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Detective Jo Fournier #1
The Dancing Girls
When victims are found in dancing poses, Detective Jo Fournier immediately sees the pattern, but how can a serial killer get to victims all over the country?
When loving wife Jeanine Hammond is found dead in a small leafy town in Massachusetts, newly promoted Detective Jo Fournier is shocked to her core. Why leave her body posed like a ballerina? Why steal her wedding band and nothing else? Hungry for answers, Jo questions Jeanine's husband, but the heart-breaking pain written on his face threatens to tear open Jo's old wounds. It's the same pain she felt when her boyfriend was cruelly shot dead by a gang in their hometown of New Orleans. She couldn't get justice for him, but she's determined to get justice for Jeanine's devastated family.
But before Jo can get answers, another woman is found, wedding ring stolen, body posed in the same ritualistic way.
Digging through old files, Jo makes a terrifying link to a series of cold cases. She knows a serial killer is on the loose, but nobody will listen to the truth—not her bosses, nor the FBI. Still, Jo won't let her superiors keep her from stopping the murderer in his tracks, even if it means the end of her career.
Just as she is beginning to lose hope, she finds messages on the victims' computers that feel like the crucial missing link. But she knows the murderer is moments away from selecting his next victim. Will she be able to take down the most twisted killer of her career before another innocent life is lost?
When loving wife Jeanine Hammond is found dead in a small leafy town in Massachusetts, newly promoted Detective Jo Fournier is shocked to her core. Why leave her body posed like a ballerina? Why steal her wedding band and nothing else? Hungry for answers, Jo questions Jeanine's husband, but the heart-breaking pain written on his face threatens to tear open Jo's old wounds. It's the same pain she felt when her boyfriend was cruelly shot dead by a gang in their hometown of New Orleans. She couldn't get justice for him, but she's determined to get justice for Jeanine's devastated family.
But before Jo can get answers, another woman is found, wedding ring stolen, body posed in the same ritualistic way.
Digging through old files, Jo makes a terrifying link to a series of cold cases. She knows a serial killer is on the loose, but nobody will listen to the truth—not her bosses, nor the FBI. Still, Jo won't let her superiors keep her from stopping the murderer in his tracks, even if it means the end of her career.
Just as she is beginning to lose hope, she finds messages on the victims' computers that feel like the crucial missing link. But she knows the murderer is moments away from selecting his next victim. Will she be able to take down the most twisted killer of her career before another innocent life is lost?
320 pages, Paperback
First published May 15, 2019
11321 people are currently reading
15462 people want to read
About the author
M.M. Chouinard
13 books447 followersM.M. Chouinard is the USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Amazon Charts bestselling author behind The Vacation, a standalone psychological thriller, and the Detective Jo Fournier series, featuring The Dancing Girls, Taken to the Grave, Her Daughter's Cry, and The Other Mothers. She loves animals, coffee, amateur genealogy, and anything to do with Halloween or the zombie apocalypse.
M.M. Chouinard's first fiction story was published in her local paper when she was eight, and she fell in love with Agatha Christie novels not long after. While pursuing a Ph.D in psychology and helping to found the first U.S. research university of the new millenium, the stories kept rattling around inside her skull, demanding to come out. For sanity's sake, she released them.
M.M. Chouinard's first fiction story was published in her local paper when she was eight, and she fell in love with Agatha Christie novels not long after. While pursuing a Ph.D in psychology and helping to found the first U.S. research university of the new millenium, the stories kept rattling around inside her skull, demanding to come out. For sanity's sake, she released them.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,252 reviews
May 27, 2019
In case I haven't said it, I really love thrillers and, to be completely honest, this book too. It is very interesting, very well put together and it has that certain psychological suspense you'd like to receive from every single thriller you read if you are a fan of the genre.
October 30, 2019
There were zero redeemable qualities about this book. Every character was unlikable in some aspect and the "villain" and his story were just gross. The author clearly just picked the most disturbing problems she could think of in an attempt to write a thriller. I felt obligated to finish it but the ending somehow made the book even worse, which I truly didn't think was possible.
May 29, 2019
The Dancing Girls by M M Chouinard is the first book to feature Detective Jo Fournier. The story is told from multiple points of views, including the Detective, the killer and the soon to be victims. It was a different book in that we hear things from all the main player. I hope the next book we learn more about Jo as I feel there wasn't too much about her this time around. She seems to be interesting character but I am sure there is so much more to her. I loved the twist at the end of this one - definitely a unique way to go. Looking forward to more in this series.
The body of Jeanine Hammond is found in a hotel room. She has been strangled, her body positioned like a ballerina and her wedding ring is missing. CCTV shows her arriving at the hotel with a man who has managed to stay hidden. Who would want her dead? Her friends and family laugh at the idea that she was having an affair. 5 months pass and Jo has still not cracked the case. Another woman is murdered and left in a similar position. The similarities are obvious to Jo but nobody wants to admit that they may be looking at a serial killer. Can they stop this killer before he strikes again?
Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.
The body of Jeanine Hammond is found in a hotel room. She has been strangled, her body positioned like a ballerina and her wedding ring is missing. CCTV shows her arriving at the hotel with a man who has managed to stay hidden. Who would want her dead? Her friends and family laugh at the idea that she was having an affair. 5 months pass and Jo has still not cracked the case. Another woman is murdered and left in a similar position. The similarities are obvious to Jo but nobody wants to admit that they may be looking at a serial killer. Can they stop this killer before he strikes again?
Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.
December 29, 2023
the girls were not dancing :0
January 2, 2020
This book wasn’t good at all! I couldn’t get past all the “gaming” talk. I gave up on it halfway through, and I never do that.
May 11, 2019
In Oakhurst, Massachusetts, a woman is found strangled in her hotel room. Detective Jo Fournier is called to the scene as lead on the case. Nothing was taken from the victim, no sign of sexual assault. The only thing missing was the victim’s wedding ring. Jo discovers the victim’s name is Jeanine Hammond, a married, middle-aged woman in town for a work conference. She’s seen entering her hotel room with a man in a fedora, but unfortunately, the security cameras don’t capture his face.
With not a lot of physical evidence to go off of, Jo can’t seem to solve the case. After months pass, it seems her department has all but given up. When Jo is in New Orleans, Louisiana visiting family, she learns of another murder in the local paper. Another woman—named Emily Carson—strangled in her hotel room. Missing wedding ring, also there for a work conference. And low and behold, another faceless man in a fedora, seen on security footage.
Just when Jo thinks her case has gone cold back in Massachusetts, she discovers that they have been dealing with a serial killer all along. And she’s determined to get to the bottom of the case before their serial killer has the chance to strike again...
The Dancing Girls is the first installment in M.M. Chouinard’s premiere crime series, Detective Jo Fournier. The plot line centers around women being murdered by a serial killer and the murders being solved by a female detective. While this arrangement is heavily frequented by crime writers, Chouinard brought something different to the table. The story is told through the perspectives of both Jo Fournier and each victim. But in addition, we get to see the perspective of our serial killer. We learn about why he kills, his childhood and how he goes about killing each woman. It’s fascinating and it drew me more into the storyline. And the twist at the end was perfectly timed and completely unexpected. I’d highly recommend this book to fans of detective/crime series. Can’t wait to see what Chouinard has in store for book two! 4/5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and M.M. Chouinard for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
With not a lot of physical evidence to go off of, Jo can’t seem to solve the case. After months pass, it seems her department has all but given up. When Jo is in New Orleans, Louisiana visiting family, she learns of another murder in the local paper. Another woman—named Emily Carson—strangled in her hotel room. Missing wedding ring, also there for a work conference. And low and behold, another faceless man in a fedora, seen on security footage.
Just when Jo thinks her case has gone cold back in Massachusetts, she discovers that they have been dealing with a serial killer all along. And she’s determined to get to the bottom of the case before their serial killer has the chance to strike again...
The Dancing Girls is the first installment in M.M. Chouinard’s premiere crime series, Detective Jo Fournier. The plot line centers around women being murdered by a serial killer and the murders being solved by a female detective. While this arrangement is heavily frequented by crime writers, Chouinard brought something different to the table. The story is told through the perspectives of both Jo Fournier and each victim. But in addition, we get to see the perspective of our serial killer. We learn about why he kills, his childhood and how he goes about killing each woman. It’s fascinating and it drew me more into the storyline. And the twist at the end was perfectly timed and completely unexpected. I’d highly recommend this book to fans of detective/crime series. Can’t wait to see what Chouinard has in store for book two! 4/5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and M.M. Chouinard for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
October 30, 2020
Hmm. I’m glad so many enjoyed this book, but I mostly just enjoyed it being something easy to get through. I didn’t find it suspenseful, because... well, there isn’t any suspense? Or am I numb? Lol. You know who the killer is the whole time, and it was tiring for me to read detectives cover all their basis about a crime you already know everything about.
I also felt as thought 99% of these characters were stereotypes of their character. The psychopath is typical with what you’d expect of their upbringing, the detective is a workaholic female detective with a judgmental mother and strained romantic relationships, the victims are exactly what you’d expect... oh! And a fair amount of the book is set inside the game World of Warcraft.
I always feel guilty leaving negative reviews, and the author is clearly a talented writer who did their research. I also can appreciate how the plot was organized. I’m thinking maybe I just don’t enjoy this genre of thriller (detective work). But again, this wasn’t very suspenseful for me.
ALSO: Trigger warning for sexual violence. Several disturbing scenes containing child sexual violence and abuse.
