Fear and Loathing

Fear and Loathing by Hillary Norman. Published by Severn House

June 16, 2014 by cayocosta72 Leave a comment

Detective Sam Beckett is taking on the toughest case of his life. Four of his friends have been found dead, bound and gagged, they have been poisoned to death. A sinister note addresses to Beckett is the only clue. His colleagues urge him to drop the case, but he’s obsessed. Will his obsession endanger not only himself, but also his family?
A classic detective story with an engaging hero and a twisted plot line that will keep readers guessing.

Four people are found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning inside the car belonging to one of the couples. The garage has been sealed off to make sure there would be no escape for the two couples. One of the women was tied in such a way as to insure she suffered even more than the others if she fought her restraints. Miami Beach Police Department Violent Crimes Unit detective Sam Becket finds that this killer has left him a personal message - singling him out because he, like one of the murdered couples, is in an inter-racial marriage. How many other couples are being targeted by this killer? As if this wasn't enough to keep Sam and his wife Grace on edge, their daughter is in France working at a top rated restaurant where all sorts of things are happening which could close the restaurant down.

Some novels are written with such great pacing that you almost don't have a moment to catch your breath between one momentous happening and the next. Watching the detectives trying to find some flaw in the murder executions was so well written that I had started to wonder how the author planned to ever get the detectives started toward solving these murders. The characters are well balanced so that the novel can move back and forth between their personal lives and the police procedures required to make progress in a resolution of the crimes. Normally I might have resented the secondary story taking place in France, but even that was so well plotted and carried out that I didn't mind taking the focus off the main story. Plus there was a twist to the plot in this story that I never even dreamed would happen. That gave me a little bit of a pause, but then I decided just to go along with it. I do recommend this novel for readers who enjoy an in-depth police procedural and you even get to become more involved with the family of this lead character. This was quite an enjoyable reading experience for me.

I received an ARC of this novel through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own.