CUT TO THE QUICK - Dianne Emley
Ballantine Books
ISBN: 978-0-345-48620-2
February 2009
Paranormal Suspense

Pasadena California – Present Day

CUT TO THE QUICK plunges right into the suspense as detectives Nan Vining and Jim Kissick are called to the scene of the horrific double murder of millionaire playboy Oliver Mercer and his girlfriend, Lauren Richards. Mercer’s partner, Mark Scofield, quickly becomes a suspect as they discover skeletons in his closet. Clues and leads turn into red herrings, but that doesn’t stop Nan and Jim. Their investigation takes them from the posh streets and boutiques of Pasadena to the small desert town of Nalin, near the Salton Sea in Southern California. This time alone gives Nan and Jim some private time; can they re-connect or is it too late for them? What would Jim say if Nan tells him that one of B.T. Mann’s victims, Jackie, an LAPD officer, is talking to her? Is she losing her mind?

Nan knows she has changed. It has just been a year since she was found near death with a knife lodged in her neck. Nan is a tough detective with the Pasadena Police Department. Now each time Nan goes to a murder scene, she picks up a sense of the murder before she sees it. Emily, Nan’s daughter, believes this is because of Nan’s near death experience. Emily believes she sees ghosts and is always talking about her ghost hunts, which makes Nan uncomfortable, because she isn’t sure what she sees. Is it the other side?

Emily named Nan’s attacker, T. B. Mann, the bad man. Nan knows she will never have a moment of peace until the true identify of T. B. Mann is brought to light. In her investigation, Nan discovers that he is a serial killer, and with a shudder, knows he is close, just waiting to finish the job. She makes a vow to track him down before he murders anyone else. Even her partner and ex-boyfriend, Jim Kissick, doesn’t know what she is up to.

Dianne Emley has crafted an action-packed story that is laced with an underlying bone-chilling tale of terror that Nan faces. Nan is a complex character whom readers will embrace. The hint of paranormal and suspense will keep readers enthralled from page one. The action doesn’t stop for Nan, and has a cliffhanger ending that is to be continued. Is T. B. Mann getting close? I look forward to the next installment, because there is much more to this story.

Enjoy.

Deborah C. Jackson