Olivia Kiernan | TOO CLOSE TO BREATHE

Plot (via Goodreads):

TOO SOON TO SEE

Polished. Professional. Perfect. Dead. Respected scientist Dr Eleanor Costello is found hanging in her immaculate home: the scene the very picture of a suicide.

TOO LATE TO HIDE

DCS Frankie Sheehan is handed the case, and almost immediately spots foul play. Sheehan, a trained profiler, is seeking a murderer with a talent for death.

TOO CLOSE TO BREATHE

As Frankie strives to paint a picture of the killer, and their victim, she starts to sense they are part of a larger, darker canvas, on which the lines between the two blur.

Review:

Last year, I tried to read Too Close to Breathe and while I didn't realize it then, I'm ready to admit that I'm a mood reader and this one just didn't fit what I was looking for at that time. Although I am feeling less and less guilty since starting my blog about books I do not finish, this one was one that I definitely considered something I was only "setting aside" as I knew one day this story would call to me. Even though it's a year later, when I opened the cover to this one again and was revisiting this story this time I was completely in the mood to binge-read this really sinister story.

While I did enjoy the plot to this one, I was initially a little confused with where it was going and at times found myself fighting the urge to skim some of the pages. It definitely is very heavy in the police procedural aspect and if that's not your kind of read, this may not be a good fit for you. I think that Frankie Sheehan was written well, but does fall into some cliches that we've seen before when it comes to a main detective in a crime fiction novel. I did really enjoy the backstory that was included in this one though and I am eager to read more novels featuring this character.

Through its lows and highs, this one was definitely entertaining and kept me engaged more so in the last 100 pages or so than the first 200. I guess as I got closer to finding out the big revelation, I was more alert and eager to find out what really happened. While the ending to me felt a little rushed, Kieran did a great job of wrapping up everything and not leaving any stone unturned. Needless to say, this one was enjoyable enough to keep me wanting more, but I did wish that the pacing was sped up a bit more. I am definitely going to be anxious to pick up the second novel in this series though! 

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

Rating: 3.5/5