Dot Hutchison | THE ROSES OF MAY

Plot (via Goodreads):

Four months after the explosion at the Garden, a place where young women known as the Butterflies were kept captive, FBI agents Brandon Eddison, Victor Hanoverian, and Mercedes Ramirez are still entrenched in the aftermath, helping survivors in the process of adjusting to life on the outside. With winter coming to an end, the Butterflies have longer, warmer days of healing ahead. But for the agents, the impending thaw means one gruesome thing: a chilling guarantee that somewhere in the country, another young woman will turn up dead in a church with her throat slit and her body surrounded by flowers.

Priya Sravasti’s sister fell victim to the killer years ago. Now she and her mother move every few months, hoping for a new beginning. But when she ends up in the madman’s crosshairs, the hunt takes on new urgency. Only with Priya’s help can the killer be found—but will her desperate hope for closure compel her to put her very life on the line?

Review: 

I have been super PUMPED to feature The Collector Trilogy on my blog this summer and after reading The Butterfly Garden, I was even more obsessed with Dot Hutchison's writing and what could possibly come next with this read. I mean, The Butterfly Garden just really blew me away. What came next was a completely different novel that I also had the pleasure of falling in love with. 

Here's what I love about the book community and being a blogger. Initially, I read some reviews on this novel and it was a mixed bag. Some people liked the direction it went in and others were really passionate about how it wasn't as good as it's predecessor. Well, to each their own. Because I am in the category of really liking the direction this one went in. First of all, the plot to this one was not only really different, but unique and addictive. I enjoyed how this one is kind of a companion novel to the first but really stands tall on its own. When we are introduced to three detectives in the first novel and one detective is more prominent than others, it was nice to have this novel and have another detective kind of forefront in the story. 

A couple of parts were kind of far fetched for me, but still entertaining so I can't complain too much. I  just loved how this one featured characters from the first novel that I didn't expect to pop up again. This one is definitely not as fast paced as the first, but still really enjoyable and more of a psychological thriller with fantastic characters. I cannot wait to see what happens next! Stay tuned...

Special thanks to Amazon Publishing for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 4/5