by Alaina Urquhart
SYNOPSIS
WREN WAS NEVER AFRAID OF THE DARK. UNTIL SHE LEARNED THAT SOME MONSTERS ARE REAL . . .
In deep Louisiana, a serial killer with a taste for medical experimentation is completing his most ambitious project yet. The media call him 'The Butcher' - and, so far, he's proved impossible to catch.
With her encyclopaedic knowledge of humanity's darkest minds, and years of experience examining their victims, forensic pathologist Dr Wren Muller is the best there is. The longer the Butcher's killing spree continues, the more determined she is to bring him to justice.
And yet, he continues to elude her.
As body after body piles up on Wren's examination table, her obsession grows. Pressure to put an end to the slaughter mounts. And her enemy becomes more brazen.
How far is Wren willing to go to draw the Butcher into the light . . .?
REVIEW
Dr Wren Muller is a forensic pathologist, called to a crime scene where a young woman has been found dead. As the investigation progresses, it begins to look like this murder is linked to several other bodies found recently in the area. Even worse, it seems like the killer is leaving clues with the bodies, toying with the police, a sign of a potentially very dangerous serial killer. When taking another look at the crime scene, Wren finds a clue which links back to her. Has she simply gotten too close to finding the killer, or is there a more personal reason why the killer might have chosen her as his next victim?
Well... I've said before that I like my thrillers dark, the darker the better and WOW, Alaina Urquhart really went for it. Readers of a nervous disposition may want to give this one a miss... but all of my fellow crime thriller fans, please come and join me on the dark side!
The alternating chapters between Wren and the killer created an intense cat and mouse chase that didn't subside throughout the entire story. As the reader, we know what the killer is doing (and planning to do), while Wren is, at the same time, desperately trying to solve the case and stop him. This exchange only leaves us with one question... Do you want him to get caught?
The Butcher and the Wren is quite a compact story and definitely leaned towards The Silence of the Lambs in it's style. The standout aspect for me was the descriptions of the autopsies as Wren worked to try and find the killer. The author's day job has obviously given her plenty of source material to draw from - incredibly technical and detailed descriptions added a layer of reality to what was quite an extreme storyline. A fantastically dark debut!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alaina Urquhart is the science-loving co-host of the chart-topping show Morbid: A True Crime Podcast. As an autopsy technician by trade, she offers a unique perspective from deep inside the morgue. Alaina hails from Boston, where she lives with her wonderful husband, John, their three amazing daughters, and a ghost Puggle named Bailey. She is about 75 percent coffee, and truly believes she and Agent Clarice Starling could be friends.
Before writing her first psychological horror novel, she received degrees in criminal justice, psychology, and biology. When she isn't hosting Morbid, she hosts the Parcast original show Crime Countdown, and a horror movie podcast called Scream!. Her days are usually spent either recording or eviscerating. The way she sees it, when she hangs up her microphone for the day, it's time to let the dead speak.
Thanks to Sriya Varadharajan, @sriya__v - Michael J Books, @MichaelJBooks and Alaina Urquhart for the opportunity to read and review.
Fiction: Thriller / Psychological Thriller
Publisher: Michael J Books
ISBN: 978-0241610596
Pages: 256pp
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