Review: I Just Had To Know
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 21, 2013
This book is not a mystery; it is a thriller. We meet the villain on page 1 and even know his name by the end of the Prologue. We learn quickly that he is a sexual predator, a sexual deviant, a blackmailer and a serial killer.  And he hides it all behind a faade that is handsome, wealthy and philanthropic. He controls lawyers, politicians and law enforcement agents by way of their vices and even has the local punk gang under his thumb.We find that the villain is on the ragged edge of his psychosis just at the point that Ethan becomes a public hero for his actions at the end of the first book, Origins. And when he finds that he cannot buy, emotionally subvert or physically subject Ethan to his control, he vows to destroy Ethan.  And, to that end, he devotes every fiber of his being. He becomes - RELENTLESS.At this point, I committed the cardinal sin of all mystery/thriller readers - I skipped the middle half of the book and went to the last 5 chapters. I had to know. I just had to know how that degenerate, filthy piece of slime would be defeated. Finally, emotionally exhausted and with a thin-lipped grin of triumph, I returned to the point where I had left off earlier. I then began to absorb the nuts and bolts of how the author progressed Ethan to the point where he determined that if he was to survive, and that if he was to save the lives of the people he loved, he must also become - RELENTLESS.Quite frankly, this author knows how to tell a tale. He knows how to hook the reader and reel that reader into the story, turn-by-turn, until you finally realize that you are hurting each time the protagonists hurt, smiling as they smile and only breathing when they do.This novel is a very well crafted thriller but it is a rough read.  This book is not for the faint of heart or for those whose sensibilities are easily affronted by foul language, by graphic violence, by homosexuality or by homophobia.  It will get the adrenaline flowing and the mind churning, so consider carefully whether to read this just before bedtime. This novel uses the plotline to speak about several current societal issues and the story plows through four days in time like an express freight train. It doesn't stop; it doesn't slow down; it is, to the end - RELENTLESS.Disclosure - I received a complimentary copy of this book, but that did not affect my opinion of the book.