Ever since she was a child, Stacey Hanson has had strange dreams—and sometimes they come true. Her skills and experience led her straight to the FBI’s Krewe of Hunters. Now a serial killer is stalking Washington, DC, and people are scared. And it will be Stacey’s first case.
Special Agent Keenan Wallace isn’t exactly thrilled to be teamed up with a rookie, but they’re going to have to get past their mutual friction if they want to stop a brutal killer. The victims are all vulnerable women, though the clues lead to suspects from DC’s powerful elite. Stacey can’t escape her nightly visions, but in trying to prevent them from occurring in real life, she might come face-to-face with a nightmare.
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Heather Graham majored in theater arts at the University of South Florida. After a stint of several years in dinner theater, back-up vocals, and bartending, she stayed home after the birth of her third child and began to write, working on short horror stories and romances. After some trial and error, she sold her first book, WHEN NEXT WE LOVE, in 1982 and since then, she has written over one hundred novels and novellas including category, romantic suspense, historical romance, vampire fiction, time travel, occult, and Christmas holiday fare. She wrote the launch books for the Dell's Ecstasy Supreme line, Silhouette's Shadows, and for Harlequin's mainstream fiction imprint, Mira Books.
Heather was a founding member of the Florida Romance Writers chapter of RWA and, since 1999, has hosted the Romantic Times Vampire Ball, with all revenues going directly to children's charity.
She is pleased to have been published in approximately twenty languages, and to have been honored with awards frorn Waldenbooks. B. Dalton, Georgia Romance Writers, Affaire de Coeur, Romantic Times, and more. She has had books selected for the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild, and has been quoted, interviewed, or featured in such publications as The Nation, Redbook, People, and USA Today and appeared on many newscasts including local television and Entertainment Tonight.
Heather loves travel and anything have to do with the water, and is a certitified scuba diver. Married since high school graduation and the mother of five, her greatest love in life remains her family, but she also believes her career has been an incredible gift, and she is grateful every day to be doing something that she loves so very much for a living.
This was my first book in the Krewe series and I love that I was able to just jump right in. Loved the background story for one of the main characters and I absolutely loved the paranormal aspect, in fact it was my most favorite part of this series. The mystery was good and overall this was a pretty solid read.
*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*
This is the 32nd novel in Graham's Krewe of Hunters series, but they're all pleasantly stand-alone stories with enough background information given so that it's possible to just drop right in and follow what's happening. (Except for the name of the group, dagnab it!) The formula is that there's a horrific crime and an attractive young agent who can communicate with ghosts investigates and/or protects an attractive young person of the other gender from said horrific criminal. The ghosts help out. There's some interesting historical detail about the locale in which the story's set. The two attractive young people have some passionate but safely vanilla sex, then they solve the crime and presumably live happily ever after. This one varies a little in that the two FBI agents can both talk to ghosts and they're the happy romantic couple. There aren't as many ghosts as in most of the other books, or maybe they're just not as helpful. There isn't as much historical detail, or maybe Washington D.C. isn't as picturesque or interesting as the usual haunts. And I'm giving this one an extra star because the mystery aspect was superior; I was trying to figure out which one of the obvious suspects was the Jack-the-Ripper wannabe and the book went all Agatha Christie and surprised me with a solution that was obvious in hindsight yet surprised me. I never saw it coming.... Fun stuff, good to munch 'tater chips with.
The story opens with scenes from Special Agent Stacey Hanson’s childhood and gain understanding regarding her chosen career path and special gift. We then flash forward to her first case as Rookie. She’s assigned to a high-profile case because she dreamt about the murder. They partner her with Special Agent Keenan Wallace. He isn’t pleased to have a rookie.
The case is a gory and intriguing one. The media dubbed the killer as the Yankee Ripper. Yep, this has a Jack the Ripper theme twisted into the tale with details regarding the gruesome London murders. Similarities take a modern turn. High-profile suspects, ghostly victims, and Stacey’s dreams advance the case.
We see Krewe members and ghosts from previous cases, and meet new ones. Stacey’s dreams are nightmares and each reveals more. The case is suspenseful, gruesome, and could have been pulled from current headlines Some clues and connection happened a little to conveniently to be believable, but the story was engaging.
The romance while served on the side was sweet. I liked both Wallace and Hanson. Graham makes the attraction and their feelings feel genuine. Both are competent agents, and Stacey was an impressive rookie for such a grisly case.
