Inside His Mind

by Kate Bold

“This is an excellent book… When you start reading, be sure you don’t have to wake up early!”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Dr. Lucy Crimson, criminal psychology professor, former BAU agent, has unmatched brilliance and expertise into the mind of serial killers, and is the one person the FBI turns to when they need help. But when a new killer targets her, matching her brilliance, the race is on to solve the cryptic clues before she may end up as the next victim….

When Lucy’s brightest student uncovers a pivotal clue in a cold case, the line between classroom and crime scene blurs dangerously, and only Lucy can follow the trail. Can Lucy outsmart a cunning killer who has already made his next move? Or will her lecture on criminal minds become a real-life lesson in survival?

INSIDE HIS MIND is BOOK #1 in a new series by #1 bestselling mystery and suspense author Kate Bold, whose bestseller NOT ME (a free download) has received over 3,00 five star ratings and reviews.

The LUCY CRIMSON series is a heart-pounding page turner, packed with action, suspense and mystery that will compel you late into the night as you try to unravel the clues. Fans of Kendra Elliot, Teresa Driscoll, and Lee Child are sure to fall in love.

Future books in the series are also available!

“This book moved very fast and every page was exciting. Plenty of dialogue, you absolutely love the characters, and you were rooting for the good guy throughout the whole story… I look forward to reading the next in the series.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Kate did an amazing job on this book and I was hooked from the first chapter!”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“I really enjoyed this book. The characters were authentic, and I see the bad guys as something we hear about daily on the news... Looking forward to book 2.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“This was a really good book. The main characters were real, flawed and human. The story went along quickly and wasn't mired in too many unnecessary details. I really enjoyed it.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Alexa Chase is headstrong, impatient, but most of all brave with a capital B. She never, repeat never, backs down until the bad guys are put where they belong. Clearly five stars!”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Captivating and riveting serial murder with a twist of the macabre… Very well done.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“WOW what a great read! Talk about a diabolical killer! Really enjoyed this book. Looking forward to reading others by this author as well.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Page turner for sure. Great characters and relationships. I got into the middle of this story and couldn’t put it down. Looking forward to more from Kate Bold.”
—Reader review for The Killing Game
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Hard to put down. It has an excellent plot and has the right amount of suspense. I really enjoyed this book.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks

150 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 12, 2025

About the author

Bestselling author Kate Bold is author of the ALEXA CHASE SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising six books (and counting); of the ASHLEY HOPE SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising six books (and counting); of the CAMILLE GRACE SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising eight books (and counting); of the HARLEY COLE SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising ten books (and counting); of the KAYLIE BROOKS SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising five books (and counting); and of the EVE HOPE SUSPENSE THRILLER series, comprising five books (and counting). Kate loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.kateboldauthor.com to join the mailing list, receive free ebooks, hear the latest news, and stay in touch.

BOOKS BY KATE BOLD

EVE HOPE SUSPENSE THRILLER

IN HIS BLOOD (Book #1)

IN HIS SIGHTS (Book #2)

IN HIS REACH (Book #3)

IN HIS MIND (Book #4)

IN HIS WAY (Book #5)

(and counting)

KAYLIE BROOKS SUSPENSE THRILLER

LAST BREATH (Book #1)

LAST CHANCE (Book #2)

LAST WISH (Book #3)

LAST SHOT (Book #4)

LAST MISTAKE (Book #5)

(and counting)

HARLEY COLE SUSPENSE THRILLER

NOWHERE SAFE (Book #1)

NOWHERE LEFT (Book #2)

NOWHERE TO RUN (Book #3)

NOWHERE LIKE THIS (Book #4)

NOWHERE GIRL (Book #5)

NOWHERE TO HIDE (Book #6)

NOWHERE CERTAIN (Book #7)

NOWHERE PURE (Book #8)

NOWHERE SOUND (Book #9)

NOWHERE SANE (Book #10)

(and counting)

CAMILLE GRACE SUSPENSE THRILLER

NOT ME (Book #1)

NOT NOW (Book #2)

NOT WELL (Book #3)

NOT HER (Book #4)

NOT NORMAL (Book #5)

NOT AGAIN (Book #6)

NOT SAFE (Book #7)

NOT TODAY (Book #8)

(and counting)

ALEXA CHASE SUSPENSE THRILLER

THE KILLING GAME (Book #1)

THE KILLING TIDE (Book #2)

THE KILLING HOUR (Book #3)

THE KILLING POINT (Book #4)

THE KILLING FOG (Book #5)

THE KILLING PLACE (Book #6)

(and counting)

ASHLEY HOPE SUSPENSE THRILLER

LET ME GO (Book #1)

LET ME OUT (Book #2)

LET ME LIVE (Book #3)

LET ME BREATHE (Book #4)

LET ME FORGET (Book #5)

