Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of Evil At Heart (The Beauty Killer Series, Book 3) by Chelsea Cain
Mystery/Suspense novel released by St. Martin’s Minotaur 1 Sep 09

As much as I love the romance genre, mystery/suspense will always be my first love. It’s also interesting to note that while there are many fine romance authors who write stories that I adore, it’s the mystery/suspense writers that seem to turn me into a squealing, slobbering fangirl. The kind of fangirl that wrings her hands while counting down the days until the next book in the series is released. Such was the case with Evil At Heart, the third book in the continuing saga of pill-popping, burnt out detective Archie Sheridan, and the beautiful, manipulative serial killer, Gretchen Lowell.

Cain seems to be working on a fast timeline for this series, with Evil At Heart taking place only four months after the first book in the series, Heartsick. It basically picks up immediately following Sweetheart. Detective Archie Sheridan has survived another attack at the hands of serial killer, Gretchen Lowell, and is currently residing in a mental hospital. He checked himself in voluntarily, has kicked the Vicodin habit, and is seeing a shrink. He could probably be working towards getting released, but he has no interest. No, he’s quite happy where he is. He’s on an indefinite leave of absence from the force, and even though Gretchen is on the loose, things are pretty quiet. Until the dead bodies start piling up.

Gretchen and Archie had called a truce, of sorts. He’d stop trying to kill himself and she wouldn’t kill anyone else. So when bodies start turning up featuring some of Gretchen’s calling cards, Archie finds himself back in action. The question being though, is it really Gretchen? Ever since her escape there have been sightings all over the world. Also, in her wake, the public has developed a sick fascination with her. There are Beauty Killer bus tours, T-shirts, manicures, and fan clubs. While these new murders certainly look like Gretchen’s work, something feels off to Archie. Do they have a copycat killer on their hands?

There’s usually a point in a mystery/suspense series where the books stop standing on the own. Evil At Heart would be the book. While I do think the previous two books can be read out of order (although I don’t recommend it), I think this story won’t work nearly as well for the uninitiated. For one thing, there’s not a whole lot of character development here. The author is pretty much relying on the fact that you “know” these people already. You can certainly read it, and understand it, but I don’t think you’d “get” nearly as much out of it.

Cain is very clever in the way she writes her Gretchen Lowell character. She teases the reader. She doesn’t info-dump a lot of psychology and back-story, and instead offers glimpses into the relationship between Gretchen and Archie. Also, while Gretchen is largely off stage in this novel, her presence is constantly felt. She’s like a fog that drifts in, only to hover over a city for days on end. What is her plan, and what is she doing, because Gretchen isn’t just a brutal killer. She’s a master manipulator as well, and she manipulates everyone and everything within her universe.

My gut reaction to this story was that it wasn’t as good as the first two novels. In some instances, it kind of felt like a place-holder. The story advances, somewhat, but not near as much as in the last book, which was loaded with shocking revelations. That said, it’s still pretty darn good and compulsively readable. For fans of the first two books, Evil At Heart should work quite nicely. Gretchen is still evil, Archie is still massively screwed up, and reporter Susan Ward is still prone to Too Stupid To Live moments. All that being said though, I did find this new book to be more graphic than the previous two. Certainly when you have a book about a serial killer, there are going to be dead bodies and violence , but the author really cranks it up to the next level here. There was a moment in the book that I actually had to set it down and walk away from it. Serious heebie-jeebies . I know this sort of thing is incredibly subjective, but this is coming from the girl who was reading books about medical examiners and autopsies as a teenager. Just saying.

While I wasn’t as madly enthralled with this installment as the previous two books in the series, it’s still a page-turning suspense story featuring some of the most seriously damaged characters ever to populate the genre fiction universe. For readers already plugged into this series, nothing I say here is really going to sway or deter your desire to pick up this entry. For the rest of you, start with book one.

Grade: B+

Summary:
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Gretchen Lowell is still on the loose. These days, she’s more of a cause célèbre than a feared killer, thanks to sensationalist news coverage that has made her a star. Her face graces magazine covers weekly and there have been sightings of her around the world. Most shocking of all, Portland Herald reporter Susan Ward has uncovered a bizarre kind of fan club, which celebrates the number of days she’s been free.
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Archie Sheridan hunted her for a decade, and after his last ploy to catch her went spectacularly wrong, remains hospitalized months later. When they last spoke, they entered a détente of sorts—Archie agreed not to kill himself if she agreed not to kill anyone else. But when a new body is found accompanied by Gretchen’s trademark heart, all bets are off and Archie is forced back into action. Has the Beauty Killer returned to her gruesome ways, or has the cult surrounding her created a whole new evil?
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Read excerpt here.

Other books in this series: