Intriguing book, kept me turning the pages wanting to know more. Well researched, with characters you want to know more about. Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book

It's hard to review a book that's just... okay.

The hook for this one was so promising - a troubled ED nurse with a cop boyfriend notices a pattern in women turning up dead with a cross cut into their body. Sounds like the recipe for a gnarly thriller.

Unfortunately it's mostly just a creative writing exercise in exploring nurse Meredith and the people in her life. The initial promise of the mystery is never delivered on. The whodunnit is glaringly obvious and the foreshadowing inelegant. There are no surprises and the stakes never feel particularly high. Even the one high stakes moment lacked any emotional connection for me and it was over in a flash.

The writing itself is quite good and I didn't dislike the actual experience of reading the book. It just all felt a bit pointless in the end. There's a side plot that in hindsight seems completely pointless. The relationship between Meredith and Leo felt cold and unconvincing. I was just kind of left with a feeling of not really knowing why I read it or what I was supposed to get from it.

I didn't hate it but I also wouldn't recommend it.