A FAMILIAR EVIL by Anne Patrick

Jordan Russell was working for the FBI when the monster who abducted her as a child resurfaces. She quits the FBI and returns home to Thorny Creek with the idea of finally putting to rest the nightmare of those memories and finding out who he is so she can stop him. She also leaves behind her FBI husband (Sam) who she thinks has a thing for his lady partner. Sam Russell had made a terrible mistake and now he's lost the woman he loves. When Sam gets call from Jordan's cousin (the mayor) with a request to come to Thorny Creek to help investigate the latest victims of a serial killer, known as The Musical Strangler, he jumps at the chance. He's hoping he can help solve the case as well as win back the heart of the woman he can't live without. Jordan hasn't told Sam about her abduction. When he finds out, will he feel differently about her? Can Jordan get past her hurt and forgive Sam for his indiscretion? Above all, will they discover the true identity of the 'The Musical Strangler' before it's too late???

A Familiar Evil is one of those stories that once you start reading you just can't stop. It has all the elements I have come to love about Anne Patrick's writing. Great characters, zippy dialog and lots of red herrings all wrapped up in 'edge of your seat' suspense. I thoroughly enjoyed Sam and Jordan. The interaction between these two was electric. I liked all the secondary characters as well, especially Devin. He's only 9 but what a little charmer he is. I loved all the advice he gave Sam. I enjoyed watching Sam and Jordan work through their issues. It was done in a realistic and believable way. The story keeps a steady pace then ramps up to it's nail-biting conclusion. As with all of Anne's stories, she keeps you guessing on who the killer is until the end. I love that! I highly recommend A Familiar Evil but be sure to set aside a block of time...you're going to need it. It's a great story! A thank you goes to the author for providing this complimentary copy for my review.