LET ME ESCAPE (Book #6)

(and counting)

Reviews

[iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Bold has delivered again for me.. a great suspense thriller.. this one is about a criminal psychologist ex BAU, now teaches..
She passes on a cold case to a pupil who is top of her class as an assignment..
The pupil finds a link to the 3 cases of the murder of women that were strangled to death in there living quarters.. each woman has gone through Domestic violence .
The clever student wants to solve this case.. but is it getting her too close to the murderer???
Lucy the tutor is worried about Madison and with the help of FBI agent Sam Spears they both go in search of Madison and all get closer to the serial killer..
Can they catch the killer before the killer catches them!!
My views

[Jillian]

Havent started this yet however wanted to let yall know this book is free (thank u bookbub) today

Just bought it for freeee

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audiobook was a fun quick listen, that served that purpose. Overall the book was formulaic and predictable which seems to be the trend on these kinds of mysteries. But as I said it served it's purpose and is great if you want something smaller and digestible.

[Sharon Leff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Series Starter Sizzles and ssssss….

Okay, a series starter must have a series star, someone readers connect with or are impressed by…someone, flawed or vulnerable, but capable and unique. And as much as I want to admire a criminology professor instructing a small group of elite students, the distraction of her petty internal conversations and rants about her divorcee, ex-husband, a professor in her building, limit and misdirect any connection or admiration. Instead of seeming confident and capable as her students seem to perceive her, she seems low self-esteemed, distracted, and foolish investing too much thought into strategies to rattle her ex-husband.

She also seems careless with procedures and with her students. The cases seem off putting too because cases are presented from perspectives of those victims, who are encountered before and during murder. The plot construct or purpose seems misunderstood, misdirected, and ineffective.

If the relationship between Lucy and FBI agent was intended to show chemistry, it falls flat too. No sparks. Not an effective series starter.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inside His Mind is a fast-paced suspense thriller with a compelling lead in Lucy Crimson, who uses her criminal psychology expertise to track a killer who might just be as clever as she is. The tension is strong, and there are some gripping moments, especially when the clues pile up and the danger feels real.

However, it occasionally relies on familiar thriller tropes and the villain's cleverness edges into predictability. Some character relationships feel a bit underdeveloped, and the pacing, while brisk, sometimes jumps around. AIl in all, a solid read if you like psychological crime stories, though it doesn't quite break new ground.

[Antigone Walsh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amateur Hour

I am mixed on this book. It has a satisfying villain but the premise is ridiculous. A college professor gives her presumably gifted student a real cold case to review to see if she can find anything the cops missed. Of course she locates a rather obvious connection. The professor sees a link to support groups and refers it to the super hot FBI agent. He is a potential love interest and a way to aggravate the professor's skeevy ex husband. The student is assured she will receive "credit" for her help. Not college credit but acclaim. Of course the student who has no police experience decides to solve the case by conducting her own clumsy investigation. This involves swiping files, disobeying her teacher's directives and ultimately leading her unwittingly to the lair of the killer. All for "credit". Obviously she has no understanding of government, law enforcement and politics. They don't appreciate bring shown up and humiliated publicly. This was preposterous and compromised the enjoyment of the story. Otherwise the book isn't bad.

[Cidney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr Lucy Crimson is a criminal psychology professor and she is tutoring a group on cold cases and her star pupil Madison gets a case where 3 women have been strangled in two ways and each doesn't appear to have anything to do with each other. Aha this is where they are wrong, because Madison is a deep thinker and likes graphs and through those discovers that each of them was free from 7-9pm on Wednesday. Hang on it might have been Thursdays. No matter it was one day of the week anyway. She begins to cover a lot of ground in trying to track down where they were which would give her a clue as to who killed the 3 women. The only problem is that she is getting too close to the killer. Who is expecting her.

Dr Crimson meanwhile still has problems with her ex husband the obnoxious James Mitchell who is still preying on young girls and who is still in the same department as her, actually am not sure of that now and have already deleted the book from my kindle. No matter, a handsome FBI agent turns up called Sam Spears who has been to the university and spoken to the students and wonders if he would be able to do it again. I suspect from the look she's giving him I think he will. Then her prize student Madison is thrilled that she has made these connections between the 3 women and is now seriously tracking their killer down. Dr Crimson is fearful for her student, they weren't supposed to go looking for the killer just find what they think leads to the killer, then Madison disappears...

[Maryann Hornbaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

You’re going to love it.

I couldn’t put it down. A professor has a talented student who shows a hidden talent for profiling. When the FBI comes to her with a cold case that has them stumped, she gives it to this student to research. Little does she realize this student is going to find a lead and take it upon herself to follow through on it. The lead takes her on a dangerous path.

The characters were believable.. The storyline was coherent. And the flow of the story kept moving and kept me reading. The solution was unexpected yet somewhat believable. I think you love it.

