Another winner by Charly Cox with this third installment of the Detective Alyssa Wyatt series. After solving the Toy Box trafficking case, the team at the Albuquerque, NM, police station are still reeling from the horrific images of abused girls that frequent their nightmares when they are hit with another disturbing double homicide. The heartfelt and protective bond between Alyssa and her partner, Cord, strengthens as they race to find a sadistic killer and rescue two kidnapped teenagers from murder or worse. This riveting, suspenseful thriller kept me turning pages right to the end where a plot twist I did not see coming ties everything together nicely. ( )

Alone in the Woods by Charly Cox
Detective Alyssa Wyatt #3

Captured in the first scene of the book, both myself and the two girls kidnapped, and engaged through till the end, I was rooting for a successful conclusion to the murder investigation, a happy ending for Addis and Emerson, and the revelation and capture of the serial killer. Great addition to the series!

What I liked:
* Alyssa: normal, well-balanced, police detective, team leader, mother, wife, friend, unflappable – I like her as a person and admire her.
* Cord: work-partner to Alyssa, husband, soon-to-be-father, even tempered, normal, balanced, - I like him.
* Tony: intrigued by him and found him worth note – hope we see more of him in the future
* Addis & Emerson: strong, smart, tenacious, enduring, willing to do what it took to survive.
* The police procedural aspects of the story
* Glimpses of people from the last book as well as hints of what that last book was about.
* The writing and the slow release of information with twists and turns that eventually revealed who was behind the crime(s).
* Feeling I was there with the characters as the case unfolded
* That this book was not a cookie cutter replay of the previous one – there was violence and crime but though dark it wasn’t the same type of darkness and evil as in the previous book.
* The conclusion and knowing that there will be another book in the series.

What I didn’t like:
* The person I was meant NOT to like – easy to hate such a one! Truly deserves being incarcerated…or worse!
* Having to wait for the next book in the series.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more by this author? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars ( )