I also felt as thought 99% of these characters were stereotypes of their character. The psychopath is typical with what you’d expect of their upbringing, the detective is a workaholic female detective with a judgmental mother and strained romantic relationships, the victims are exactly what you’d expect... oh! And a fair amount of the book is set inside the game World of Warcraft.
I always feel guilty leaving negative reviews, and the author is clearly a talented writer who did their research. I also can appreciate how the plot was organized. I’m thinking maybe I just don’t enjoy this genre of thriller (detective work). But again, this wasn’t very suspenseful for me.
ALSO: Trigger warning for sexual violence. Several disturbing scenes containing child sexual violence and abuse.
June 22, 2019
This storyline follows Lieutenant Jo Fournier as she tracks a killer preying on discontented married women. Jo has only been a lieutenant a short while and misses the everyday out on the street detective work that she really loves doing. When she has the opportunity to be assigned to this case, Jo puts everything she has into finding this killer who she believes may be a serial killer but unfortunately no-one else seems to agree with her opinions.
This book was easy to read but it was not an edge of your seat thriller for me. I felt disconnected to Jo and I didn't think she possessed the leadership qualities and actions that a police lieutenant would have. The story just didn't pull any emotion from me and most.of the characters seemed very shallow. If a reader enjoys online gaming, there is plenty to wrap you head around and the story had a good twist at the end.
I want to thank the publisher Bookouture and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book!
I have given a rating of 2 1/2 🌟🌟⭐ serial stars!!
This book was easy to read but it was not an edge of your seat thriller for me. I felt disconnected to Jo and I didn't think she possessed the leadership qualities and actions that a police lieutenant would have. The story just didn't pull any emotion from me and most.of the characters seemed very shallow. If a reader enjoys online gaming, there is plenty to wrap you head around and the story had a good twist at the end.
I want to thank the publisher Bookouture and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book!
I have given a rating of 2 1/2 🌟🌟⭐ serial stars!!
June 22, 2019
This storyline follows Lieutenant Jo Fournier as she tracks a killer preying on discontented married women. Jo has only been a lieutenant a short while and misses the everyday out on the street detective work that she really loves doing. When she has the opportunity to be assigned to this case, Jo puts everything she has into finding this killer who she believes may be a serial killer but unfortunately no-one else seems to agree with her opinions.
This book was easy to read but it was not an edge of your seat thriller for me. I felt disconnected to Jo and I didn't think she possessed the leadership qualities and actions that a police lieutenant would have. The story just didn't pull any emotion from me and most of the characters seemed very shallow. If a reader enjoys online gaming, there is plenty to wrap you head around and the story had a good twist at the end.
I want to thank the publisher Bookouture and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book!
I have given a rating of 2 1/2 🌟🌟⭐ serial stars!!
This book was easy to read but it was not an edge of your seat thriller for me. I felt disconnected to Jo and I didn't think she possessed the leadership qualities and actions that a police lieutenant would have. The story just didn't pull any emotion from me and most of the characters seemed very shallow. If a reader enjoys online gaming, there is plenty to wrap you head around and the story had a good twist at the end.
I want to thank the publisher Bookouture and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book!
I have given a rating of 2 1/2 🌟🌟⭐ serial stars!!
December 5, 2022
3.5 stars
June 1, 2019
This story is about a serial killer who finds his targets through a game on the internet, for me that was my first hurdle as I know nothing of such games and even less of the jargon, Jo is the police detective on the case of the killings, it was for me boring and like a game of tennis back and forth from Martin and Jo, jo 1 Martin 0, and so on, no real twists or turns until near the end when things took a different turn, and then left me thinking there would be a sequel, needless to say I won't be reading it. I gave this two stars as finally near the end I missed seeing it coming otherwise I wouldn't bothered to rate it at all.
May 12, 2021
Dark, devious, and sinister!
The Dancing Girls is a crafty, compelling police procedural that introduces you to Detective Jo Fournier, a complex, driven, young woman who finds herself on the hunt for a murderer with a penchant for married women who enjoy spending their spare time immersed in the World of Warcraft and are in need of a little extra attention.
The writing is complex and intense. The characters are a mix of ruthless, cunning, and vulnerable. And the plot told from multiple perspectives is a suspenseful tale full of twists, turns, manipulation, duplicity, intrigue, violence, and murder.
Overall, The Dancing Girls is a creepy, pacey, promising first novel in this new series by Chouinard that highlights just how exposed the internet truly makes us and how easy and quickly it is for those with nefarious tendencies to find and target unsuspecting victims.
Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Dancing Girls is a crafty, compelling police procedural that introduces you to Detective Jo Fournier, a complex, driven, young woman who finds herself on the hunt for a murderer with a penchant for married women who enjoy spending their spare time immersed in the World of Warcraft and are in need of a little extra attention.
