Rebecca Rane

Investigative journalist, Kendra Dillon had to pivot when she was fired from her tv reporter job. But she found a better fit as the host of The Cold Trail, a podcast that investigates cold cases and tries to find new lines of inquiry. The fourth book, His to Kill, sees Kendra and her associate producer, Adeline Shoop investigate a more recent cold case - the disappearance of Bria Carson from a Halloween party - a party that was documented on social media from start to finish.

Now this was an interesting mystery. Unlike the previous cases that were years and years old, Bria Carson had tons of media coverage - there's plenty of people who knew Bria and plenty of evidence of her presence and then absolutely nothing. The idea of people vanishing in today's society is both terrifying and completely baffling - and yet seems to happen more often than one would think possible.

So the initial case was great. I loved the explanation and guilty party. That was all good. I liked the way Kendra connects the seemingly unrelated death of a cyclist to Bria's case. I felt sorry for the cyclist doctor, dude got a raw deal. And the killer was a real creep. Even if I could appreciate the genius of having a truck to contain the victim and all evidence. What was not so good was what came after. It felt like this series lost steam as it went ahead. Atwell is revealed at the start as the stalker. Which I totally fkn guessed! But it fell apart and got less believable or realistic as it went on. He's a billionaire who has access to crime labs. That has committed other abductions. And never been suspected. It just became more and more unlikely. In addition to that the storyline for it wraps up too soon. It's like here's your stalker you haven't caught in decades, but oh here's all the evidence and a nicely gift wrapped arrest within a chapter. It didn't work. Which is a shame because up until the reveal this series was really good.

As for the rest of the characters, Artie and Shoop were both great as well and are good friends to Kendra. I would've liked to see more of them. For the romantic relationships, Kyle was back on the scene. Apparently him and Kendra are together and contemplating living together which was meh. The romance in this series has been pretty average. The mum and Big Don were back together and seemed happy. Gillian makes an appearance and is a total boss. I rather liked Gillian, I'd love to see a spinoff series with her as the main character. And Stephanie Dillon is a master at getting what she wants - which in this case was her daughter's stalker. I liked that part, even if it felt weak.

There seems to be a significant time lapse between these books which wasn't terrible but I found kind of annoying. There kept being all these things that happened off page. Still, while it may not have been perfect or as good as the other books, it was still pretty good. and I'd love to read more Kendra Dillon books. 4.5 stars, rounded to 5 stars.… (plus d'informations)

Investigative journalist, Kendra Dillon had to pivot when she was fired from her tv reporter job. But she found a better fit as the host of The Cold Trail, a podcast that investigates cold cases and tries to find new lines of inquiry. The third book, The Nobody Girls, sees Kendra and her associate producer, Adeline Shoop investigate the cold cases of a suspected serial killer who murders women nobody will miss along the highway.

This was great. Like the first two books, this was intense. The plot unfolds at a steady clip and hurtles towards the conclusion. The mystery kept me hooked but I also really enjoyed that the podcast focuses on finding people who knew the girls and trying to make sure everyone understood they were people first and foremost - people who loved others and were loved by and liked and remembered by others as well.

There were a few missteps but mainly related to Kendra herself than the actual plot. Getting into the truck? Really? It was so fkn dumb - no matter the reason it was so incredibly stupid. And on top of that the ending had me seriously thinking she'd lost it before I realised she'd actually planned it, that she'd asked for help and backup and went in with a plan. It was the first bit of smart thinking she'd done. I loved Kendra but she's unbelievably reckless. While I was glad the romance takes a step back - man that was a harsh breakup. I mean I didn't like him - or at least, didn't like them together but;

“You’re dumping me?” Kendra felt the sting of the words. Talking to her was a waste of breath. “I’m stepping back. I wish you the best and all that, but I need to leave the front row seats of the Kendra Dillon show.” Kyle turned and walked out. Just like that.

Rane, Rebecca. The Nobody Girls (p. 15). Kindle Edition.

That was brutal. The stalker plot heats up. I have my suspicions on who it is - hopefully all will be revealed in the next one cause I'm fast running out of books.

Another intense addition to the series, 5 stars.… (plus d'informations)

Investigative journalist, Kendra Dillon had to pivot when she was fired from her tv reporter job. But she found a better fit as the host of The Cold Trail, a podcast that investigates cold cases and tries to find new lines of inquiry. In the second book, The Moment He Vanished, Kendra and her associate producer, Adeline Shoop start the third season of their podcast by looking into the child abduction of Ethan Peltz.

I think this was actually more intense than the last book. It's definitely more action packed. I loved the switching viewpoints, the structure worked well in the last book, but extremely well in this one.

Kendra was fantastic. I loved her determined attitude and dogged persistence. I did feel like she made some dumb decisions though - visiting the place she was taken from alone, going places by herself without telling anyone - I mean yeah people do that, but she's actually been abducted - seems like she should be even more aware of how wrong things can go.

Honestly she's kind of absentminded about safety considering everything. I got maybe not reporting things to the cops but I felt like she should be actively preparing for trouble. And no, pepper spray is not remotely enough. I can't wait to know more about her past. I thought I'd find out in the last one or in this one but the author seems to be building it up. I'd be more annoyed if I wasn't so hooked on this series.

As for the mystery in this one, it had me spinning. I'd settle on one theory and then totally second guess myself. I was completely dumbfounded by the ending. OMFG Josh! I hadn't completely decided whether or not he was Ethan and went back and forth on that but the rest of it had my jaw dropping.

I did feel like Kendra should've been more capable with Josh at the end though. I mean she was just waiting for someone to save her and it felt like a cop out. I would've liked for her to have managed to stop him just as law enforcement came in or something. As for her stalker I have a prediction about that. I think it's Atwell. He's creepy. Time will tell if I'm right though. And let's face it, my track record says I'm wrong.

Another terrific read by Rebecca Rane. 5 stars.… (plus d'informations)

Investigative journalist, Kendra Dillon had to pivot when she was fired from her tv reporter job. But she found a better fit as the host of The Cold Trail, a podcast that investigates cold cases and tries to find new lines of inquiry. In the first book, The Hour of Her Death, Kendra and her associate producer, Adeline Shoop look for a case to research for their second season and settle on the murder of a nun, Sister David, on Christmas thirty years earlier.

This was fantastic crime fiction with a well plotted mystery and a riveting case. The narrative chipped away at a steady pace - slowly building suspense and preparing for the reveals - much like I'd imagine they were trying to achieve for the podcast. I was hooked from page one wanting to know more about Kendra, more about Shoop, more about Kendra's family and more about the murder of Sister David. Just more of everything. Plus I wanted to know everything she keeps in the bags she packs so carefully. I feel like there's got to be more than just pepper spray in them.

Honestly my biggest complaint is regarding the hint of romance or whatever it was that featured between Kendra and Kyle. It just felt awkward and unnatural. Actually I was also pretty disappointed that this book doesn't start with The Cold Trail's season one case, the I-80 Jane Doe murder. It would've been cool to see how it all began.

The mystery itself kept me guessing. I figured out some parts but missed others. OMFG I did not remotely see the twist coming. I mean sure I figured there were higher ups who were pulling the strings but I didn't even have Uncle Ernie/ Captain Zilba on my radar.

An incredible start to a new crime series. Highly recommend, particularly if you like Max Revere by Allison Brennan. 4.5 stars, rounded to 5 stars.… (plus d'informations)