Jeff Sexton
Silence Of The Lambs Homage With Twists. This is one of those books that I honestly never would have connected it with Silence Of The Lambs had other reviewers not pointed that connection out, but it absolutely does fit here. Of course, along similar lines one could also connect this tale to the legendary Sherlock Holmes tales, which ultimately most modern detective tales come from in some way or another. Honestly, the connection I made while reading the book itself was to Starfield, a long awaited game that finally released nearly three months before this book did, and which I've been playing quite heavily since. *That* connection will only make sense after you've read this book *and* played that game all the way through at least once though.
Overall, this is a pulse pounding thriller, one where a brilliant detective faces off with an equally brilliant - and possibly moreso - serial killer. In this case... the showdown that we were promised in Book 1 of this series, The Cove. The murders here are particularly brutal, and our heroine has quite a bit in common with that famous 19th century detective in several ways, making this quite the compelling tale.
As to whether a Book 3 may be coming... I love the fact that the author actually weaves into the tale here a discussion of why that may not actually be a great idea... and yet... I ultimately still think I want to see it anyway. So we'll see what Dunnett and his publisher do next.
Very much recommended.