While this may be the thirty-second novel in the Krewe of Hunters, each works as a standalone and Graham does a wonderful job of providing background information for newcomers. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Was not expecting another Jack the Ripper storyline. I won’t pre-order Heather Graham books again. SPOILERS
It took me a while to mull over this book, plus another day to do a review. As a crime fiction fan, I often read light, cross-genre books for the mystery and police procedural aspects. I like Heather Graham’s mystery-suspense-romance books when taking breaks from intense crime fiction. I do expect the mystery storyline to be logical and sensible, with believable police policies, protocols and procedures. I don’t like blatant coincidences, pulling improbable clues out of air, and dubious solutions—as found in this book. Furthermore, the book synopsis didn’t mention grisly murders à la Jack the Ripper—complete with knife work, disembowelment, gory crime scenes, & missing organs. I’ve read many good (and a lot of bad) Ripper-derived storylines, but I unknowingly bought another book of regurgitated Ripperology.
On the positive side, this book can be read as a stand-alone. I recommend “Dreaming Death” to newbies to the Krewe of Hunters series. The lengthy prologue introduces characters, plus if you’re not well-versed on Jack the Ripper, this book explains the historical murders, crime scenes, victimology, etc. and contrasts the old with what’s seen current time.
The plot line is the usual Krewe fare. FBI agents—a male and a female with paranormal skills—solve crimes and fall in love. Stacey Hanson is a rookie FBI Agent, who is prickly, with attitude to spare. Keenan Wallace—the experienced, senior agent—is a likable character, who adjusts to his new partner. But falling in love and into bed whilst working long hours on an intense, grisly and bloody case where victims’ face, torso and guts are mutilated?
At first, the murders were believable—until the sheer number of victims overwhelmed attempts to suspend disbelief. It’s also inconceivable that Lafayette Square has no Type-A joggers at 0430. Plus, Stacey the rookie does unbelievably well at her very first autopsy—a horrifically mutilated body.
More believability issues: 1. The first time a common surname (Smith) comes up, Stacey immediately knows exactly who the man is. Including his first name and his occupation. 2. A victim’s throat is brutally cut, creating a MASSIVE blood spill on the bricks, the floor, the victim’s body and clothing. The forensics team, including an experienced CSI, checks the basement but doesn’t find the body behind a wood pile. How’d they not smell that much blood? Plus, why is a wood-burning stove in the unfinished basement? 3. Major transplant surgeries are being performed somewhere. In a secret operatory-lab? As in “The Blacklist” TV shows? With shadow staff? Equipment? Meds? Nurses? Anesthesiologist? What about post-op care?
I’m amongst a minority of reviewers, probably because I read for the mystery and the FBI procedural. If you’re a Heather Graham fan, please read my review with a shaker of salt.
This was another spooky ride,from Heather. Beware it is on the gory side. A seasoned agent gets partnered with a rookie, but she has vivid dream talents, that will go well with his talent, and Adam picked her, so he,agrees. The serial killer is playing at Jack the Ripper sensation. It has,a long history, where no one was officially caught, and the prey were butchered for organs, and they were prostitutes. The book starts back when the rookie first began having dreams, that were so vivid it brought in the Kewe of Hunters unit to investigate. She went on as years passed to help police, and to save, or find kidnapped victims. She majored in what was needed to get into the FB I special unit with almost perfection . Her first case would find her investigating a murder where the young woman was almost a copy of the Ripper. The main difference was she was killed someplace else, and all her vital organs were gone. She dreams of the killer in a hazy room with a sharp blade, and the victim knows he is coming. More victims show up, and so does the violence of her dreams. Her grouchy partner goes to protective, then infatuated. The book was well written, and as I walked the dog, in the yard after dark, with a flashlight, I admit to being jumpy. It had many twists, and turns,and another set of agents help out. The list of possible suspects increase, and they find themselves splitting up. That is never a good choice. It had an awesome ending,that it deserved. I gave it 5 stars.. I figured who the killer probably was, but it was spine tingling till the end.. These books usually have a psychic agent, or agents involved, which adds a gothic element for me..
This book seemed like it was written in less than a week. There were grammatical errors quite often. The writing was not smooth and I often had to reread paragraphs to understand what the writer was trying to say. The main characters fell in love out of nowhere and there wasn’t any flirting before it happened. The reason for the murders was given away very early in the book leaving very little mystery to keep the reader engaged. Not intending to be rude, but this is actually the most disappointing book I’ve ever read.
Dreaming Death is book #32 in the Krewe of Hunters series. In this book we meet Stacey Hanson as a child. She keeps having nightmares of her family in danger. She's sent to a therapist who listens to her talk about what she is experiencing rather than dismissing her outright. The therapist happens to be friends with Adam Harrison. The danger to her family is stopped. Years later she calls on Harrison again when the local police won't listen concerning another dangerous situation. More death is prevented. Stacey knows at this point that she wants to go to school and eventually join the Krewe of Hunters.
