kimbacaffeinate
Written on Feb 17, 2012
Carolyn O’Malley was the only one to escape from the serial killer known as the Groom. He grabbed her in her home and seven days later made her his bride. He held her for over forty days before she jumped from a window and made her escape. Permanently scarred both mentally and forever physically, she has spent the last seven years helping the FBI. They have created a task force know as the Bridegrooms. Ned, an ex-military buddy of her late partner, has been living with her as a bodyguard. Every year on the date of her escape, the Groom sends a sympathy card. Carolyn has spent the last seven years secretly plotting her revenge. After Carolyn escaped, the serial killer changed his MO. He began taking girls in the spring and fall; each girl resembles Carolyn. If she changes her hair color, he changes his victim. The FBI task force believes she is the key and together they will lay a trap to capture him.
The tale that unfolds sent me on quite a ride, as Wilson slowly revealed what occurred during the forty days Carolyn was held. As Carolyn works with the FBI, we learn they are keeping things from her and she is keeping things from them. The clever twists and reveals Wilson provides kept me engaged, as I connected with the characters and worried about them. The relationship between Ned and Carolyn is unique. He has spent the past seven years acting as her bodyguard, maid, nurse and friend. Ned is deeply in love with strong-willed Carolyn and deep down she knows this. As Ned hints about life after the Groom, Carolyn must address how she feels about Ned. The climatic, weekend ending, was gripping and a surprise reveal left shocked. After I closed the book, I realized Wilson had cleverly dropped clues along the way.