Review: The Killing Season
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 24, 2014
This exciting thriller takes place over just a few, very action packed, days.  The story begins with the escape from a prison transport of Caleb Wardell, a sniper who was literally a fortnight away from facing execution for the murder of nineteen people.  You might think that, having gained his freedom, he would be eager to find somewhere to hide in order to live out his life in obscurity. However, then we would have no novel and, besides, serial killers do not tend to show sense in these situations (Ted Bundy escaped from prison only to then indulge in another killing spree, this time in a State which had the death penalty).  On his first day of freedom Wardell kills a man and it is obvious that he has no intention of stopping until he is caught.Special Agent Elaine Banner, single mother and ambitious to further her career, is hopeful that capturing Wardell will help her gain promotion.  Along with Steve Castle, who worked on the original case, they are sent to discover his whereabouts and capture him before his escape is discovered by the press . There is also another man brought in to help them- Carter Blake.  Blake is a specialist in finding people who don’t want to be found, but his presence is resented, especially by Castle  However, Blake has an uncanny way of anticipating Wardell’s moves, in a journey which follows them across the country.  Wardell has scores to settle and his killing is becoming more personal –but as events unfold, it becomes more and more obvious that he is either being helped, or used. ..This is not really an original thriller, but it has good characters, an excellent plot and is fast paced and exciting.  In some ways, it is refreshing to have an ‘old fashioned’ edge of the seat thriller, which does not pretend to be anything other than what it is – a real page turner and great storytelling.  Carter Blake is a likeable hero – anonymous and without ties, but with just the hint of an interesting past .  Hopefully he is going to return for more adventures, which I look forward to reading.Lastly, I received this novel from the publishers, via NetGalley, for review.