Years later, Stacey has completed her FBI training and had just joined the Krewe. A serial killer is on the loose in DC. The media dubbed him the Yankee Ripper. Stacey is teamed up with Special Agent Keenan Wallace. At first Keenan is not thrilled about being partnered with a rookie on this case. They do end up making a great team though. Her dreams give them clues and of course there are a few ghosts to help them out along the way.
Heather Graham keeps doing an amazing job with this series. She even makes learning historical facts interesting. I look forward to many more books in the future.
I received an DRC copy in exchange for an honest review.
Dreaming of Death by Heather Graham is the thirty-second novel in this fantastic series! I loved every moment of this dark, suspenseful, yet emotional thrill ride. Heather Graham created a series that grabbed my full-attention and hooked me. I was inside and I never want out of this series. the characters are varied making so realistic. The police/FBI procedures are as real as you can get. I can only imagine the research that went into that. The paranormal parts are well-done as well. There's also at least two victims from serial killers that stayed around to help the Krewe of Hunters. The Krewe of Hunters is a specialized unit in the FBI who have a special gift that helped the team solve crimes. Their special gifts involve seeing and hearing the dead. The ghosts add some humor and are a must in helping more what would like like a tough closed case move forward. Each member comes from a different background. I love the humor, romance, and suspense in this book as with the others. The good thing about this novel and the previous ones is that one doesn't need to read them in order to be able to connect and enjoy the tale. Once more, Heather Graham has created an unforgettable journey.
A young girl has strange nightmares that end up true. At first, they were small dreams about weird things and then escalated to nightmarish ones. Her one nightmarish dream involved someone killing her parents. Her parents finally call in for help and the Krewe steps in...from there they prevent murders from happening. It also encourages the girl to go into the FBI academy to work with the Krewe. Now, as a young woman, she is an official member of their team. Stacey is assigned to work with Keenan another member of the Krewe. Together, they find out clues and work on a multiple serial killer spree case. Dark and intense, Dreaming of Death is a must read for all.
As a child (age 12) Stacey Hanson had a recurring dream (more detail each time) that someone was going to kill her parents. Her father was an investigator of a crime that the police couldn’t solve. The FBI helped save her parents and put the criminal behind bars forever. Her parents were so concerned about Stacey’s dreams, they took her to a therapist who had her talk to a man who believed her dream. He was also a recruiter for a unique group of FBI agents with paranormal skills.
As a newly minted FBI agent, Stacey is assigned to an experienced agent and to a very high-profile case. It was one of her dreams that led to the discovery of the latest body. Her instincts led her to a very different interpretation of the killings.
Suspense, romance, mystery, and brave men and women, mark this series. Recommended.
Readalikes: Jayne Ann Krentz – The Vanishing; Cherry Adair’s Men of T-FLAC Edge trilogy; Shiloh Walker’s FBI psychics; Lucy Banks’ Dr Ribero's Agency of the Supernatural; Karen Robards – The Last Victim; Tess Diamond – Such a Pretty Girl; Julie Garwood – Sweet Talk; Nora Roberts – Sacred Sins; Kay Hooper – Blood Dreams.
Pace: Fast-paced Characters: Likeable; Smart; Collaborative Storyline: Character-driven; intricately plotted Writing style: Engaging Tone: Steamy; Suspenseful Frame: Washington D.C.; Contemporary Theme: Enemies to lovers; Rookie on the beat; Workplace romance
I enjoyed this entry in the series. I like seeing characters from past books. I love the community of characters that the author created. One element I enjoyed in this book is that Adam Harrison met the main female character when she was a child. Stacey Hansen has dreams of death. It started when she was 12 and she ended up saving her father's life. Since that time she has wanted to be an FBI agent and use her talents to save people and get justice. In her first case with the Krewe of Hunters, she is assigned to partner Keenan Wallace. They have a rocky start and I love that Stacey stood up for herself. I love her confidence and Keenan's ability to accept her. The case they are working on if horrible and has Washington DC in an uproar to get it solved. There is a correlation to the Jack the Ripper case. The story was fast-paced and well-done. There were a couple of editing errors which slowed me down while reading (a characters name changed - first letter only which confused me).
I find these books interesting while they last but fairly forgettable afterwards. The H/h are generally inter-changeable from one book to the next. Frankly, except for Jackson, Angela and Adam Harrison, I find it hard to remember the individual couples.
