Shiver

August 20, 2008 at 11:04 p.m.
Shiver
Shiver
By Jill Williams

Abby Chastain was just a young girl when her Mother tragically died. Abby has been haunted ever since, for she shared a special bond with her Mother - they shared the same birthday. Even though her Mother was a mental patient at Our Lady of Virtues hospital at the time of her death, Abby always thought something wasn't right about her memory of the night her mother died. For 20 years Abby has nightmares of that night, and though the hospital is now closed, Abby decides to break in and visit her Mother's room and put the past behind her.

Just as Abby starts to move forward, someone from her past begins his wicked plan to punish others. A serial killer is on the loose, and his victims are found in pairs, staged to look like murder-suicides. He's digging up the past and it's making Abby feel as though she may be just a bit too much like her mother for her own good. The murders seem random at first, but a veteran cop doesn't agree. The cop on the trail: Reuben Montoya.

Montoya has a gut feeling that Abby is in danger, and he also feels that the murders are somehow related to the Our Lady of Virtues hospital. Montoya is right, but he won't know how right he is until a few more victims are found. In the meantime, he's falling for Abby Chastain, a suspect herself at one point, and a woman off-limits because of the investigation.

The author has written several other novels, and lives with her family and pets in the Pacific Northwest. A New York Times Best-selling Author, Lisa Jackson has a Web site listing the order of the books in all of her series: www.lisajackson.com. Want to find out what happens to Montoya after this book ends? There are two more novels released, and one due next spring.

As with other prolific authors, Lisa Jackson has a polished style and is an expert at keeping you in suspense. The scenes where Abby is being watched by the serial killer are so good that you can't help but shut and lock your windows as soon as you put the book down. If you're concerned about graphic violence and gore, you needn't worry. This book isn't terribly graphic, and there isn't a lot of profanity, either. It's nice to be scared out of your mind without being disgusted as well.