Saturday, March 14, 2009

Review: Compulsion Provides Thrilling End Surprises

Compulsion
By Jennifer Chase
Outskirts Press, Inc.
ISBN: 9781432734169
301 Pages


“It is almost as if they were separated at birth as twins and now they have found each other again by a macabre twist of fate.”(p. 244) The twins? Well, they just happen to be serial killers starring in Compulsion by Jennifer Chase!

Interestingly these two individuals have very different reasons for killing; however, their reasons are so complementary that, instead of acting separately, as most serial killers do, these two have formed a close relationship--like no other!

Emily Stone is an unusual character. She does not have a job, or at least not now. She was once in law enforcement but became a whistle blower, which essentially forced her to leave. Since then, she has never stopped her work--on her own; however, she has restricted her activities to finding pedophiles, and sometimes serial killers, gathering sufficient evidence, and turning it all over to the local police departments. She is competent, computer savvy, and has the needed instincts to research and gather sufficient evidence long before others barely get started.

It was merely coincidence that Emily’s neighbors were having problems with a new neighbor and, through that, she met Rick Lopez from the local police department Their attraction seemed mutual, so that, by the time Rick was called on to deal with the serial killer case, Emily also became involved, but behind Rick’s back. Her need to keep anonymity was stronger than her feelings for him, so when she learned enough, she quickly left without notifying anybody.

But Rick was not going to let her go that easily! Which was very fortunate since the killers were coming--for her!

The psychological aspects of the killers, as always, are beyond the ability for most of us to understand. Chase uses several scenarios to attempt to describe the “why” for one of the men, while the other’s background is not revealed until a surprise ending, that keeps on...surprising!

Chase writes in the present tense, as an investigator might do in giving reports and building a case. If you enjoy the chase in crime fiction, a little romance, some csi-type investigations and surprise endings, check out Compulsion by Jennifer Chase.

Some compulsions just won’t die until...

G. A. Bixler

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