These days pretty much all the Krewe members can see dead people so that astonishing talent is not much of a surprise anymore. Some do have other psychic talents giving them that extra advantage in solving cases and they do pop back up now and then to help out or get mentioned in passing. But with so many couples now it's just too hard to keep track of them all.
Personally, I would have preferred if the series had just a limited set of ongoing couples that span the books. That way we would have seen more relationship and character development over the series, something not possible with a new set of H/h in every book. Nevertheless, I am still a fan of this series, especially with those tidbits of history thrown in every now and then.
This was a surprisingly fun read for me. I may have read a book or two from this series in the past, it seemed a little familiar -- or maybe reminded me of another author who writes about some 'special' agents (I think maybe her name is Hooper?) --
I will look for the Krewe series. I guess the books must each introduce new members of the Krewe and some of the names that I never heard of were probably familiar to readers of the entire series who knew all of the backstories, etc... just assuming that is the case here.
I liked this young Stacey character, and Agent Wallace -- the collateral characters were also interesting. The plot was a bit complicated, or convoluted, but it made the past 24 hours of the Covid era pass by in an absorbed blur. A fine distraction indeed.
And Heather Graham sounds like a pretty amazing human per the brief bio I was interested enough to read -- that's a lot of books for a mother of five to have written...
While I do enjoy this series for the most part, I do have to be honest and say that sometimes our leads are just really freaking dumb. There’s one point in the book where our main pair are talking to a ghost who states that he heard the killers talking and it was a man and a woman. A few scenes later, both leads are shocked to find out that other ghostly evidence again suggests that one of the dead peeps was killed by a woman while the other were killed by a man. And they literally hum and hah over it. At another point, Stacey is shocked over the idea that a “man who swore an oath to save people” (i.e. a doctor) might be involved in organ harvesting when she was the one who suggested organ harvesting as a theory. Dumb dumb for real. I think the major issue here is that Graham still feels like a new author despite her quite large catalog. Everything just feels slightly off, like it still needs to be edited slightly better
Stacey Hanson has had prophetic dreams since she was a child. After receiving help from Adam twice in her life, she was determined to join the Krewe of Hunters. Years later there's a serial killer on the loose in Washington DC and the surrounding area and this is Stacey's first case. Keenan Wallace is not happy to be partnered with a rookie at first but he soon learns just how capable Stacey is.
I love the Krewe of Hunters series and this book is no exception. Well-written with wonderful characters, this book's full of action and intrigue. You'll be caught up from the beginning and pulled into the story. The book's full of twists and turns that'll keep you guessing. I'm eager for the next book and highly recommend this one. I do suggest that you read the series in order if possible. If you can't read the entire series, be sure to read the individual trilogies and quartets in order.
People with psychic ability are quite often shoved to the side as crazies. It is no surprise when dreamers who see the future are thought of as either making up stories or insane. Luckily for Stacey Hanson, early in her childhood, Adam Harrison finds her and stays in touch with her.
A pivot moment in time for Stacey was Adam's faith and belief in her. This drove her to want to help others and solve murder cases. Stacey is a likeable character with strong work ethics and unwavering determination. She is a shiny new FBI and already assigned to a case. Her partner is none other than Keenan Wallace. They have a brief shared history together. Except, Stacey is no longer a little girl.
To read the rest of my review, click on the image below to see it on my website.
Very hard to decide on this one. I thought I had found a new series when I picked up this book. It has quite a few of the things I like - FBI thriller, paranormal, romance & a good mystery. I have to say, however, that I was disappointed. I kept thinking this was the author’s first book and couldn’t believe it was the 32nd in this series. For a very smart rookie, Stacey sure asked rather silly questions and lacked any type of confidence. Some of the conversations were stilted. Sizzling chemistry between the characters? No. Drama & energy? No. I read some other reviews and from what I understand 3 books come out every year. To me, that explained the lack of depth in the characters and story. While I liked it enough to finish, I’m not sure I want to read the first 2 books in the series that I have requested from the public library. Great idea but poor execution.
Stacy Hanson is a rookie at the FBI. She has graduated and is now assigned to a case. Her new partner is going to be Keenan Wallace.
She dreams about murders or someone being murdered. She goes to a site and meets Keenan. Keenan is not happy to have to partner with a rookie. He soon learns that Stacy knows what she is doing.
They work together to find out who is committing these murders to harvest organs. They work with other members of the Krew of Hunters.
I like the characters and the story plot. At first, I was not sure about this series of books but I have read three now and I am loving each one.
Stacy and Keenan get close and eventually find that love that is for them alone.
