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Perfect Crime #4
Lost Cause
He is at the forefront of a grisly case, and the murders haunt him every waking and sleeping second…
As Leon reassesses the cases of the murdered girls, he realizes that the flower left behind by the killer is similar to the signature drawing of the retirement home killer. Leon peruses the cold case files and confirms his intuition. He keeps his findings to himself, dreading that his team wouldn't believe him.
When Dr. Evelyn leaves the station, she registers someone watching her, and this mystery man tails her. After speeding up and swerving for what feels like forever, she succeeds in escaping, though shaken up, and dozes off while working. Appallingly, Dr. Evelyn wakes up to a masked man in her room who seems to think she's his wife. She manages to escape from the masked man.
The FBI team reassess the case from a different angle. They get notified that 3 more bodies have surfaced on a park near the highway. They swiftly leave for the crime scene, but when they are about to drive off, Leon notices that someone is watching them from the bushes. He also recognizes something striking about Dr. Evelyn that is similar to the other victims.
Will they catch him before he gets the next victim?
As Leon reassesses the cases of the murdered girls, he realizes that the flower left behind by the killer is similar to the signature drawing of the retirement home killer. Leon peruses the cold case files and confirms his intuition. He keeps his findings to himself, dreading that his team wouldn't believe him.
When Dr. Evelyn leaves the station, she registers someone watching her, and this mystery man tails her. After speeding up and swerving for what feels like forever, she succeeds in escaping, though shaken up, and dozes off while working. Appallingly, Dr. Evelyn wakes up to a masked man in her room who seems to think she's his wife. She manages to escape from the masked man.
The FBI team reassess the case from a different angle. They get notified that 3 more bodies have surfaced on a park near the highway. They swiftly leave for the crime scene, but when they are about to drive off, Leon notices that someone is watching them from the bushes. He also recognizes something striking about Dr. Evelyn that is similar to the other victims.
Will they catch him before he gets the next victim?
64 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 15, 2023
6 people are currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
Clara Lewis
67 books52 followersAuthor Clara Lewis has always been an avid fan of mysteries. As a child, she devoured the “Nancy Drew” and “Hardy Boys” series’s, which inspired her desire to write her own mystery thrillers. Though Clara’s journey took her in several different directions, she eventually published her debut series early in 2021.
Besides spending her time creating vast worlds and convoluted mysteries for her readers to divulge in, Lewis spends her time at her home in Portland, Oregon. As a mother and wife, she wears many hats, and can often be found baking and crocheting.
Lewis always had a passion for creating, and she wants nothing more than to provide the same thrills she loves to her readers. She loves to read (and smell) books just as much as she loves to write them! She has several projects in the works, and can’t wait to share them with her audience.
Connect with her at her:
Official website: https://claralewis.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/authorclaral...
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorclara...
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/clara...
Besides spending her time creating vast worlds and convoluted mysteries for her readers to divulge in, Lewis spends her time at her home in Portland, Oregon. As a mother and wife, she wears many hats, and can often be found baking and crocheting.
Lewis always had a passion for creating, and she wants nothing more than to provide the same thrills she loves to her readers. She loves to read (and smell) books just as much as she loves to write them! She has several projects in the works, and can’t wait to share them with her audience.
Connect with her at her:
Official website: https://claralewis.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/authorclaral...
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorclara...
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/clara...
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 22, 2023
I'd give it somewhere between 3 and 3.5.
I feel it gests more and more muddy and confusing. Like the Author kida lost her inspiration and is just filling the required number of pages for the new release.
Leon behaves more and more "out of it" and rummages more through his mind for clues about possible connections between their crimes under investigation and see if they have to deal with only one killer, or two, one of which is copying the other.
His colleague, dr. Evelyn, soon to be their team's boss, has similar daemons to face.
She even wakes herself, in her room, in the presence of a strange man, who she soon finds is the killer (or one of them, if they are two ?). Despite she succeeds to recover her gun from the hidden place she keeps, the man jumps out of the window, and, guess what, despite being at seconds floor, he suffer virtually no damage and flees.
And after some team meeting with all their colleagues, Leon finally figures that Evelyn is the killer's target, since she matches a lot of the victims' appearance (hair color, hair length, eyes color and few others).
