Closer Than You Know (Vera Boyett book two) by Debra Webb is a personal stake in finding and stopping the killer who could be still killing or encouraging a copycat, but no one knows. A heart stopping story that Vera must solve but there are several rabbit holes to slow her down. She is back in her hometown near her sisters. Boy, do they have a complicated family and relationships which add to the overall eerie factor in this book. Not a cozy mystery by any means but a police procedure thriller with personal overtones.

This one manages to keep the tension going straight through to the end, and frankly, if there is not another one in this series to continue and follow through on some of the storylines, I'd be so disappointed. Vera is a great character, and the small town secrets and family drama, plus a time sensitive case with ties to Vera's past, make a great plot.

This is the second in an interconnected stand alone series. I hadn't actually read the first one (wish I had but did just fine without...but this one was so good, I will definitely be going back to read book #1!). "Closer Than You Know" is an excellent choice for those who like fast-paced thrillers, books about serial k!llers, and detective/mystery novels. 4+ stars for me. **I received a complimentary ARC from the author/publishing company via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts & opinions are my own.

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy of Closer Than You Know.

Vera has lost her career as deputy police chief after her last case and she feels lost. She decides to move back closer to her sisters and she gets a call from the local sheriff for help on a current case. She feels useful again and finds out this new case has ties to a previous case of hers.

I wish I would have known that this is the second book in the series because I may have enjoyed this book more if I had read the first book. I just felt like this book was really predictable and I saw everything coming.

Closer Than You Know is about family, revenge, resilence, justice, and keeping secrets. After Vera returns to her hometown in Tenessee she starts to feel more comfortable and using her skills when she is requested to join the police in solving local cases. Everything comes to a boiling point when people start to be kidnapped and released days later with messages and drawings on their body. And the last kidnapped person is Vera's sister. By this time she already suspects that the Messenger, a criminal she put in prison is behind the crimes. The plot evolves fast and Vera, her sister, a reporter and her camera man are in deep danger and will be subject to the criminal's will. Fast-paced, full of mystery and secrets that cannot remain buried, with a long but not forgotten romance around two of the main characters (Vera and Bent), Closer Than You Know is one of those books that you read non-stop and when it ends you just wish the next book in the series were available!
I thank Ms. Webb, her publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

Debra Webb’s Closer Than You Know is a taut, emotionally layered thriller that dives deep into the chilling world of serial crime and buried family secrets. As the second installment in the Vera Boyett series, it manages to stand on its own while enriching the overarching narrative with a complex protagonist and a haunting mystery.

The story centers around Vera Boyett, a former deputy police chief now working as a freelance crime analyst. Drawn back to her Tennessee hometown after a professional setback, Vera is pulled into a missing person’s case involving a local journalist. The investigation takes a darker turn when similarities emerge to a serial killer case she solved over a decade ago raising the terrifying question of whether the so-called Messenger is truly gone.

Webb excels at building suspense through tightly woven plotlines and flawed but compelling characters. Vera is not your typical crime heroine—she’s tough, analytical, and emotionally guarded, yet her deep concern for her sister Eve adds a humanizing layer. The dynamic between Vera and Sheriff Gray Benton adds subtle romantic tension without overwhelming the central mystery.

While the pacing is brisk and the stakes are high, some readers may find that the book leans more on atmospheric storytelling and personal history than intricate detective work. Kirkus Reviews aptly pointed out that it delivers "generic thrills" for those who don’t mind a less complex procedural. Still, for many readers, the emotional stakes and psychological tension will more than make up for that.

Overall, Closer Than You Know is a compelling blend of crime, family drama, and suspense. Whether you’re a longtime fan of Debra Webb or a newcomer to the series, this book offers a satisfying, edge-of-your-seat read that digs into how the past never stays buried for long.

4 1/2 STARS!

Attention grabbing from start to finish! The second book in Debra Webb's Vera Boyett series is just as addictive as the first with lots of twists that will leave the reader guessing. I really enjoy Vera and Bent and their connection. I wanted a little more backstory catch up from the first book, in particular what truly happened to ruin her career other than the little bit we get caught up on when her old friend Eric arrives in town. There are a ton of characters across this book, but for the most part it's easy to keep things straight and not feel too overwhelmed. If that catch up between stories would be a little more developed, I think the series would be top notch. I'm looking forward to more to come from Vera!

We are still getting to know Vera in this second installment in the series. Appropriate that her past comes back to haunt her in multiple ways while she tries to find a serial kidnapper. I loved how this book balanced keeping the pace moving while incorporating Vera and others' character backgrounds. That is hard to do and I try to give author's grace in that area, but it wasn't needed here. Vera's struggles were front and center, and maybe even a bit overblown. Occasionally the point of view would switch to give a fuller view of the situation. I found that very refreshing! This series is definitely staying on my must-read list!

