I have loved Steps and Jimmy in the first two books of this series, and they are even better in this book. This case started out a lot different than the cases in the previous books. Just the fact that there was a survivor and they found her in the trunk of her kidnapper’s car made this story start off very different. The story was made even trickier because the dark web was involved along with tracking in the real world. I am excited to read the next book in this series.

This book was really tough to get through. The amount of imagery and information that was between the storyline was excruciating. There is a stark difference between setting up a scene or story for success and giving far too much information. It seemed as though the writer felt the reader was not that smart and had to spell absolutely everything out for you. The concept of the mystery was interesting and I did appreciate that it took time and it wasn't easy, but there's only so much description of processes a person can take. Too many parts were explained and reexplained that it was difficult to not skim through. The writer also multiple times used thee word virgin as a way to say untouched that was unnecessary and repugnant (ie: virgin book pages, virgin snow, etc).

This is the third Special Tracking Unit book, although the author provides enough background in this book that you do not have to read the first two, though I would recommend them because they are very good. Magnus “Steps” Craig is part of an elite unit that track, usually, serial killers. Steps is known for his ability to see the ‘shine’ of a person, a trail of colours over most any surface, that are unique to a person. This allows him to follow the trail where otherwise law enforcement might not have investigated. As is the case in this story, after a car chase and crash, a woman is found in the trunk of the car. The driver has taken off into the woods. Steps is able to follow his trail to a remote cabin where the suspect is eventually arrested. The story moves along at a quick pace, events happen, are investigated which leads to the next clue. I would highly recommend this book, it is very good. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

384 pages

5 stars

Wow! How did I miss this author?

A high speed car chase. A crash. An unconscious woman in the trunk. A chase through the woods. The suspect is caught.

Magnus “Steps” Craig and his partner James “Jimmy” Donovan are on the case and the arrest. They form two members of the three person Special Tracking Unit of the FBI. The third person is Diane. She is an IT Specialist. Steps has a special ability that greatly aids him in tracking people. Only Jimmy knows about it.

When the suspect Murphy Cotton keeps calling the woman in the trunk “number eight,” the agents get a bad feeling. After interviewing him, they know that he is not working alone. There is a shadowy figure who calls himself the “Onion King” pulling his strings.

They are saddened to learn that there are indeed eight women.

Steps, Jimmy and Diane are able to pick up some valuable clues from not only their research, but that of neighboring – and very helpful – police forces. They are as anxious as the FBI to capture this serial killer.

This is a fast-paced thriller. It is also a detailed and highly interesting police procedural. It shows all the disappointments and triumphs of an investigation. I like the way that Mr. Kope interjects occasional humor to break the awful tension the agents and police officers must be feeling. As Steps tells the story, the reader is right there. I was riding in the car with them, witnessing the awful results of the murders, and eavesdropping in on various conversations. I usually don't enjoy stories told in the first person, but Mr. Kope made Steps so very real, and so human. I really liked him and Jimmy. I liked their interactions and ability to work well with one another. They communicated on a level that didn't need words. This is my first Spencer Kope novel, but it certainly won't be my last. I loved the book!

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for forwarding to me a copy of this remarkable book for me to read, enjoy and review.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book. I was unable to finish it. It had nothing to do with the writer or the story. Randomly where there is suppose to be space between words, there is "FOBE' It was quite frequent in the beginning and then stopped so I thought it was just in the beginning but at 10% it started again. It was just too distracting for me. I'm sorry, perhaps others had no issue reading it this way. Again, nothing to do with author or story. I'm actually probably going to read Mr. Kope's first book. I had to give a star for this to go through.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this arc.

I very much enjoyed the previous two books of this series and read this one in a single sitting. Magnus (Steps) Craig does not seem to be typical FBI material, but he has the ability to see "shine" when he's not wearing his special prismatic glasses. "Shine" is like a person's aura that is shed like dead skin cells wherever the person has been, and it's as unique as the person's DNA. Aha, it's a no-brainer that he's part of the FBI's Special Tracking Unit..

The story took off like a car race...…. and stayed like that most of the way through out. It slowed just a little for detailed forensic explanations and dark web workings. Travel time between various crime scenes was spent in contemplative musings and discussions with his partner. Their basic decency and humanity really shined there.

The bad guys were really bad and the good guys were great. All felt real and fully developed.

This is the first book by this author I've read, or even heard of, but if his other books are like this I am definitely going to be finding his other works to read!

Magnus Craig also known as Steps, is part of the elite 3 man Special Tracking Unit of the FBI. Known for his ability to find and follow trails over any surface, Steps is called in on cases that require his unparalleled skills. But there’s a secret to his talent. Steps has a kind of synesthesia where he can see the ‘essence’ of a person, what he calls "shine", on everything they’ve touched. Every person's "shine" is unique. His ability came from a childhood trauma of being lost in the woods and died from hypothermia, when he was brought back he could see the "shine."

