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Violet Darger #2.5
The Last Victim
An escaped killer. A troubled investigator. Secrets that haunt the past and present.
The Violet Darger series continues with this gripping short, The Last Victim.
New crimes lead FBI profiler Victor Loshak to revisit former scenes and witnesses in the Las Vegas area. The evidence suggests the return of a notorious and brutal serial killer from years ago -- the one who got away.
Loshak conceals his work from his partner, Violet Darger, and tries desperately to stay one step ahead of both her and the murderer.
Leonard Stump is back. Maybe. And things are about to get so much worse.
The Violet Darger series continues with this gripping short, The Last Victim.
New crimes lead FBI profiler Victor Loshak to revisit former scenes and witnesses in the Las Vegas area. The evidence suggests the return of a notorious and brutal serial killer from years ago -- the one who got away.
Loshak conceals his work from his partner, Violet Darger, and tries desperately to stay one step ahead of both her and the murderer.
Leonard Stump is back. Maybe. And things are about to get so much worse.
86 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 6, 2017
1299 people are currently reading
517 people want to read
About the author
L.T. Vargus
52 books1,093 followersLex Vargus is the co-author of over 20 thriller and horror novels.
FIND LEX ON:
Amazon - Twitter - LTVargus.com
BOOKS BY LT VARGUS
The Violet Darger series
The Victor Loshak series
The Charlotte Winters series
FIND LEX ON:
Amazon - Twitter - LTVargus.com
BOOKS BY LT VARGUS
The Violet Darger series
The Victor Loshak series
The Charlotte Winters series
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews
December 13, 2017
3.75 stars
Genre: Mystery/ Thriller
POVs: Dual, 3rd person
Setting: Las Vegas, Nevada
Writing style: 4/5
Claire wakes up in a stranger’s car. Her best friend is beside her and won’t wake up ...
This short story packed a meaty punch! I loved the friendship between Tammy and Claire, and I’m looking forward to reading more from these authors!
Favorite lines?
Genre: Mystery/ Thriller
POVs: Dual, 3rd person
Setting: Las Vegas, Nevada
Writing style: 4/5
Claire wakes up in a stranger’s car. Her best friend is beside her and won’t wake up ...
This short story packed a meaty punch! I loved the friendship between Tammy and Claire, and I’m looking forward to reading more from these authors!
Favorite lines?
November 17, 2017
I kept seeing these authors' names next to some really interesting covers, so I decided to try one out before committing to the entire series. Although this is okay as a stand alone, I highly recommend starting at the beginning ... just like I'm going to do.
While the Darger books can be read in any order, here is the chronological order of the series:
Dead End Girl
Image in a Cracked Mirror (A Darger Novella)
Killing Season
The Last Victim (A Darger Novella)
FBI Profiler Victor Losack is chasing an old familiar serial killer .. Leonard Stump. responsible for multiple deaths in the Las Vegas area, he was caught, but then escaped. Looks like he's back and Victor is relentless in hunting him down.
There was only one survivor ....
Claire tells her story of what led up to being tied up next to her friend and being whisked away ... and ultimately how she survived. If you don't already bite your fingernails, you might start while reading this one.
The author has packed a lot of story into this short story of less than 60 pages. Claire is expertly drawn ... with just a few sentences she comes to life and leaps off the page.
I'm looking forward to reading the entire series .. from start to finish.
November 11, 2017
What can I say? I have been a fan of L.T Vargus and Tim McBain for some time now, right from reading 'The Scattered And The Dead'. The Violet Darger series is something else. The characters are lifelike and instantly likeable with wisecracks and sarcasm to boot. This story actually features just Loshak, Violets colourful partner. You feel instantly drawn in with the descriptive past of the two unfortunate victims and the balance between past and present is perfect, faultlessly blending in to create another masterpiece. There is a great feeling of tension during the car journey, creating an atmosphere of impending danger that you can visualize as if you were there with them.If you are a fan of crime fiction or even fancy a change, this short story needs to be in your collection.
October 15, 2021
This is a gripping short story/prequel which takes FBI Profiler Victory Loshak and Violet Darger to Las Vegas. The sex trade industry rakes in over one billion dollars in Las Vegas. There is evidence that a notorious, brutal serial killer is back. He had escaped law enforcement years ago. Stump was a serial killer who was known to kill women and burn their remains in their cars. Loshak has one concern about Violet ... she always attracts trouble like a magnet. This shorty is enticing and exciting. Vargus and McBain create great characters. Highly recommend.
