Series Name: Cyrus Haven, #3
Review By Gabrielle
Clear your calendar and snuggle up with this pulse-pounding thriller. You won’t want to put it down.
Favourite Quote:
“If I could tell you one thing about my brother, it would be this: two days after his nineteenth birthday, he killed our parents and our twin sisters because he heard voices in his head. As far as defining events go, nothing else comes close for Elias, or for me.”
Goodreads Synopsis:
As a boy, Cyrus Haven survived a family massacre and slowly pieced his life back together. Now, after almost twenty years, his brother is applying to be released from a secure psychiatric hospital—and Cyrus is expected to forgive Elias and welcome him home.
Elias is returning to a very different world. Cyrus is now a successful psychologist, working with the police, sharing his house with Evie Cormac, a damaged and gifted teenager who can tell when someone is lying. Evie has gone back to school and is working part-time at an inner-city bar, but she continues to struggle with authority and following rules.
When a man is murdered and his daughter disappears, Cyrus is called in to profile the killer and help piece together Maya Kirk’s last hours. Police believe she was drugged and driven away from the same bar where Evie is working. Soon, a second victim is taken, and Evie is the only person who glimpsed the man behind the wheel.
But there’s a problem. Only two people believe her. One is Cyrus.
The other is the killer.
I didn’t realize this book was part of a series when I picked it up. It can definitely be read as a standalone, but I can tell you I will be ordering the first two books immediately because I enjoyed this one so thoroughly. Is there a better feeling than discovering a new series to love? I think not!
Cyrus and Evie are compelling characters. Both damaged and complicated, they have an interesting relationship that defies categorization. Roommates don’t quite capture their affection for each other, while the friend’s label doesn’t feel right either. Cyrus is easy to like immediately. Even with his tragic past, he has a big heart and a talent for psychology that he uses to aid in police investigations. Evie is a bit harder to love. She’s angsty and makes bad choices, but as we learn snippets of her backstory throughout the book, we learn why and develop sympathy for her. By the end, I couldn’t help but like her. Michael does a wonderful job of crafting rich and layered characters.
This book is so full of twists and turns I read it in 24 hours. I simply couldn’t put it down. Previous to this, I had been reading a lot of lighter fare and was ready for a change. This book definitely swept me into the story from the very first page and didn’t let me go until its shocking conclusion. I definitely didn’t guess the ending. As you may have guessed from the quote, this book is on the darker side. This book is not for you if you like your mysteries light and cozy.
Overall, a riveting read. If you are looking for a book that will suck you in, I highly recommend giving this one a try.
Thank you, Simon & Schuster, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
