This story sees the return of Rebecca Angell, now promoted to Detective in Juniper Police Department, Oregon. It is now six years on from the first story, M For Murder, where she was instrumental in catching the notorious Alphabet Killer and the story was left on a will they/won't they cliff-hanger between Angell and FBI agent Joel Hickok. After a bring fling it was "won't they", and recently Angell has been in a relationship with kind, dull and reliable Alan, with her mother desperately dropping hints about marriage. Another old face is Vic Boaz, still in uniform and still a little work shy but with a much better attitude since he received some big shocks in the first book. For the last few years Angell has been partnered with Detective Jake Sullivan who joined the department from down south and has a bit of a troubled past. The story begins with the double murder of two students from the local college. A paperback book has been left in their car by the killer to show police where he took his inspiration from. The author and part-time waitress, Amy Gallaty, lives locally and has written a total of six books in the same genre before moving along to something a little more on the supernatural side. The change of style has in turn upset her most ardent fan who has become quite threatening of late. Coincidence? Since one of the victims is related to a Senator, it's not long before the FBI wade in, and Joel Hickok is suddenly back in Angell's life, dragging a rookie agent with him. Before they can all make much progress in the murders, another body is found with another book, and it looks like Amy has a stalker. But could the stalker be the clever psychopath who is copying Amy's crime scenes or could it be simply her past coming back to haunt her? As the detectives investigate and wonder how far Amy is to blame for the deaths, the bodies start to pile up and it looks like they all have a connection to the writer in some way. There's a great array of suspects in the case they dub "The Storybook Killer" and links to a past case throw up even more leads as the police race to save everyone involved. The plot was clever and intriguing, although there were a few imagination-stretching coincidences, and was well written. The story twists and hurtles at breathtaking speed to an ending where the killing plan unravels and everything is explained in all its gory glory. The author has really built on the foundations laid in book one, and the characters have become much more rounded and likeable here. I hope there will be more to come in this series. 4.5*