November 8, 2017
Vargus and McBain have done it again. Another stellar installment in the Violet Darger series.
The Leonard Stump case has been haunting Agent Loshak since it went cold a couple decades ago. Now that Violet Darger has caught Stump's attention, Loshak goes chasing ghosts in Las Vegas...without his trouble-magnet partner.
Where most "serial killer books" focus on the minds of the murderers and the people who hunt them down, only showing us the victims in terms of grisly remains, Vargus and McBain's Violet Darger series takes extra pains to humanize the victim, to remind us that they were real people whose lives were stolen from them in horrible ways.
In the Last Victim, we meet Claire, a college student who went out for a night of dollar beers and woke up in a drug-induced haze, tied up and lying in the backseat of Leonard Stump's car with her best friend, Tammy. Rather than just drive us to the scene of the slaughter, however, The Last Victim takes us back in time to show us how these two future victims became friends and why Claire refuses to leave Tammy behind. It's a look into the mind of the victim for a change, and the better we get to know Claire, the more disturbing her fate becomes.
While I don't doubt that Darger's next book will be self-contained enough to stand on its own, this novella sets the stakes for Loshak's confrontation with Stump in a major way. Vargus and McBain are about to have a crowd of rabid fans demanding the next Darger novel. Whatever you do, don't miss it.
The Leonard Stump case has been haunting Agent Loshak since it went cold a couple decades ago. Now that Violet Darger has caught Stump's attention, Loshak goes chasing ghosts in Las Vegas...without his trouble-magnet partner.
Where most "serial killer books" focus on the minds of the murderers and the people who hunt them down, only showing us the victims in terms of grisly remains, Vargus and McBain's Violet Darger series takes extra pains to humanize the victim, to remind us that they were real people whose lives were stolen from them in horrible ways.
In the Last Victim, we meet Claire, a college student who went out for a night of dollar beers and woke up in a drug-induced haze, tied up and lying in the backseat of Leonard Stump's car with her best friend, Tammy. Rather than just drive us to the scene of the slaughter, however, The Last Victim takes us back in time to show us how these two future victims became friends and why Claire refuses to leave Tammy behind. It's a look into the mind of the victim for a change, and the better we get to know Claire, the more disturbing her fate becomes.
While I don't doubt that Darger's next book will be self-contained enough to stand on its own, this novella sets the stakes for Loshak's confrontation with Stump in a major way. Vargus and McBain are about to have a crowd of rabid fans demanding the next Darger novel. Whatever you do, don't miss it.
January 4, 2020
Fast and furious
I started reading and couldn't stop until the final word. It was like fast food you'd been craving for a month and finally stuffed down your gullet. Yummy all the way.
I started reading and couldn't stop until the final word. It was like fast food you'd been craving for a month and finally stuffed down your gullet. Yummy all the way.
December 29, 2021
Rip off! Chapters of the next book.. that just hang at the end.
February 28, 2025
It was okay, a good little in-between but I wish we could have gotten Loshak initial reaction to the letter. but it was fun seeing his POV.
February 10, 2021
Fast paced and easy to read. This novella adds backstory to later books in the series. I was actually disappointed when I got to the end. It was over way too soon.
Read
April 17, 2018I have read several of the Violet Darger series and they are all well written and keep you interested until the lastword. I can't wait until the next book in this series comes out.
November 25, 2020
Love the writing
This novella appears to be a link to the third novel in the Violet Darger series. Michael Connelly is my favorite crime fiction author these days, but Vargas and McBain definitely have my attention. I’ll be reading all of their writings this coming year. How they do this writing together is wonderful and amazing!
This novella appears to be a link to the third novel in the Violet Darger series. Michael Connelly is my favorite crime fiction author these days, but Vargas and McBain definitely have my attention. I’ll be reading all of their writings this coming year. How they do this writing together is wonderful and amazing!
Read
November 3, 2020Great Series !!!!
Fast read setting up the next book in the series. Great team. Great characters. Looking forward to the next installment.
Fast read setting up the next book in the series. Great team. Great characters. Looking forward to the next installment.
March 8, 2021
Short but good. This book was ok but it's length does not allow the authors to develop the story lines as well as in the full length books in the series.
December 2, 2017
I've enjoyed all of the Violet Darger books and this was no exception, though the cliffhanger ending was excruciating!!! It's finding authors like, L.T Vargus and Tim McBain, that make me so happy to have my Kindle Unlimited subscription! The relationship they've carefully developed between the main characters, FBI Agents (now partners) Darger and Loshak is so well thought out and believable. In this last book, we have Loshak on his own, grappling with the guilt of lying to Darger "for her own protection," while he begins what will hopefully be the final hunt for serial killer, Leonard Stump. Arrested back in 1993, Stump escaped. But, Loshak never forgot him, and apparently, Stump remembers Loshak as well...At the of The Killing Season, while relaxing on vacation, Violet received a letter that was clearly written by Stump! Now, he's threatened someone Loshak loves and everything has come full circle. Loshak needs to communicate with the one girl who got away from Stump and make sure that his partner, Darger, has no idea what he's up to! Kind of difficult when his partner is an FBI Agent!
November 20, 2017
I was excited to settle in to a new read from some of my favorite creepy authors, Vargus & McBain. Just getting to the heart-racing, tense, state of sympatico with the scared potential victims, and the familiar detectives getting engaged for the chase. And then: BAM!! It was O.V.E.R... at least for now.... Very abrupt ending, but I know V & McB did this so I Won't Forget and will Be There when the chase continues. Still, a very satisfying and stimulating roller-coaster ride, from frozen terror to calm, intellectual pursuit. I can't stop worrying about What Next??, and I will till the final chapters emerge. Great writing--again--and characters I care about, instantly... These authors know how keep you on the edge of the chair... but then, you may find yourself hanging there for quite a while. The waiting is the hardest part for devoted readers. Please don't keep us wondering too long!!
June 16, 2024
This COULD have been great
As it just ended so immediately I am very annoyed and about done with authors who think the best way to write is to not write anything at all. This is a very poor short story, saying nothing and leaving someone as fulfilled as though the tried to make a three piece meal of marshmallow fluff and water.
Terribly disappointing and leaving me with a really bad taste in my mouth for inadequate writers who don't have anything to say. The next time I pick up a Kindle unlimited publication I will double check to make sure it's actually a book and not a few paragraphs jammed together with some commas for punctuation.
It's not a good idea to set readers up to ostensibly showcase your alleged talent by leaving them grossly disappointed.
I will never read this author again. ALEXA has more to say than this "author".
As it just ended so immediately I am very annoyed and about done with authors who think the best way to write is to not write anything at all. This is a very poor short story, saying nothing and leaving someone as fulfilled as though the tried to make a three piece meal of marshmallow fluff and water.
Terribly disappointing and leaving me with a really bad taste in my mouth for inadequate writers who don't have anything to say. The next time I pick up a Kindle unlimited publication I will double check to make sure it's actually a book and not a few paragraphs jammed together with some commas for punctuation.
It's not a good idea to set readers up to ostensibly showcase your alleged talent by leaving them grossly disappointed.
I will never read this author again. ALEXA has more to say than this "author".
January 19, 2025
I loved this Novella. It was a quick read but the impact of the content made it feel like a whole novel. Special agent Loshak thinks the serial killer that got away in 1993 is back in action. He heads to Nevada to talk to the serial killers last victim. The one that actually got away. His left Special agent Darger in the dark about his trip. Since the serial killer has had contact with her, he doesn't want to worry her or get her involved until he's sure that's who they are dealing with. It was left on a cliffhanger so I can't wait to dive into the next novel and see where it goes from here. Lots of action, great scenes that make you feel like your right there in the story. You can't read a better series of books. Go check them out.
March 7, 2018
This makes me know to always watch your surroundings and drinks.Clair wakes up in a stranger car with her friend who won't wake up.Finds herself tied up and realizing that they're in the hands of a killer and realize that they're in the hands of a killer. It then becomes a matter of survival she tries to help a friend that has to end up helping herself and then when they catch this killer, he escapes can't find him.Then years later the same type killings start again .Loshak the cop and Clair the Survivor join together to stop him. My only disappointment in this book is that it didn't continue with the storyline hopefully we'll can find out if they ever find Stump and stop here
December 4, 2020
Cliffhanger!!!!!!
Though the premise said it's a standalone book and can also be read in any order, it really isn't!!!
The story has a backstory that's just skimmed through and the reader has to connect the dots. With such rave reviews I believed the book to be quite a thrill ride but I lost interest with the girls friendship story that went on in detail but held no relevance with the way it ended between them at the end of the book. Don't want to give out spoilers as much as a let down it was for me.
Though the premise said it's a standalone book and can also be read in any order, it really isn't!!!
The story has a backstory that's just skimmed through and the reader has to connect the dots. With such rave reviews I believed the book to be quite a thrill ride but I lost interest with the girls friendship story that went on in detail but held no relevance with the way it ended between them at the end of the book. Don't want to give out spoilers as much as a let down it was for me.
November 10, 2017
Great reading
Great short. Love the Darger stories. The authors write it so you feel like you are there living through the moment. If I didn’t know better, I would think the stories were based on true serial killer crimes. Recommended reading for those that like these types of stories. Enjoy!
Great short. Love the Darger stories. The authors write it so you feel like you are there living through the moment. If I didn’t know better, I would think the stories were based on true serial killer crimes. Recommended reading for those that like these types of stories. Enjoy!
February 7, 2018
Good, But Not Fulfilling
Don't read it expecting any sort of resolution -- I can only assume that this is all about setting up the next full-length Darger book, because it doesn't really have much of an actual ending. Was already looking forward to reading that one, and this didn't change that feeling in either direction.
Don't read it expecting any sort of resolution -- I can only assume that this is all about setting up the next full-length Darger book, because it doesn't really have much of an actual ending. Was already looking forward to reading that one, and this didn't change that feeling in either direction.
February 11, 2018
well written easy go
Its written in simple fast paced passages. Its easy to read and has an energy about it. my one caveat is we have read similar characters and plots before. I wasnt fond of the chapters about the girls relationships. they cut unto the action. overall a good read.
Its written in simple fast paced passages. Its easy to read and has an energy about it. my one caveat is we have read similar characters and plots before. I wasnt fond of the chapters about the girls relationships. they cut unto the action. overall a good read.
February 12, 2019
Good short story
A nice build up/prequel to "Girl in the Sand". Nice character development for Claire, another small character that brings dept to the series. One of the reasons I like the series is the care spent in developing characters you only see for a few pages, it provides a richness to the story.
A nice build up/prequel to "Girl in the Sand". Nice character development for Claire, another small character that brings dept to the series. One of the reasons I like the series is the care spent in developing characters you only see for a few pages, it provides a richness to the story.
March 20, 2020
CLIFFHANGER!
I was enjoying the Violet Darger series until now. However, this last one, #3.5, demonstrates that L.T. Vargus and Tim McBain have zero respect for their readers. IMHO, ending any book with a cliffhanger is a dirty trick, and I will never again read anything by authors who dis their readers this way. A shame, because I liked Violet. I'm disgusted.
I was enjoying the Violet Darger series until now. However, this last one, #3.5, demonstrates that L.T. Vargus and Tim McBain have zero respect for their readers. IMHO, ending any book with a cliffhanger is a dirty trick, and I will never again read anything by authors who dis their readers this way. A shame, because I liked Violet. I'm disgusted.
December 13, 2020
Another great novella in the Darger series...though it felt more it belonged in the Loshak series than the Darger one. We now get to see more into the life of Leonard Stump and one of his victims that survived his brutal attacks. With Darger’s obsession in him due to her past experiences with him and a recent letter from him, this looks like the start of an interesting ride.....
September 13, 2021
Short & sweet but still pretty good. Manages to build a complete story in a small amount of time with a bit of suspense. Not great but for the free audio and quick short book, not bad. A great quick book to listen to or read for in between others. 👍 (As a side note, I have to say I like the never give up attitude even when it all seemed hopeless. FIGHT to the end!)
March 8, 2022
There is probably some reason why to publish these snippets of stories. Is it an advertisement for the next book? Is it a way to shorten the waiting time for the next book? I am not a big fan of these half stories. It gave me a short glimpse into the next book, but I quickly forgot the book's content. Let's start with the next book.
July 25, 2023
I know this is just a novella but damn! I am so interested in the story/novel that follows. I have really enjoyed the Darger series so far. The character development both for the good, bad, and even the ugly has been top notch. The pacing and prose are easy to read. If you like a mystery thriller than you should check out this series.
December 13, 2017
I just can't get enough!!
I love everything that LT Vargus and Tim McBain
write, but I think the Violet Darger series is my new favorite! Great characters and great writing.
Can't wait for this new story to continue!
I love everything that LT Vargus and Tim McBain
write, but I think the Violet Darger series is my new favorite! Great characters and great writing.
Can't wait for this new story to continue!
February 16, 2018
WTF????
Is there going to be another book in this series?? Because I felt like it was just beginning and then it just ends!!! There is no conclusion. It literally just stops in what feels like the middle of the book!!!
Is there going to be another book in this series?? Because I felt like it was just beginning and then it just ends!!! There is no conclusion. It literally just stops in what feels like the middle of the book!!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews