Melina is trying to help out a friend, by searching for 2 missing girls. When she is mistaken for one of the girls and someone attempts to grab her. Low and behold she’s a TBI agent! Kidnap fail! In comes Ramsey a FBI agent who has been chasing a serial killer fitting Melina’s kidnappers method! Can they find the missing girls or do they find something more?

"I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Y'all, this series from Mary Burton is so amazing!

TBI agent Melina Shepard and FBI agent Jerrod Ramsey work together to solve two mysteries in Nashville, Tennessee. One case involves missing prostitutes. When Melina goes undercover to try to find out what happened, she almost becomes a victim herself. The second case involves a child left at the scene of a car crash that brings up buried memories of Melina's abandonment on the side of a road.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love police procedurals. One of my favorites is Criminal Minds and this one definitely gives me those kinds of vibes. I like that this series is all stand alones, but at the same time, I wish we could get to know the characters a bit more. I really enjoy reading this series. Never Look Back had 2 different serial killers that were active and it was interesting seeing how the characters split their time. I do wish there was a bit more overlap in the 2 different storylines, though. Overall, this was a great reading experience and I can't wait to see what's next from Mary Burton!

*eARC provided in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this book! Never Look Back is a brilliantly well-written book with a plot that doesn't give up from beginning to end.

There are two separate cases going on throughout Never Look Back and Agent Melina Shepard finds herself working on both. I was so involved in one plot line that I kept forgetting about the other! The plots are really well developed and interwoven and made it impossible to put down.

The characters are fantastic. Agent Melina Shepard is a force to be reckoned with; no nonsense, driven and with a reputation of being like a dog with a bone, she's not arrogant or selfish. She is relatable and you can't help but cheer her on. I loved everything about her. FBI Agent Ramsey ends up being involved in both cases and finds a fantastic partner in Melina. The agents' determination to get their man makes for a fast-paced story with some gruesome plot lines that I didn't expect.

The murders in this book are like something from a horror film with truly despicable, evil minds at work. As gruesome as they are, it didn't spoil my enjoyment at all; merely made me cheer on Melina even more! As the plots develop, the plot lines comes together and Melina finds out some truths from her past she could never have expected. It was good to see the reconciliation of the plots and I really enjoyed the ending.

This was such an enjoyable book and I'd highly recommend. Great plot, great characters, great writing; loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley, Mary Burton and Montlake Romance for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Never Look Back is Book 3 of the Criminal Profiler series by Mary Burton. This story was amazing! An edge of your seat thriller that kept me guessing until the very end. I've always enjoyed stories by Ms. Burton but they've always tended to be a bit too light on the romance aspect. While I wouldn't go out on a limb and say this had a ton of romance in it, there was certainly more than "the usual" and I really enjoyed the connection between Melina and Jerrod.

Never Look Back by Mary Burton is book number three it her Criminal Profiler series. Each book in the series stands alone, so you won't be lost if you start here. The book is well written with an interesting story. The characters are well developed. Very enjoyable read.

This is the third book in the 'Criminal Profiler' series by Mary Burton. I really enjoyed the series opener Hide and Seek and this book, Never Look Back was a real humdinger, too!

The action begins immediately when the reader, in a suitably chilling and ominous prologue, is introduced to the unidentified serial killer at work, allowing initial insight into the perpetrator’s mind so they can see their innermost thoughts. In this suspenseful, race-against-time thriller, Agent Melina Shepard, and FBI agent Jerrod Ramsey are working together. This novel was brilliantly written by Mary Burton with regard to both the well-drawn characters and the plot. Melina was fierce, hardworking and independent, though still very likeable.

Never Look Back is tremendously good romantic suspense, and Mary Burton achieves the perfect equilibrium between the two. Overall, plenty of action and memorable characters make the ‘Criminal Profiler’ a must on my list of great series'.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Montlake via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

Agent with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Melina Shepard knows she’s had a lucky escape when she narrowly escapes begging dragged into a ‘murder van’ while undercover. A DNA match brings Jerrod Ramsey of the FBI to Nashville to try and crack the case of the Key Killer, a sadistic serial killer who leaves a key on his victims’ bodies. But Jerrod Ramsey isn’t the only new arrival in town; a woman and child bring back deeply buried memories for Melina and may unlock the secrets of her past, even while their presence stirs another dangerous predator into a killing frenzy.

With two serial killers having their focus on Melina - albeit for different reasons - for a long time I felt deeply frustrated and like this ought to be two separate stories, one for each case. However, at the book’s climax, the two story threads do collide pretty inextricably. That said… I still think this would be better off as two separate books. There was enough ‘meat’ on the bones of either storyline to flesh it out properly… and maybe there could have been a bit more focus on the ‘romance’ part of the romantic suspense, then. That was really very much skimmed over.

