Written In Blood by Chris Carter

Written in Blood by Chris Carter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time take to read - 3 days

Pages - 496

Publisher - Simon & Schuster UK

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

IF HE WRITES YOUR NAME DOWN, IT'S A DEATH SENTENCE . . Los Angeles, December 4th - exactly three weeks until Christmas day. Angela Wood, a master in the art of pickpocket, has just finished for the day - six hundred and eighty-seven dollars – not bad for less than fifteen minutes work.

As she celebrates her profitable day with a cocktail, one of the patrons in the lounge she’s in catches her attention by being rude to an old man. Angela decides to teach him a lesson, and steals the man’s expensive-looking leather bag.

Inside is no money ... no laptop computer ... nothing of any value ... at least not to Angela. Just a black, leather-bound book, surprisingly heavy. Curiosity takes over and in the comfort of her apartment, Angela quickly leafs through the pages.

That is when the worst nightmare of her life begins.
This is no ordinary book.
Read it at your own peril.



My Review

An exceptional thief decides to punish someone for their rudeness and steals something that puts her life in danger. A serial killer that wasn't on anyone's radar, killings follow seemingly no pattern or victimology. When Angela tangles with a cold calculated killer and takes what is his she tries to offload to the police and go about her business. Unfortunately for her she has no idea who she has robbed and Hunter and co may have to face a killer like none they have faced before.

This is book eleven, you could well pick this up as a standalone but the books are so good I would say go read them. Hunter is one of the best detectives, he has been head hunted by the FBI he is that good. Him and partner Garcia are up against a killer that has no fear, no set pattern and a unique insight into the killers crimes.

Brutal in how some of the killings are yet one or two have vibes of previous book kills or themes. I still really enjoy Carters books, the chapters are short, the storyline engaging and in this one very much cat and mouse yet it isn't always the police playing the role of the cat. Always interesting to hear from a cold killer and the *motives* of this killer is chilling, 4/5 for me. Looking forward to book twelve, can't believe that is me caught up with the whole series!

View all my reviews

Gallery of the Dead by Chris Carter

Gallery of the Dead by Chris Carter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 448

Publisher - Simon and Schuster

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads


‘Thirty-seven years in the force, and if I was allowed to choose just one thing to erase from my mind, what’s inside that room would be it.'

That’s what a LAPD Lieutenant tells Detectives Hunter and Garcia of the Ultra Violent Crimes Unit as they arrive at one of the most shocking crime scenes they have ever attended.

In a completely unexpected turn of events, the detectives find themselves joining forces with the FBI to track down a serial killer whose hunting ground sees no borders; a psychopath who loves what he does because to him murder is much more than just killing – it’s an art form.

Welcome to 'The Gallery of the Dead'.



My Review

Book nine in the Robert Hunter series, a killer who seems to kill at random, his victimology changes, his trophies changes, the writing on the corpses change. How do you catch a killer who is sporadic in location, gender, trophies? The FBI come on board and join forces to track down one of the worst criminal masterminds they have came across.

I love these books, the FBI agent clashes with members of the LAPD team - well Garcia comes into his own I felt in this book. With the clashes with the FBI agent I thought we saw a bit more of him which I really enjoyed.

We get a bit more of Hunter's personal life and of course his mindset, thinking and reading of crime scenes, I think he is such a fascinating read and character. As always Carter doesn't pull any punches with his kills/gore so not for the faint hearted but if you have read him before you know what to expect. If you haven't, go back to the start, the books are so good you don't want to miss out. Also, how Carter closes this tale makes me want to bump the other(s) up my tbrm so I doubt it will be long before we hit up book 10, 4/5 for me this time.

View all my reviews

An Evil Mind by Chris Carter

An Evil Mind by Chris Carter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 483

Publisher - Simon & Schuster

Source - Gift

Blurb from Goodreads

A freak accident in rural Wyoming leads the Sheriff's Department to arrest a man for a possible double homicide, but further investigations suggest a much more horrifying discovery - a serial killer who has been kidnapping, torturing and mutilating victims all over the United States for at least twenty-five years. The suspect claims he is a pawn in a huge labyrinth of lies and deception - can he be believed?

The case is immediately handed over to the FBI, but this time they're forced to ask for outside help. Ex-criminal behaviour psychologist and lead Detective with the Ultra Violent Crime Unit of the LAPD, Robert Hunter, is asked to run a series of interviews with the apprehended man. These interviews begin to reveal terrifying secrets that no one could've foreseen, including the real identity of a killer so elusive that no one, not even the FBI, had any idea he existed ... until now.



My Review

So I am playing catchup with the Hunter books and now reading them in order, this is book six in the series. Absolutely can read as a standalone but the previous are so good I would advise going back and reading them first. When an accident uncovers a brutal serial killer the police didn't even know was operating, the FBI have their hands full. The suspect claims he is innocent, a guy played in a bigger game and he will only talk to one person, Robert Hunter. As Hunter does what he does best he gets the guy to talk, a guy who isn't a stranger to Hunter and a can of worms, heartache and shocking discoveries will rock the FBI, smash open the case and Hunter.

So this book is a bit different from the others, the killer is a shocking controlled methodical sicko! We see the book go back and forth from present day to the past and we learn more about Hunter and his person life, things that have impacted on who he is now and how he interacts with others.

Absolutely a page turner, brutal, shocking and one of the most controlled and cunning bad guys, echoes of Hannibal Lector for me. I felt so much for Hunter this book, no idea what the future Carter books will hold but I have a few on my tbrm waiting, 4.5/5 for me this time.

View all my reviews