Lexi is a survivor. She was a victim of a pedophilia ring as a child and has been on her own since the age of 10. She was one of the lucky ones, though- sometimes they murdered the girls. As an adult, she makes her money as a prostitute. In her free time, she is a hacker who works to bring down other pedophiles. Then a child is murdered- and it has all the signs that it is the same person who ran the ring from her childhood.

Lexi is complex. She obviously has a lot of trauma, which still impacts her life and life decisions. She skirts the law with her hacking (and her profession), but she does it for a good reason. She is definitely interesting, which makes the book that much better.

I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

The audiobook is narrated by Cecelia Ramsdale. I have no complaints about the narration, but audio is probably not the best method of reading this. There are sudden flashbacks. This is hard with an audiobook when there isn't really notice or a clear break. It always takes me a few seconds to catch on to what is happening.

I received an audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

Premise - escort and former CSA victim turned vigilante Lexi Winters sets out to take down her former assailant, infamous pedophile and serial killer The Spider, with the assistance of the police.

A lot about the story and the premise required generous suspension of disbelief - Lexi was a homeless teen who never finished high school and ended up in sex work to get by, drowning her ghosts in Jack Daniel’s (not Johnny Walkers, the blurb needs an edit)… but also she’s a computer savant to the point that the police give her immunity in order to work with her? It’s unlikely that she would have had the ability to learn those skills given her situation and, given that she had, it isn’t properly explained why she wouldn’t take that highly marketable skill and go get a cush 6 figure gig in tech.

That said, the story was engaging and it handled a very sensitive issue in what felt like a respectful way — the sexual violence happens off page, but we see enough of the villains to loathe and fear them.

I’m glad Lexi’s skills are acknowledged by the PD at the end and I look forward to reading the next books in the series. I hope this is the beginning of a good turn for her — that she gets sober and finally enjoys some security and joy in her life.

Thanks, NetGalley and HarperCollins, for the gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.