Review: Long Island Suspense
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 1, 2013
Paying homage to "Silence of the Lambs," suspense novel Heron Park is a variation on the genre with an axe-wielding serial killer who is sexually addicted to killing and aroused by mutilating and murdering women, but in an interesting twist, has trained a large dog to assist him. As in Lambs, the lead character is also a female law enforcement officer, this time an outdoorsy detective for the town of Babylon, New York on Long Island. A romance spark quickly develops between the detective and a visiting FBI agent with a backstory that has made him a pariah among his peers.The remoteness of the crime scenes and the detective's own house, along with a dog rescue subplot, and very graphic murder and sexual arousal scenes drive the pace and atmosphere of the book. Right from the outset, the author offers up a couple of possibilities for the unnamed serial killer who refers to himself as "Timmy," as in Lassie's owner. Plot and subplot come together midway in an unexpected manner, however, and twists in the detective's personal life are not far behind. Recommended for those who like their whodunnits explicit and for fans of action-oriented police procedurals.