Book Review: UNSUB by Meg Gardiner

Caitlin Hendrix is a young detective drawn into investigating a brutal, relentless serial killer, known as the Prophet, who had previously terrorised her city and destroyed her family twenty years previous. Following in the footsteps of her father, who was the lead investigator all those years ago, Caitlin is quickly sucked into the case, determined to be the one to decipher his sick twisted messages and bring an end to his killing spree. But will she become blinded by her obsession to do what her father couldn't and bring down the Prophet?

"All Hope Abandon, Ye Who Enter Here"

I received this ARC from Dutton books in exchange for an honest review. As a huge fan of Criminal Minds, serial killers and criminal profiling, this book was right up my street. With its short, snappy chapters, it's relatively easy to just breeze through, and the pace of the story is pretty consistent with twists and turns constantly happening. I found the main character Caitlin quite likeable, along with her boyfriend Sean. Beyond that it's just a mish-mash of different detectives and investigators and it just felt like they all blurred together in my head.

The crimes themselves were gory and brutal, AND I LOVED IT. Some pretty interesting and creative methods of murdering and staging bodies in here... I don't want to spoil the overall arc of the story and how the murders are all "linked", but I thought it was brilliant! I was slow-clapping in my head.

Now....my issues. I think when you watch Criminal Minds or any tv show/movie related to this type of genre,  as well as reading the books, you have to just go with the fact that it's going to be pretty far-fetched and unbelievable. And I accept that - but it still bothers me slightly. Things always happen a bit too conveniently for me.

I'm quite intrigued by the fact that this will actually be a series, there's a high chance of me picking up the next book! It was a fun, addictive read, with lots of gore and chilling crime scenes. And I can't really complain about that. I think I'd give it 3.5 stars out of 5, but will round up to 4 for my goodreads ;)

So, if you enjoy Criminal Minds and detective work - this is the book for you! Released 27th June 2017.

Johann

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