The Sweetheart Killer

by N.J. Mackay

316 pages, Paperback

Published April 18, 2024

About the author

Alternate pen name of Niki Mackay.

Reviews

[Jasmine · Rating 1 out of 5]

rough read, a fair amount of typo’s, immature writing style, not my bag at all

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a cleverly plotted, intricate, dark read! I really enjoyed the first book in the DI Sebastian Locke and was looking forward to reading this one too. I was certainly not disappointed!

This is a story with several sub-plots: the life of a single-dad/ detective; a case which has so many blind alleys; a young lady struggling after a troubled childhood and a very unlikable main suspect. Niki Mackay has brought the story to life so clearly that I was there watching it all unfold.

The setting gave real depth and darkness to the story, along with ‘unknown’ gaps in Stevie’s memory. I was gripped and led to make predictions time and again and it was only close to the end that I finally got it!

For me the most unsettling part was the childhood of Stevie and the struggles she faced to lead a successful life.

Sebastian Locke is a fabulous character and realistic detective, facing his own personal issues and thoughts whilst trying to solve an increasingly challenging case.

I loved this book, great investigation and am now crossing my fingers hoping for a book 3.

[Nicola McPherson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stevie grew up in the care system after her mum poisoned her to ‘cleanse’ her - she is obsessed with her ex, she follows his wife and befriends her, she also knows he’s been unfaithful and follows his mistress. The mistress is murdered and stevie wonders if she did it as she got drunk and can’t remember what happened. The police question her ex and turns out another woman he had sex with was murdered previously. Police question stevie - she starts to suspect her mom who has bipolar, doesn’t leave the house but Stevie finds worn shoes. Turns out it’s Stevies uncle doing it- he mistreated her mum when they were younger and abused women for years ever since.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

We follow Stevie, a young woman with a pretty tragic past. She’s now a teacher and has some residual issues from her childhood which leads her to make some bad choices, like stalking an ex. We also get Seb, the detective in charge of the murder investigation of a young woman found in the park. Stevie’s chapters are in first person, while Seb’s are in third, which kinda threw me off a little. Over all, this was an enjoyable read. Didn’t realize it was the second in a series, so I will have to go look for the first.

[Gift Agu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like the book. Just that the Title wasn’t in line with the story “Sweetheart” killer? Lol.

Well, I like the writing style of the Author. I liked the story, but God! There were a lot of repetitions that could’ve been cut down to make this even better. I found myself rereading things that were already said before, and they were way more than necessary that it dragged out the whole thing.

Good book but could’ve been better.

[Maria Carroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable to read, a few twists along the way. Some typos, though.

[Ashleigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5* easy, enjoyable read. Nice twist. Would read other books in this series. Have recommended this book to others who enjoy a mystery

[Chloe Warren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick paced enough, decent story line, but lots of typos, grammar errors and some inconsistency.

[Aya Soboh · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Liam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

An OK read ,but nothing special .

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed the book, some times it dragged but I loved how it played the characters and always kept you guessing who the baddy is.