OUT OF HER MIND

 4 stars out of 5

One thing is inescapable: All three of the Brooks sisters -

Sawyer, Harper and Aria - are about as emotionally screwed up as any three characters possibly can be. The "star" of the trio, Sawyer, is perhaps doing the best job of recovering from the almost unbelievable abuse heaped upon them as youngsters - she's a fairly successful crime reporter with the Sacramento Independent. As with the first book in the series, Don't Make a Sound, she's trying her best to come up with solid, interesting stories and gain the respect of her boss and co-workers.

There are two story lines at work here, the first of which is the disappearance of 12-year-old Riley Addison and near concurrent discovery of the skeletal remains of another female child. The second is the work of "The Crew," a support group of five seriously abused women whose sole purpose is vengeance. Sawyer has been following up on the second with little progress, but quickly, she turns her investigative reporter's eye toward the first. Fairly early on, her search reveals that a psychopathic serial kidnapper may have been at work for years.

Chapters that switch among perspectives of the various characters (including at least one from The Crew that is, for reasons I won't reveal, quite relevant to Sawyer) keep things moving along quickly amid plenty of action (some of which doesn't make for very pleasant reading, but it's impactful). This time, Sawyer enlists help from sister Aria; at first, I was skeptical, but by the end I'd warmed up to the idea and hope they'll continue to team up in future books.

Are things wrapped up in a neat package and tied with a bow in the end? Well, yes and no - leaving fodder for the next installment that, I promise, I'll be watching for. Till then, many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this one. Good job once again!

Out of Her Mind by T.R. Ragan (Thomas & Mercer, November 2020); 285 pp.