I liked Melina and Jerrod both, and there’s an interesting cast of side characters. We get quite a lot of glimpses into the mindsets of three different antagonists, who are different enough from each other that it’s not really confusing, but it was still probably at least one too many. I think more time needed to be spent on building up Melina’s work at the mission and her relationship with Sam, because when the reveal of who he actually was came, there was no emotional impact; he’d only been mentioned a couple of times in passing, so Melina was just TELLING us that she felt betrayed by a friend, we hadn’t really been SHOWN that she was.

Looking back at my review history, this is the fourth Mary Burton book I’ve reviewed in the last couple of years. I like the sound of them which is why I keep trying, I like the concepts, and the general writing style is good, but the plot execution isn’t cutting it for me. My previous reviews have been one 2-star and two 3-stars, and this one’s getting three stars as well… and I’m calling it time to say that this author’s work just isn’t for me.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆☆
M/F Thriller

Melina Shepard loves her job. She has always known that she wants to be in law enforcement. Her childhood started out rocky, but she ended up with an amazing family. When a case baffles the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), Melina decides to go undercover to try and figure out who is kidnapping and killing local woman. She's tenacious, smart, and cunning.

Jerrod Ramsey is on the hunt for a killer that nobody seems to know. When he runs into Melina and sees that their cases might be aligned, he offers his assistance. He wants to find the person behind his string of cases too.

As Ramsey and Shepard hunt for their two killers, can they truly see what's right in front of them? What is it about them? What is it about these killers? And the biggest question of all – how is Melina's past intertwined?

I absolutely couldn't put this book down. It kept me guessing, turning the pages well into the wee hours of the morning. It's fast-paced and very entertaining. I really enjoyed this.

Triggers: Stalking, Murder, Torture

'Never look back', the premise, the title and the cover were what attracted me to this book on Netgalley.

After a long time I read a mystery thriller involving serial killers, a brilliant female detective Melina Shepard of Tennessee bureau of Investigation and supported by Jerrod Ramsey of FBI.

Melina is a daredevil female cop who goes out to help a friend Sharon who runs a centre for prostitutes and two of the ladies have gone missing. Melina happens to meet the guy but due to her cop skills and intuition she stabs him before he gets away. As they are searching for clues for this killer, they get called on to a case with an abandoned little girl Elena in a car with some very gruesome things in it.

So now they are chasing two serial killers.
The story is exciting, thrilling and ends on a note that doesn't plummet the story line. Loved the characterisation. Would have loved to know more about Agent Ramsey.

A pacy read.

If you are one who enjoys stories on serial killers and like stories with female lead....then this one is just up your alley.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing me an eARC of this book and the excitement and opinions are my own.

I loved how this story was actually two stories and the common link was Melina Shepard. Agent Melina Shepard of the TBI is one of those agents that is so smart. That is the kind of murder mystery I really like to read. This book is intense, angsty and has the building physical romantic chemistry building between Melina and Agent Jerrod Ramsey from the FBI. I loved his own mysterious vibe, strength and incredible intelligence. The two are investigating two crimes at once that both deeply affect Melina. Great character development as well as secondary characters, especially Melina's parents. As the pieces fall together I truly would not have guessed! That is always a bonus. Another Mary Burton best seller!!!

I wish now I had read the first two books in this series as I enjoyed this, though it works perfectly well as a stand-alone read.
The focus for our story is Agent Melina Shepherd. Found abandoned by the side of the road as a young child, Melinda has earned herself a reputation as a lone wolf who’s determined to see her cases out. When she is asked to investigate the disappearance of two local prostitutes she gets herself closer to a serial killer than she bargained for.
As the case is investigated we realise there’s more to this than meets the eye. The investigation results in things getting very personal for Marina, but she remains focused and professional throughout.
The revelations deliberately throw us off the scent for a while. We find out some pretty shocking details, and one of my key thoughts was how this would impact those concerned. The focus is more on the here and now, but as part of a series maybe this gets looked at later.
I’m grateful to NetGalley for giving me the chance to review this before publication, and I’m definitely curious to look at the first two books in the series.

This is a solid 3.5 stars for me.

I thought the first 30-40% of the book was great, really fast paced and kept me turning the pages. The middle of the book was a bit meh and slow and then it picked up again at about 80%. I did enjoy this. I love a serial killer book so having two in the same book was even better!

