Joanna Schaffhausen | THE VANISHING SEASON

Plot (via Goodreads):

Ellery Hathaway knows a thing or two about serial killers, but not through her police training. She's an officer in sleepy Woodbury, MA, where a bicycle theft still makes the newspapers. No one there knows she was once victim number seventeen in the grisly story of serial killer Francis Michael Coben. The only victim who lived. 

When three people disappear from her town in three years, all around her birthday—the day she was kidnapped so long ago—Ellery fears someone knows her secret. Someone very dangerous. Her superiors dismiss her concerns, but Ellery knows the vanishing season is coming and anyone could be next. She contacts the one man she knows will believe her: the FBI agent who saved her from a killer’s closet all those years ago.

Agent Reed Markham made his name and fame on the back of the Coben case, but his fortunes have since turned. His marriage is in shambles, his bosses think he's washed up, and worst of all, he blew a major investigation. When Ellery calls him, he can’t help but wonder: sure, he rescued her, but was she ever truly saved? His greatest triumph is Ellery’s waking nightmare, and now both of them are about to be sucked into the past, back to the case that made them...with a killer who can't let go.

Review:

This novel is one I have been eyeing for quite a while now and was so thankful that Minotaur Books sent me a copy of it to review! The opening was downright terrifyingly cinematic and menacing...I was immediately hooked.

I loved not only the creepy plot to this one, but you could tell that the author really took their time planning out every small detail, every plot twist, and every word and motion that each character portrayed...and the writing was brilliantly flawless. This story is one that is so unique right from the beginning that it is no doubt in my mind when reading it that it is a book by Minotaur as they have really found a knack for printing brilliant crime fiction. I cannot express enough how chilling and ominous the opening to this one was, drawing me into this sleepy suburb of Massachusetts and holding me hostage until the violent and shocking conclusion.

This is a story ripped from the headlines tying in a multi-layered plot that weaves a cold case serial killer storyline in with what would appear to be an eerily similar case or a plain old copycat murderer. The thing that I really found struck me with this one was the ingredients to this novel. It was part character study, part suspense, part police procedural, and all around addicting. The way the author had a handful of characters that carried this story from beginning to end was not only well executed, but had me shocked at multiple points, regardless of the rather lengthy chapters. Usually when reading, I enjoy the novels with shorter chapters as it's easier to push myself a little farther before taking a break, but with this one I actually felt the lengthier chapters worked well in its execution as the storyline mounted with tension, each chapter focusing on a different part of the story.

I absolutely loved the raw honesty of Ellery and Reed as they reunited fourteen years after their first initial meeting and was blown away with the way the author showed the reader how these characters have changed and what they've been through, each becoming a little lost and really damaged. By no means were these characters ones that reeked of fiction. They are lively, brutally honest, and harrowing. As for the rest of the characters, I really think the author has a specialty in making each one shine in different scenes, whether they are key central characters or just there to state a purpose, not one moment of dialog or action is wasted. 

While I enjoyed this story a lot, this was on track to be a five-star read for me, although I did have a few questions left unanswered during the ending, which to me seemed a little rushed, but was still effective. The author got to the point we wanted, but I was still left feeling that I wanted just a little bit more insight into the motive during the reveal. Nevertheless, I still really enjoyed this novel from beginning to end.

If you're looking for a brilliantly eerie and claustrophobic novel that features a chilling plot, remarkably real characters, and tones that are reminiscent of The Silence of the Lambs, this is the novel for you. Mark my words, this is not the last of Joanna Schaffhausen. 

*Special thanks to Minotaur Books for sending me a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 4/5