I found the plot interesting and easy to read... It caught my interest from the first pages and to the end pages.
I liked reading how Vera and Eve were in the story.
I recommend this book as well as all the author has written.
Thanks to Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer for my arc.

Closer than You know by Author Debra Webb, Book 2 in the Vera Boyer series! Release Date May 5th!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review

This book had me turning the pages so quickly! And not only the pages but I listened to the audiobook!

Moving back to her home town after a change in her career as chief of police was not easy!

And neither were things the things from her previous cases!

As the story unfolds about a missing reporter things become more personal than she ever thought they would!

Debra Webb's Closer Than You Know is the second installment in the author's gripping Vera Boyett series. This mystery-thriller saga blends intense police procedural elements with emotionally charged family dynamics. It takes place mostly in the State of Tennessee. Closer Than You Know follows crime analyst Vera Boyett, a former deputy police chief whose career was derailed by tragedy. After returning to her small-town Tennessee roots in Deeper Than the Dead, Vera is now carving out a new path as a crime analyst, leveraging her sharp investigative skills.

The story starts when local sheriff Gray “Bent” Benton, a figure from Vera’s past, enlists her help in investigating the disappearance of a reporter named Nolan Baker. Baker is the son of Vera's high school bully, Elizabeth. Baker thinks he is on the trail of the Time Thief, who has been taking people and returning them a few days later. What begins as a seemingly straightforward missing-persons case spirals into a labyrinthine mystery with ties to the Messenger, a serial killer Vera put behind bars twelve years ago.

Now dying of cancer, the Messenger is orchestrating a final act of revenge, with Vera as his primary target. After all, Vera stumbled upon uncovering who the Messenger is 12 years ago and stopped him from killing another innocent woman. The investigation uncovers dark secrets, unexpected connections, and a web of deception that keeps readers guessing until the final pages. Vera’s journey is as much about confronting her own demons—professional failures, fractured relationships, and unresolved trauma—as it is about solving the case.

The novel explores the ripple effects of choices made in desperation, a theme introduced in Deeper Than the Dead with the discovery of bodies in a cave on Vera’s family land. The emotional depth of the narrative is amplified by Vera’s relationships, particularly with her sisters, Eve and Luna, and her complicated history with Bent. The theme of revenge is personified in the Messenger, whose terminal illness fuels a chilling determination to settle old scores. His presence looms large, even from behind bars, making him a formidable antagonist whose psychological warfare tests Vera’s resilience.

Vera's journey from disgraced deputy chief to crime analyst reflects a woman reclaiming her agency while grappling with self-doubt. Vera’s rekindled connection with Bent, her high school sweetheart turned sheriff, adds a romantic subplot that feels organic rather than forced. Bent is a grounded counterpoint to Vera, his steady demeanor masking his own unresolved feelings. The sisters, Eve and Luna, bring depth to the family dynamic, each wrestling with their roles in the events that shaped their childhood.

I am loving this series! I want at least 10 more books with Vera. Her story could go so many ways! So good! I want to know more about her sisters and I want a love story with Bent!

I give this one 3.5⭐️. This is book 2 in the Vera Boyett series. Vera is a consultant to the police now since leaving her job with Memphis pd and moving back home to Fayetteville. Things are settling in. Then she is asked to help on the Time Theif case when the son of her his school nemesis goes missing. The more she and Sheriff "Bent" Benton investigate, the more things aren't adding up, and things start taking unexpected turns in both Vera's personal and professional lives. Can they find the missing in time and solve the case?
I enjoy the characters and seeing what is happening to them now as this book is set about 7 months after the first ended. I did have some things figured out, but others were a surprise. Fast paced and will keep you reading.

Secrets can be deadly and danger is closer to Vera than she realizes. This thrill ride of a story starts out with Bent asking Vera to help find a missing person. As they investigate, Vera quickly figures out something is not what it seems and deception is the game going on. Joining in the game is a person similar to one called The Messenger she put in jail years ago. There are issues from her past that are being uncovered that combine with danger surrounding her and her family. It is a fast paced and complicated story with several red herrings thrown in for good measure. The story is one that had me staying up late reading. All the characters are complicated and you definitely judge their decisions at times while wondering what you'd have done in the same situation. A captivating read with hints at the future cases that Bent and Vera will find.

3.5 stars

This is a well-crafted mystery novel, filled with misdirection, alternate suspects and dangerous situations. Vera is again working with Bent, a former lover (20+ years in the past), as she has for the past 7 months. I didn’t read the first book in the series, but the author provides a lot of details and background so I didn’t feel lost.

In fact, the author provides a lot of details about everything. Her way of describing a scene draws in the reader and makes you feel like you’re right there, seeing and experiencing it with the characters. It makes for an immersive experience for the reader. I also understood the conflicted family dynamics.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the chance to read an ARC of Closer than you know by Debra Webb. This is the 2nd book in the Vera Boyett series, and I couldn't put it down! While it can be read as a standalone, it does pick up right after the series premiere, Deeper than the dead. After Vera's career as a deputy police chief is destroyed she has come home, to be closer to her sisters. When her ex-boyfriend, now the Sherriff requests help in a serial kidnapping case, it brings Vera's past front and center. We find out more of Vera's past, and family secrets; and the tension, and twists are non-stop! I recommend both this book, and the author!

Closer than You Know is the story of Vera Boyett, crime analyst turned private eye, and her return to her hometown. Unfortunately her hometown has seen its share of crime. Since she is a good friend of the sheriff, she gets called in to assist on an investigation into multiple abductions. Suddenly she realizes it is someone trying to get her attention. I loved that there was a lot of action. But I predicted most of the twists. Also loved the romance thrown in to the mix.

This is the second in a series but will be totally fine as a standalone (although those who read the first one will see some growth in Vera's character). Vera is shocked to discover that a serial killer is back and that he's targeting her through her sister Eve. Luckily, she's got a good relationship with Bent and a sharp mind. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. It's a fast paced, slightly implausible but quite entertaining read.

Headline: Recommended!

Book Review: Closer Than You Know (Vera Boyett, Book 2) by Debra Webb
Published by Thomas & Mercer, May 6, 2025

★★★★★ (4.5 Stars, rounded up. Rave!)

// Flashback: ...That dreary night, more than twenty years ago, two young girls and a baby were fated to be tasked with a deed that would forever haunt them — the internment of their stepmom, buried shallow in a cave... - From: Vera Boyett, Book 1, "Deeper Than the Dead", (2024) by Debra Webb, A 5-Star read!//

YEARS HAVE PAST, yet the stigma of the Boyett Farm cave burials endures as less-than-flattering stories about the notorious Boyett sisters, Vera, Eve and Luna, still abound in whispers.

VERA BOYETTE thrives, notwithstanding. She remains a master at her craft —cracking criminal cases, lending key assistance in solving local crimes. The former detective and 15-year veteran of the Memphis PD is recognized as a reliable civilian crime analyst with a local profile heightened by consulting frequently and effecting with local law enforcement.

In Fayetteville, the county seat and the largest city in Lincoln County, TN, her main criminal consultation contact is Lincoln County Sheriff, Gray Benton, the same man who just so happened to be Vera's first love, also one of the main reasons she'd fled her hometown years ago to seek a law enforcement career in Memphis. Inevitably, this leads to complications.

The Mystery of the "Time Thief".
With a pretty clever twist in suspense writing (which readers don't see coming !), it doesn't take Vera much time to solve the shenanigans of the so-called "Time Thief", a local criminal responsible for three disappearances whose modus operandi consisted of sneaking up on victims, drugging them, holding them for 48 hrs before releasing them, generally unharmed, in some random areas.

// "Helping find the bad guys was her job.
And, she might not be a hero, but she was damned good at her job...!"
- From "Closer Than You Know" Vera Boyett, Book 2, by Debra Webb (2025) //

Nemesis: The "Messenger" Strikes Again.
15 years prior, Vera Boyett solved her first big case as a Memphis detective, putting a serial killer called the "Messenger" behind bars for life. Local doctor, Palmer Solomon, MD, now a lifer had been actively killing for ten years. He'd carved each of his victims up, — always women, inducing incredible pain, but never deeply enough to cause a quick death.

Now locked-up in the penitentiary, Dr. Solomon appears to be back from the dead, with county citizens brutally murdered in methods identical to his modus operandi.

Then, evidence of trespassing and tampering happens right in Vera's own backyard and abode...

// "...What fun I'm having with the Vera Boyett series!
Using my new hometown of Fayetteville, Tennessee, as the setting is just the best..."
— Debra Webb //

A suspense thriller with a strong female protagonist in a fabulous real life setting, by a best-selling suspense and romance author of 175 novels and recipient of numerous prestigious awards. What a treat for readers!

Recommended!

Review based on an advance review copy courtesy of Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley.

This is book 2 of the Vera Boyett series and I feel you should have a read of book 1 in the series first in order to fully understand the characters and settings in ‘Closer Than You Know’.
In ‘Closer Than You Know’ Vera, who made the decision to stay in her hometown at the end of book 1 ‘Deeper Than The Dead’, now has a new job as a crime analyst and is working on her relationship with her sisters. When the police get called in on a missing persons case for a journalist, the local sheriff asks Vera for her assistance and expertise. It turns out involving Vera in the investigation is a good idea as the case begins to have links to Vera’s past and her present.
For the most part I liked this book, but I wouldn’t say I loved it. Just like book 1, I again struggled with the first half of the book. And I think it’s because I don’t really like Vera. I just feel she was a bit one dimensional, a bit standoffish. Which made this a slow read for me. But I do like Debra Webb’s writing style. I’m a big fan of her books. ‘Closer Than You Know’ is solid work from a great writer.
3.5 stars from me.
** I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher**