Shadow's Return
Publisher: CreateSpace Ind. Pub. Platform
Publication Date (March 2018)
ISBN 10 - 1986518477
ISBN 13 - 978-1986518475
258 pages of story
Now here's a sequel that I never expected to happen. When I read the first book in this series, Shadow's Edge, I did not expect there to be any further books about psychic detective Liam Baker and his police detective boyfriend, Kimball Thompson. The first book was pretty intriguing, and the psychic battle between Liam and the crazed psychic psychopath, Steven Pine, was powerful and kept me turning page after page. So, when I discovered this second book on Amazon, I couldn't wait to read it.
Shadow's Return takes place some months after Baker and Thompson captured Pine and put him away. They are beginning to build their relationship, but Baker begins to question things just as a new case comes up - a young college student is murdered, her body found strangled to death in the college gym. All the doors were locked, so it's clear that only someone with a key could have done it. It all appears straightforward, until Baker begins to "see" the murder. And then the victim comes back - - and all it takes is one word, "Pine," for Baker to grow worried that perhaps even behind bars, Steven Pine can still be a threat!
Another murdered college student, a cold-case murder of a prostitute, a college campus grief-share group, and a cheating boyfriend and best friend send Baker and Thompson in circles, as they slowly discover that everyone is hiding something. Wynne provides another intricate mystery, where Baker is forced to question everything he sees and Thompson is put in the position of doubting his partner's abilities. Wynne is careful to never give away too much too soon, and the characters are never black-and-white or stereotypical. In these mysteries, everyone is a shade of gray, and what each person is hiding could lead Baker and Thompson to a surprising revelation.
The mystery is well-paced, with Baker and Thompson following clue after clue, interviewing witness after witness, and trying to make sense of the various things that Baker sees. I like the fact that Wynne introduces a new element to Baker's abilities in this book, when the ghost of the murdered prostitute appears to him more than once in different places. It would actually be kind of cool if Baker were to have a permanent "spirit guide," so to speak, that helps him with future mysteries (and I am hoping there will be more books in this series!).
As a fan of psychic detective murder mysteries, this is a series I would certainly recommend!
RATING: 7 lemon drop martinis out of 10 for creating an evil, dark villain without making the mystery itself too overwhelmingly dark.
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