Ok it was slightly predictable but for me that didn't take away from the story. Our main protagonist is Agent Shephard who works for TBI (Tennessee Bureau of Investigation) when she goes undercover as a prostitute while investigating the disappearance of two prostitutes when she "stumbles" upon a serial killer and narrowly escapes with her life. Meanwhile a car is found with something pretty nasty in the boot (or trunk if you are American!) and so the twisted and sometimes quite graphic tale begins. I also really liked hearing the background story of Agent Shephard which made me like her even more.

All in all a good read with a complex (albeit sometimes slightly confusing) storyline with many twists and turns along the way.

Agent Melina Shepard is not without courage and sheer brass. A number of women have gone missing with no trace whatsoever. The pick up area is known and when a full search of missing women are done, it seems the number is quite high. No remains have been found either. Melina goes undercover alone without support to try to nab the Killer

One chance encounter with the killer gives clues which no one can do. She is the only survivor. Along with an officer from Quantico both of them try to unravel the mystery of the missing women and uncover a story which reads stranger than fiction. And very close to home. Pieces of Melina's own past get uncovered as a result as the story unfolds and it is very much a story of Melina and her past as well as the gruesome killer's rampage. Finally it is not one killer but two that have to be uncovered.

Melina is our main character but Jerrod and others in turn play their part in this fast paced thriller. The build up was quick and the reader was always left wanting to know what the next stage was.

My first read of this author and I will be looking out for more in the future.

Never Look Back is suspenseful and has you wondering who did what. I didn't mind that there was no romance factor for the most part of the story. I was all for the mystery that had me trying to figure who did what? I loved the fact that I had no clue who the suspects were until they were revealed. I really enjoyed the story and was smiling at the end <3

Suspenseful! Edge of your seat reading. I read this in one day because I just couldn't put it down. Twisty and tense you'll love this winner of a book because Mary Burton is the queen of suspense and boy can she tell a story. Happy reading!

This was my first Mary Burton book and it did not disappoint! I really enjoyed how the author included two different serial killer plot lines in the book as it kept me engaged throughout. Another aspect that I really enjoyed was the how close the main character Melina was to her how adopted family and how the author was able to demonstrate that love from both parties in such an intense read. Although this was book number three in the series, I felt that I was able to jump right into the story/characters without feeling lost at any point. I plan to go back and read the first two novels in this series as I am curious to see how they intersect with this one.

Anyone who loves a good crime/FBI profiler novel should pick this one up!

Big thank you to NetGalley, Montlake Romance and Mary Burton for allowing me to read an ARC of this novel!

I already posted my review to Goodreads.

An exciting and thrilling race against a killer who has set his sights on Melina after a failed abduction attempt. She is the one that got away and his obsession may just be what gets him caught. Another case brings up something from her past, though she can't put her finger on it
With the help of Agent Ramsey and her family she may just solve these cases and bring justice to all the victims and maybe put her past behind her.

I liked this book the flow was good and it kept my interest well enough it was a little slow getting started in the beginning but over all it was good...

An ARC was provided through Net Galley.

Melina Shepard and Jerrod Ramsey are both in law enforcement. The two meet while searching for a serial killer. The two characters are dedicated to their careers and have more in common than they are willing to admit. Overall the mystery is really good and as is often the case in Burton's books, the heroine's mysterious childhood is interwoven with the present. I don't consider this book as romantic suspense. The relationship between the two characters is based more on intrigue and curiosity. But the book does end with a HFN.

Never Look Back by Mary Burton
Criminal Profiler #3

A van stops, a man beckons a woman on the street to his van to procure a “date”, the woman is leery and then…well…then this book grabbed my attention in a way that I just had to keep reading to find out what would happen next. This story is intense, gritty and dark and yet filled with a bit of hope and potential long-term romance for a couple of people in the story.

What I liked:
* Melina Shepard – TBI agent that is tough as nails, smart, caring and a survivor.
* Jerrod Ramsay – FBI agent that comes in to assist in catching a serial killer that Melina is searching for, too.
* Elena – a child that Melina sees a lot of herself in
* The dual serial killer threads running through the book
* The police procedural aspects for finding the killers
* The backstory of Melina
* The relationship that develops between Melina and Jerrod
* Melina’s parents – they warmed my soul
* That my mind was left to imagine the horrors perpetrated by the killers rather than having them spelled out
* The supporting characters and the neighbor’s cat
* That the baddies were dealt with by the end of the book

What I did not like:
* Bonnie – an amoral con woman that put herself first and destroyed more than one person in the process
* The serial killers – even though one I *might* have felt a bit sorry for for a second or two.
* Having to say goodbye to the characters that I grew to like and care for in the story

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Without a doubt

Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake Romance for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars