with memories she can't quite pull together to make sense. Daniel, too, was traumatized as a child when his mother abruptly left him, never to return. His unspoken connection to the killer? Ever since Ben went to jail, he's been convinced that his mother was one of the serial killer's victims.

Finding Reni isn't terribly difficult, but convincing her to see her father again - even if it might bring closure to the victims' families - is another story (well, actually, it's part of this story). She's been living in the middle of the Mojave Desert, believing that some or all of the victims were buried there. Needless to say, she agrees, and the next part of the saga begins.

Much more of their journey than that I can't reveal without spoiling the story for others, but suffice it to say it's an exciting trip, with several twists (nothing much came as a big surprise, but the action kept me plodding onward right to the end). Very entertaining and a great beach read, I'd think - all that sand would make you feel like you're right there with Daniel and Reni.

Find Me by Anne Frasier (Thomas & Mercer, July 2020); 6031 KB, Kindle).