A woman is abducted and found in the trunk of a car after a high-speed chase, she regains consciousness in the ICU to reveal two crucial pieces of information: the man who kidnapped her is not the same as the man who left her in the woods, and she's not the first victim, she is number 8! All 8 of the women had casts made of their faces and then those were placed in mannequins to be posed in situations that were very lifelike before being killed.

Brought in to track the driver through a dense forest after the blood hounds have lost his trail, Steps and his partner, Jimmy, find the driver laughing maniacally, babbling about souls, and hiding a pristinely maintained box of eight posed rats. Now the Special Tracking Unit must chase two villains, through not just the real world, but the dark web as well, tracking an enemy they can't see, as time runs out for the unknown victims.

Spencer Kope has drawn me in with the synopsis of this unique thriller. The author was very detailed about the forensics and dark web aspects of this book. And the characters were very in depth.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I loved this book! I read it in a day and from the very first page, it had me hooked. I could not put it down! The story is engrossing and the characters are wonderful. The way the author tells the story is a little like Robert Crais and his Elvis Cole/Joe Pike novels. “Steps” is funny and smart and with the “Shine” he is an unforgettable character. Every time I put this book down, I could not wait to pick it up again.. it is full of mystery, intrigue and humor. I absolutely can not wait to read every thing this author has done. With this one book, he has become a favorite author of mine. Spencer Kope is an author who will have you staying up all night in order to finish the book.

When I first started to read this book I was thinking I would only give it 4 stars. As I got farther into it I realized that was not to be the case.

Magnus Craig has a unique skill. He is able to discern what he terms "shine" from the victims and perpetrators at a crime scene. Everyone has a distinct aura and he has the amazing ability to use his gift for good by becoming an exceptional tracker.

This case presents a very sadistic killer who is as smart as he is evil. The FBI Special Tracking Team has it's work cut out for it when they begin their search for him. A young woman's life hangs in the balance. Will they get there in time?

Did I mention the ending???? Talk about edge of your seat!

If you haven't discovered Spencer Kope and his Special Tracking Unit series, you are missing out. I was lucky enough to receive a ebook ARC from Netgalley for the purpose of this review.

There are a lot of really good thriller writers out there. Greg Hurwitz, Nick Petrie, Ben Coes and now it's time to add Kope to the list.
His thrillers are unique. His hero's aren't larger than life, they can't go toe to toe with Dewey, or Reacher or Peter Ash, but they don't need to. Kope's protagonist, Magnus "Steps" Craig, a professional tracker for the FBI has a secret. He can see everyone's shine. Every person leaves a residue, when he walks, or touches something. All of these shines have a different and distinct color, and just like DNA no two are the same. His ability to see shine is from his childhood where he got lost in the woods and actually died from hypothermia. After being brought back to life, he could see the shine.
Quite handy for a tracker of killers. The only people "in the know" are his partner Jimmy and the FBI Director.
In Shadows of the Dead, women are being abducted and "fixed" because they are broken. This fixing comes in the form of casts made of their faces and then those casts being placed in mannequins and posed in lifelike situations. Then, the women are killed.
In the course of their investigation, they come to find out that an individual known as the Onion King, is responsible.
The story moves along, with great forensics, the dark web and characters you cheer for as they hunt for the killer. One extra benefit of shine is that Steps can tell if a person is still alive by the look of the shine. Which becomes increasingly important as another women is abducted and they must find her before her fate matches all the others.
If you haven't discovered this author, Pick up book 1, Collecting the Dead and enjoy. Kope has the professional background as a criminal analyst to give a believability to his work which can sometimes be lacking in other writers.

First book in this series for me. I found the protagonist to be an interesting approach to the genre. The special skills of this FBI tracker is a good gimmick that will appeal to many.

This series is an excellent one, and this most recent title is an excellent addition.

The unique perspective, that an FBI tracking agent is able to see and identify specific individuals' "shine", is a fresh and ever-entertaining one. I enjoyed everything about this third book, but most of all I loved those moments when Steps moved the action along with his unique ability.

I appreciated that the crimes were serious and cleverly plotted without the reader exposed to too much grit and trauma. The main recurring characters are engaging as well, and the entire package makes me eager to read the next! That's the curse of a good author: Give readers an excellent experience, and they will want more immediately! Thank you, author Kope, for this book. And thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this preview. Publication date Aug 25, 2020.

DNF at 36 percent. Spencer Kope is a talented writer, but I did not connect with the protagonist, Steps, or the storyline. After reading more than one-third of the novel and having zero interest in either the hero, or the villain and his identity/motive, I decided to call it a day. Steps' extrasensory talent, "reading shine," wasn't compelling to me; and though Kope's knowledge and research shone through in prose about the history of bail bonds, etc., for me it weighed down his prose. There were some lovely turns of phrase in the book, particularly in the opening scene, but overall it just wasn't a match for this reader.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a chance to read this.