So, now we need to wait for the next episode to have the conclusion of the series. Hopefully :D
I feel it gests more and more muddy and confusing. Like the Author kida lost her inspiration and is just filling the required number of pages for the new release.
Leon behaves more and more "out of it" and rummages more through his mind for clues about possible connections between their crimes under investigation and see if they have to deal with only one killer, or two, one of which is copying the other.
His colleague, dr. Evelyn, soon to be their team's boss, has similar daemons to face.
She even wakes herself, in her room, in the presence of a strange man, who she soon finds is the killer (or one of them, if they are two ?). Despite she succeeds to recover her gun from the hidden place she keeps, the man jumps out of the window, and, guess what, despite being at seconds floor, he suffer virtually no damage and flees.
And after some team meeting with all their colleagues, Leon finally figures that Evelyn is the killer's target, since she matches a lot of the victims' appearance (hair color, hair length, eyes color and few others).
So, now we need to wait for the next episode to have the conclusion of the series. Hopefully :D
April 23, 2023
The series continues with a good twist in the tale.
I found this book to be more in depth on Leon but it is understandable as he is struggling a bit with life.
I feel you will enjoy this short and easy to read story.
I received this arc for free and I wanted to leave an honest review.
I found this book to be more in depth on Leon but it is understandable as he is struggling a bit with life.
I feel you will enjoy this short and easy to read story.
I received this arc for free and I wanted to leave an honest review.
April 18, 2023
Leon Makes An Astounding Discovery!
by Barbara Kelley
"Lost Cause" is Book 4 of Clara Lewis's Perfect Crime Series. This is a continuation series that includes several novellas/short stories about a serial killer targeting first the elderly retirement home, and then thirteen years later a home for troubled girls.
This series is told through three different points-of -view: 1) The serial killer's first person viewpoint is in every Prologue, as well as a few scenes throughout the book; 2) FBI Special Agent Leon Graves's third person viewpoint is in at least every other chapter in the book; for example, Chapters 1, 3, 5, etc.; 3) and Dr. Evelyn Mayer's third person viewpoint is in the other chapters, as well as some of the chapters that have Leon's viewpoint. The use of two different viewpoints within the same chapter can sometimes be confusing unless there is a section separator, such as a group of asterisks or stars between the viewpoints.
This episode has Leon and Dr. Evelyn searching for the serial killer. They are both in trouble with Dr. Naderi, the current head of the FBI who is being forced to retire because of his age: 57, FBI required retirement age. Leon spends a lot of time in the dusty old archives studying the 13 year old cold case of the retirement home serial killer, Leon's very first case that was never solved. He is convinced that the New Hope Girls Home case is related and that it is the same serial killer. He finds corresponding evidence between both cases that confirm his suspicions that the murders of the elderly victims of the cold case and the murders of the young women at the troubled girls home are that of the same serial killer. He also believes that the current murders of two elderly women who lived by themselves, as well a a boy who also lived alone, were victims of a copycat killer. Also, in this episode, Dr. Evelyn is being stalked and terrorized by the actual serial killer. The Prologue is always through the viewpoint of the serial killer. He even says at the end that even though she is older than the girls that "weren't the ones" for him, that she was who he truly wanted to marry and have kids with. This information is not giving away the story because it was in the Prologue. However, Leon is hit with the startling realization that all the girls that were abducted and later found dead and dismembered looked just like Dr. Evelyn, and he now knows that Dr. Evelyn is the serial killer's real target. Will he be able to save her from this insane madman? And who is he, anyway? And why did he stop killing for thirteen years before starting it up again?
There were a few technical errors that need to be corrected. 1) The name Susan near the end if Chapter 6 needs to be changed to Sarah, since the character's name is Sarah; 2) The author has the habit of going back and forth from past tense to present tense within the same paragraph throughout the entire book - one or the other form of tense needs to remain throughout the entire book - for example, "has" or "had", but not both of them; 3) The use of " she" is used when it should be "he" and vice versa - for example, Leon's viewpoint is in place, but the word "she" is used.
This was a really good book, and even though there were the technical issues that I listed above, I still gave this book a 5 star rating.
I received an advanced copy via BookFunnel and this is my voluntary honest review.
by Barbara Kelley
"Lost Cause" is Book 4 of Clara Lewis's Perfect Crime Series. This is a continuation series that includes several novellas/short stories about a serial killer targeting first the elderly retirement home, and then thirteen years later a home for troubled girls.
This series is told through three different points-of -view: 1) The serial killer's first person viewpoint is in every Prologue, as well as a few scenes throughout the book; 2) FBI Special Agent Leon Graves's third person viewpoint is in at least every other chapter in the book; for example, Chapters 1, 3, 5, etc.; 3) and Dr. Evelyn Mayer's third person viewpoint is in the other chapters, as well as some of the chapters that have Leon's viewpoint. The use of two different viewpoints within the same chapter can sometimes be confusing unless there is a section separator, such as a group of asterisks or stars between the viewpoints.
This episode has Leon and Dr. Evelyn searching for the serial killer. They are both in trouble with Dr. Naderi, the current head of the FBI who is being forced to retire because of his age: 57, FBI required retirement age. Leon spends a lot of time in the dusty old archives studying the 13 year old cold case of the retirement home serial killer, Leon's very first case that was never solved. He is convinced that the New Hope Girls Home case is related and that it is the same serial killer. He finds corresponding evidence between both cases that confirm his suspicions that the murders of the elderly victims of the cold case and the murders of the young women at the troubled girls home are that of the same serial killer. He also believes that the current murders of two elderly women who lived by themselves, as well a a boy who also lived alone, were victims of a copycat killer. Also, in this episode, Dr. Evelyn is being stalked and terrorized by the actual serial killer. The Prologue is always through the viewpoint of the serial killer. He even says at the end that even though she is older than the girls that "weren't the ones" for him, that she was who he truly wanted to marry and have kids with. This information is not giving away the story because it was in the Prologue. However, Leon is hit with the startling realization that all the girls that were abducted and later found dead and dismembered looked just like Dr. Evelyn, and he now knows that Dr. Evelyn is the serial killer's real target. Will he be able to save her from this insane madman? And who is he, anyway? And why did he stop killing for thirteen years before starting it up again?
There were a few technical errors that need to be corrected. 1) The name Susan near the end if Chapter 6 needs to be changed to Sarah, since the character's name is Sarah; 2) The author has the habit of going back and forth from past tense to present tense within the same paragraph throughout the entire book - one or the other form of tense needs to remain throughout the entire book - for example, "has" or "had", but not both of them; 3) The use of " she" is used when it should be "he" and vice versa - for example, Leon's viewpoint is in place, but the word "she" is used.
This was a really good book, and even though there were the technical issues that I listed above, I still gave this book a 5 star rating.
I received an advanced copy via BookFunnel and this is my voluntary honest review.
April 9, 2023
Leon still has his own ideas on the looming case his FBI team is working on. He is keeping them to himself though because he doesn’t want to be sent home and off the case. He still thinks there are similarities with the previous case. He hits it big with new information about the killers ‘calling card’. In the prologue, the killer lets us know his thoughts. He is searching for his perfect woman/girl. At the end of the prologue, he lets us know who he has pinned his sights on – one of the team!! The case suddenly gets more personal and dangerous. This series is very exciting. I love the dynamics of the FBI team. I received an ARC copy from the author and this is my honest review.
April 17, 2023
Leon gets nightmares and he feels the horrific torment the girls had to go through. Suddenly it becomes clear that the killer of 13years ago is back. If he told Dr. Naderi that the "Honeywell " killer and the New Hope murderer was the same person he would be sent home. The only hope was to prove his theory . The killer had threatened Dr. Evelyn too. A chilling read. I am on the ARC team and leave a honest review. I recommend this book to other readers
April 17, 2023
Another great installment in the Perfect Crime series. Leon is still working on theories and trying to connect the dots. Dr. Everlyn is not having an easy go of it in this one.
Fast read, we are getting more insights, with the killer and the characters. Can't wait to see where it goes.
Fast read, we are getting more insights, with the killer and the characters. Can't wait to see where it goes.
April 30, 2023
The case continues. Leon is conducting his own investigation, while Evelyn is the next target. Is it the same killer or more than one? Only time will tell. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
April 16, 2023
They still haven't found the killer, have they??? Now they have a new victim!!! I enjoyed this story and recommended the book.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews