Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: A Thousand Vermilion Stars

SERIES: F.B.I. Files (Book 3)

AUTHOR: Patricia Logan

PUBLISHER: Westburg Publishing

LENGTH: 321 pages

RELEASE DATE: February 21, 2023

BLURB:

A copycat serial killer is driving their whole team crazy.

Dr. Leo Reeves has always considered himself a halfway decent criminal profiler. Some of his colleagues even call him brilliant. With this assignment, he sure as hell doesn’t feel that way. He’s been missing something at every turn. The case is dragging into its seventh month and every lead he and his team follow, takes them to a dead end…literally. Leo sure hasn’t come up with anything to move things along, as hard as he’s tried. They’re no closer to capturing their killer…even after following him all the way to Miami.

Special Agent Max Prince is worried.

The longer this case goes on, the farther down the rabbit hole, his partner and lover, Leo, seems to fall. To make matters worse, back home in Los Angeles, detectives Cassidy Ryan and Mike Williams have turned up a second graveyard filled with some surprising victims…victims the team know well. Worse yet, Miami has left them with even more questions. When a good cop is murdered, the whole case turns on its head. Everyone wants answers and their team doesn’t have any.

Something has to change.

Worst of all, the copycat hasn’t stopped killing, leaving strange clues behind, even inserting himself into the case. When one of their own is put in horrible danger, and DNA results reveal a shocking truth, things get even more complicated. No one likes taking risks, especially when they involve meeting the killer on his terms. But taking that risk, might be the only way to resolve this case. Whether it’s the desert graveyards of SoCal, the sexy hot nights of South Beach’s gay scene, or the sticky bayous of New Orleans, Max and Leo have vowed to end this monster once and for all…if he doesn’t end them first.

REVIEW:

I couldn’t wait to tear into this one! But I will warn you, once you pick it up you won’t be able to put it down! It’s that compelling and good!

Leo needs to solve this case once and for all. And Max also recognizes the mental abuse this case has on his partner and lover. This killer needs to be brought down. The mental games alone, the taunting, are going to destroy Leo if they don’t get the Slaughterer soon. That’s not including all the innocent lives that have been lost due to this torturous person. Snow and his team need this done now so off the Miami they go to finally get this murderer and get justice for all those lost to this senseless killer.

I was prepared to see Patricia Logan wreak havoc on her boys. It’s just what she does. But the level this rose to mentally had me so worried for all this team. This case was so personal to all of them. The killer always being one step ahead really played with my mind too. I worried, as I turned each page, what was going to jump out at me next. The nature of these crimes are so brutal and disturbing that I held my breath as some scenes that unfolded. This book is a dark study into the mind of a twisted psychotic killer.

I did enjoy watching how Snow’s team and all the key players in Miami interacted. I get that they were pissed when Snow’s team flew in to save the day on their turf. But it was watching how they all interacted as time went on and things came into play. They not only learned to trust each other for the good of the mission but became friends and cared about each other in the end. I do realize that local and federal law enforcement don’t always play nice with each other. Toes get stepped on and feelings hurt. I love that Snow and his team taught a different kind of team work that left the Miami and possibly New Orleans teams in a better working relationship in the future. Working together should always make for a better solution. It’s the nature of the training and the experience of boots on the ground.

One of the things that really surprised me was my reaction to the slaughterer in the end. Those tiny conversations that he had with Max played games with my heart. Yes he really is a disturbed sociopath but how he became what he was was beyond disturbing. That tiny, shy, scared little boy never stood a chance. The years of mental and physical torture created the monster he became. It just makes me hate his teacher even more! That man was evil through and through! He had no moral compass and made sure that fragile little soul didn’t either. His level of abuse had no limit.

I am extremely thankful that this case is finally tied up and done. It was a hard set to get through due to the depravity of humankind that some twisted souls reach.  But I am thrilled that there is another book coming in May and we get to see more of these guys and this team that has grabbed hold of me and I need more. This was a true mental thriller with so many twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Not for the faint of heart but so worth the ride!

RATING:

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