Special Agent Elizabeth Taylor Hewitt always gets the crazy cases. She’s already squared off against serial killers inspired by Edgar Allan Poe and Frédéric Chopin, and now she’s put through the ringer again by one who slays unhappy couples in SEPARATED AT DEATH.
Sheldon Rusch’s heroine is newly engaged at the start of her third murder mystery, but her happiness is short-lived. That’s due to the grisly discovery of a decapitated couple, said to be on the rocks, and then another. But at least Hewitt has some help this time, in the form of criminology college student and single mom Jen Spangler, the daughter of Hewitt’s cop mentor.
Hewitt lets Spangler investigate a seemingly random angle, once the editor of a two-bit community newspaper is anonymously sent a wedding photo with pasted-on disembodied heads of the dead. Meanwhile, Hewitt herself infiltrates a cadre of free-thinking marriage counselors to attempt to learn more about the deceased, their relationships and why they may be a target.
Keeping track of all the counselors is a bit of a chore, but not so much that it ruins the read. Rusch’s story is easy to get sucked into — and stay there — but for me, the big reveal leaned toward the side of unbelievable. After pretty tight plotting, that the end seems so rushed was a slight buzzkill. —Rod Lott
“The revulsion hit Hewitt’s solar plexus in one direct shot.”
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• FOR EDGAR by Sheldon Rusch
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The plot seems guite interesting. I think the book is worth reading and I’m going to buy it right now!