It’s been awhile since I’ve read the Krewe series. I remember each novel introducing two new agents to the mix. But previous agents were mentioned, most I'm having trouble remembering. It took some memory digging to remember Adam Harrison, Jackson, Angela and even Will; but others have stayed locked in my readers memory box.
The medical examiner and investigators continued to say “unknown female” for the body found in the basement. But the secretary, Tonia, identified her as Lindsey. I was a bit confused on this disconnection. Maybe they were waiting for confirmation from DNA, prints or dental records?
Not an edge on your seat read as I was expecting. I also felt some disconnect of information throughout the novel; maybe that was due to the amount of knowledge being delivered.
Stacey has dealt with nightmares since childhood. A therapist, recognizing something special, calls in Adam Harrison ... who helps stop events from one of her nightmares with the help of Jackson and a rookie agent. Years later, Stacey has worked hard to become an FBI agent, and was immediately assigned to the Krewe.
Keenan ... that long ago rookie ... has been reluctantly paired with Stacey, and is a bit annoyed to have to deal with a rookie in this high-profile case. Never mind, Stacy's dreams got them an in on the case.
This case has Jack The Ripper influences, with a killing for organs driving the killings. Stacey is the one that connects those dots, as a case her father worked on in the past keeps nagging at her.
Stacy Hanson has strange dreams and sometimes they come true. She works hard to become an FBI agent and get assigned to the Krewe of Hunters. As a rookie, she is partnered with Special Agent Keenan Wallace. Their first job is to find and stop a serial killer stalking women in Washington, DC. I really enjoy the Krewe of Hunters series. There is a formula to these books, but I don't mind. The characters are interesting, I love the idea of "esp" powers, I love the romance between the main characters. I look for books in this series when I just want to sit down and read something entertaining for a while (usually 4 hours or so!). I have been reading Heather Graham for a long time and had the privilege of meeting her at a book convention. I'm so glad she's still writing.
This could have easily been a four or five star read for me but there were so many errors, typos, and continuity issues.
For example, one of the victims names switched multiple times from Jess to Tess back to Jess. Another example, they identified a victim early on, then halfway through the book she was unnamed, then they started calling her by her name again without explanation.
However, I absolutely adored Stacey and Keenan. One of my complaints recently in reading the Krewe books, is that the couples hardly spend any time together but then they are suddenly, magically in love. This book wasn't like that. Stacey and Keenan spend almost every minute together getting to know one another and they just clicked for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Stacy Hanson started having abnormal dreams when she was a child and those dreams saved her Dad's life and a friend's life, thanks to help from Adam Harrison. Stacy grows up and becomes an FBI agent and as you guessed it she is in the Krewe's Unit.
Her first case out of FBI training is in large part because of her dreams. She is teamed up with a very unhappy with having a rookie partner, Keenan Williams. After a rocky start, the pair seem to jell together really well. The case starts as if they are trying to find a Jack the Ripper copycat killer, then turns out to be much deeper.
I won't give any more away but will say the love story in this one takes time to develop and the killer or killers are very good maybe even good enough to escape the Krewe.
Krewe of Hunters gets another member yet again. Dreaming death sligthly deviates from the usual " I see ghosts and they help solve crimes" narrative that is dominating this series somewhat. You don't see me complaining, I'm on the 32nd book after all. So this one was interestingly refreshing. Ghosts were still present of course, the real gift was in the dreaming thou. I don't think I spoil anything here saying it, it's the name of the book too. Anyway, the plot was a bit more gruesome than some previous books. And it was back to Jack the Ripper with a mix of politics and even illegal human organs trade. There you go, read at your own risk. I read this around Halloween, fitting I suppose.
I enjoy this series, and the murder mystery plot of this story is interesting and twisty. The romance story line is predictable. Beautiful new Krewe member paired with seasoned hunk Krewe member. They learn to work together to solve the crime and fall in love and live happily ever after. The benefit of the supernatural skills is fairly well balanced with traditional police work which is nice, although in the end, the ghosts are indispensable in helping the hero save his heroine. I guess one reason its fiction is that the characters can work long hours and eat unhealthy food yet still maintain their physical prowess.
This is a very suspenseful book. However, the author threw everything into it including the kitchen sink: Mystery, romance and the supernatural as the detectives both regularly communicate with spirits that have passed over. While I liked the main plot I found the supernatural aspect too heavy handed. The novel start with prophetic dreams and ends with actual conversations between the detectives and spirits. I found the main characters believable and interesting. The development of the relationship between them was nicely done. I found myself cheering on these two in their attempts to stop a horrible crime from occuring. It's a good even though not great book and is very entertaining.