[Deedra Dail-whitley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent series starter!! Lucy Crimson is definitely one of a kind & we'll on her way to becoming one of my favorite crime solvers!! The book has a great plot, interesting characters & it moves swiftly enough to keep you up late reading well past bedtime!! I flew through this book, it was so very good. It kept me interested & on the edge of my seat. I definitely recommend this book. It's a great series starter, I believe this series is going to be a fantastic one. There is some places where the editing is kind of rough. But it's still a fantastic read!!

[Kaylin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for an easy, short, but intriguing read, and Inside His Mind delivered. The story follows a criminology professor who passes on a cold case to a student, only to later find herself having to save that same student from the serial killer. The student was incredibly annoying, and I think the book would have worked just as well, if not better, as a more realistic investigative thriller without the student storyline altogether. However, I appreciated the pacing and I was entertained throughout.

[Avid · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short murder mystery. Lucy, a professor, gives her smartest student, Madison, a cold case to work on. Madison goes way too far beyond the scope of what a student should do and begins to basically take on the role of a full-blown detective and is making the life of Sam, an FBI agent, very difficult.

It's not bad, but very unrealistic. If you can accept it's just a book and the author is allowed this leeway, then... go for it. 👍

📚📚📚

[Constance Norgaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inside His Mind (A Lucy Crimson Suspense Thriller Book One) Kate Bold

An intense Thriller with a student and her Professor tracking an old case that leads to interesting people to interview. The student takes off because you wants to be sure she gets credit for the cold case. An ex-husband gets in the way and she gets helps from a Detective. Some surprises occur but the profiler is good.

[SaturNalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucy is a criminal psychology professor, she helps the authorities build profiles on murders. One of her students, Maddy, finds a lead in a cold case. Lucy involves Sam to help reopen the case. This was interesting and fast paced. Kept me engaged and I wanted to know who the killer was. I liked the step by step process, so there weren't leaps in logic or magical gut instincts that solved the case.

[Melissa O'rourke · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a miss for me. The plot was fundamentally ridiculous and unrealistic, which was my main annoyance. The characters were paper-thin; in fact, I was actively hoping one of the most annoying ones would get taken out just to shake things up. Thankfully, I got the audiobook for free—had I actually paid for this, I'd be demanding a refund.

[Bill Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

serial killer is caught

Exciting action. A student from the university gets in volved searching for clues. Her
Determined searching leads her to the killer. Tense moments and a rescue by her teacher and a policeman resolves the encounter.

[diannscollins]

Control

The book was entertaining to a point, but I was frustrated by the ego and stupidity of one character. She should have been punished, not glorified. Also the strength of the killer was not explained.

[Paula Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF after a few paragraphs of the first chapter, though I had read the prologue as well. All tell, no show. If there is any promise to the story or characters, I couldn’t get far enough to find it. Probably would have benefited from an editor.

[Josephine Pizzimenti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate Bold does it again

Well written with good characters and great storyline. So good not to be too involved in the private lives of lead characters, concentrating on the actual story. Recommend

[Pete Ffrench · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is good and the main characters are well written but the idea of the obviously young immature girl finding new evidence then going on a self financed solo quest for the kudos of catching a killer does stretch the bounds of plausibility a bit.

[Charles E. Kochan Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty decent novel

This is a profiler professor, A bright student in her class and a series of cold cases. As the student goes out of her way to seek fame for solving case, she winds up in extreme danger. Can she be saved or will she be another victim? Enjoy.

[Joyce Anne Garbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ssssssooooooo Goooooood!

It takes a talented author to lead you through cold cases and allow you to think of various potential murderers. You think you figured out who the murderer is. And it is not!!!!
Really a great story. I could not put the book down. It was so good!

[Neil Carolan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hate to be so brutal but the whole thing was so predictable to me and it was absolutely full of cliché and stereotypes. I will say the first half is good but it really let me down in a lot of different ways.

[Wanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

good enjoyable book

I enjoyed reading this book and will continue to read the next in the series. The only remark I have is that the Lutheran Church is used as the location but Lutheran's don't have priests nor do they have holy water at the front of the church.

[Heather Knarr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in less than 24 hours. It was so good I couldn’t put it down.

[Mrs MJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read will try next one in series

[Jean Roehrs · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Real Gripper! Couldn’t read fast enough.

A real nail biter. Great drama. Surprise ending. Looking forward to her next offering. Don’t miss it. Jean, a new fan!

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not care for this book.

[Kristen Rielly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but good serial killer / fbi story

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just okay. Kate Bold has written better stories. This one is a basic formula story. No additional creativity here.

[Lizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly captivating!

I am sure I will read the whole series and other books the author has written.
The cadence is just about right, the story is not formulaic.