Review: The Cold Room by J.T. Ellison

I have to thank my sister for finding The Cold Room by J.T. Ellison at her library for me. My library did not have a copy of it nor was it on order. I couldn't believe it! They had copies of the first books in this series so naturally I expected to see the fourth Taylor Jackson book on order at the very least. Hmmm... I hope they fix that issue because until then the readers in my area are missing out!

Summary: He can truly love her only once her heart stops.

Homicide detective Taylor Jackson thinks she's seen it all in Nashville—from the Southern Strangler to the Snow White Killer. But she's never seen anything as perverse as The Conductor. Once his victim is captured, he contains her in a glass coffin, slowly starving her to death. Only then does he give in to his attraction.

When he's finished, he creatively disposes of the body by reenacting scenes from famous paintings. And similar macabre works are being found in Europe. Taylor teams up with her fiancé, FBI profiler Dr. John Baldwin, and New Scotland Yard detective James "Memphis" Highsmythe, a haunted man who has eyes only for Taylor, to put an end to this horror.

Has the killer gone international with his craft? Or are there two "artists," competing to create the ultimate masterpiece?

When I got ready to read on Saturday (read it all on Saturday - didn't get one other thing done that day! LOL) I tried to remember the earlier books. As we've discussed previously on this blog, my memory sucks. So, it was more my 'impressions' of the books. And those were that the mystery and the serial killers and the detecting in these books is AWESOME. It's intense, exciting, interesting, detailed but not overwhelming, great! But my impression was also that the relationship piece between Taylor and Baldwin isn't as great as in other similar series.

Well, the story definitely is great once again. Creepy, yucky and weird. Intense, detailed, scary, yet fascinating. I just kept turning the pages wanting to know what they would find, what the killer would do, who would end up being involved. I do not know how Ms. Ellison can have all this in her head and not be looney! But I love it.

As for the relationship piece - it was better than my 'impression' memory. Taylor is working to repair her status at work. Baldwin is working with the fellow from London and intersection of all of them within the work of catching the killer... well, it made me want to slap someone! But that was a good thing.

I recommend reading this series if you are interested in murder mysteries. It's a great series. Start with All the Pretty Girls.

Rating: 5 stars!

Review: 14 by J.T. Ellison

Last summer I read lots of books recommended by J.Kaye and was not disappointed in any of them. One of my favorites was a book from first-time novelist J.T. Ellison - All the Pretty Girls (my review). The second in the series, 14, came out earlier this year and I loved it!

Summary: Ten victims, each with pale skin and long dark hair. All have been slashed across the throat, the same red lipstick smeared across their lips.

In the mid-1980s the Snow White Killer terrorized the streets of Nashville, Tennessee. Then suddenly the murders stopped. A letter from the killer to the police stated that his work was done.

Now four more bodies are found, marked with his fatal signature. The residents of Nashville fear a madman has returned, decades later, to finish his sick fairy tale. Homicide Lieutenant Taylor Jackson believes the killings are the work of a copycat killer who's even more terrifying. For this monster is meticulously honing his craft as he mimics famous serial murders…proving that the past is not to be forgotten.

This was a very detailed, interesting plot that had me guessing throughout. Even when the killer is revealed to the reader but not yet to the lieutenant, there's so much drama and intrigue it kept me glued to the book. Quite fascinating, really.

My one, small, beef with the book was the predictability of the kidnapping near the end and the resolution of that - kind of unrealistic. Not enough of an issue to affect my enjoyment.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

All the Pretty Girls by J.T. Ellison

The first in what I expect to be a good suspense series, All the Pretty Girls introduces two protagonists - Taylor Jackson, a detective lieutenant in Nashville and John Baldwin, her FBI profiler boyfriend. The story intertwines a serial killer spree and hunt that Baldwin focuses on primarily with the many different situations that Taylor finds herself investigating. The two have only been dating a few months but they have been intense, having started with an investigation that almost killed Taylor and that she is still recovering from.

The main characters are quite believable and real. The lesser characters not as much but still good for the story. I didn't know for sure who 'did it' until near the end and there were enough twists to keep me guessing when I got to thinking I did know.

This book was recommended by J. Kaye. Check out her review. And I'll be on the lookout for the next in the series, 14, due out this fall!