The writing is complex and intense. The characters are a mix of ruthless, cunning, and vulnerable. And the plot told from multiple perspectives is a suspenseful tale full of twists, turns, manipulation, duplicity, intrigue, violence, and murder.
Overall, The Dancing Girls is a creepy, pacey, promising first novel in this new series by Chouinard that highlights just how exposed the internet truly makes us and how easy and quickly it is for those with nefarious tendencies to find and target unsuspecting victims.
Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
May 16, 2019
The Dancing Girls is the first in the Jo Fournier series and newly appointed Lieutenant Jo has a twisted and disturbing case to solve. It explores the destruction caused by the grooming of those with vulnerabilities and the criminals who target this group specifically - a timely and very important topic. It won't be for everyone as it is quite an uncomfortable read in parts but getting behind Jo in her quest to bring sick, evil minds to justice and ensure those convicted will never be allowed to have access to the vulnerable again is easy to do. As more bodies start to drop around her Jo begins her fight to get to the truth no matter the cost.
This is a well written, pacy thriller with a whole series of surprising twists and turns to keep the reader enthralled. Chouinard has structured the story in such an intriguing way—each victim has a section dedicated to them. I always enjoy it when we get to see matters from the nefarious killers perspective and it certainly didn't disappoint. I also loved the techno-thriller aspect of it—using the game World of Warcraft to lure and groom victims is a stroke of genius and undoubtedly occurs in real life, too. If anything this book serves as a reminder that you simply cannot trust that people online are pure in thought and intent. Many thanks to Bookouture for an ARC.
This is a well written, pacy thriller with a whole series of surprising twists and turns to keep the reader enthralled. Chouinard has structured the story in such an intriguing way—each victim has a section dedicated to them. I always enjoy it when we get to see matters from the nefarious killers perspective and it certainly didn't disappoint. I also loved the techno-thriller aspect of it—using the game World of Warcraft to lure and groom victims is a stroke of genius and undoubtedly occurs in real life, too. If anything this book serves as a reminder that you simply cannot trust that people online are pure in thought and intent. Many thanks to Bookouture for an ARC.
April 27, 2021
3.25 stars
Good, but not great, mystery (by no means a "thriller") that gets bogged down a bit with all the "gaming" talk.
Good, but not great, mystery (by no means a "thriller") that gets bogged down a bit with all the "gaming" talk.
June 23, 2023
This can best be described as dark, devious, and sinister. It's a crafty, compelling police procedural where we are introduced you Detective Jo Fournier, a complex, driven, young woman who is on the hunt for a murderer with a penchant for married women who enjoy spending their spare time immersed in the World of Warcraft, and are in need of a little extra attention. The writing is and intense and the characters are a mix of ruthless, cunning, and vulnerable. The plot is told from multiple perspectives, giving the already suspenseful tale lots of twists, turns, manipulation, duplicity, intrigue, violence, and of course...murder. Overall, I would have to say that it's a creepy, very promising first novel in this, a new series, by this author. It highlights just how exposed the internet has truly made us and how easy and quickly it is for those with nefarious tendencies to find and target their unsuspecting victims.
August 17, 2020
"The man adjusted his fedora as he collapsed into the hotel room.
at that moment I realized I made the worse Goodwill purchase.
This was probably one of the worst books I've read in a long time. It felt like M.M Chouinard was trying to so hard to be James Patterson and for someone who isn't even a fan of Patterson, this makes it even worse.
The plot is something straight out of a late 2000's crime show episode like Bones, CSI, or Law and Order talking about the big bad world of internet gaming and Incels in an attempt to warn about how scary the internet is. Did I mention this came out in 2019? While there is certainly danger on the internet this was a bit much and I can only suspend my disbelief so much. You're telling me some married women talk to a guy in WoW for a few months and there ready to go bone?
The reason I make the comparison to Patterson is the fact that we are constantly seeing the killer's point of view but it gets to the point that the Killer is more the main character than the Detective. It's just multiple chapters reading about how this dude was sexually abused by his mom and jacking off to the thought of killing or talking to girls in WoW (and if I have to read one more chatroom log where he uses that same pickup line I might scream). I thought the scene in James Patterson's 2nd Chance where the killer masturbates to pictures of lynched black people was bad but that was one scene this is multiple chapters.
Since we spend so much time with the killer Detective Jo feels underdeveloped in her own book. Add on the fact that any moments meant to develop Jo happen outside of this case and feel completely random. The only other way they try to develop Jo is by having to go through the troubles of being a "working woman in a men's society" which everyone and their mother like to write but I've never seen a woman botch that narrative harder than this.
At about 200 pages the repetition on the Chapters truly showed though. Jo complains about having nothing, Martin (the Killer) jerks it and then talks to girls in WoW or thinks about his mom rinse and repeat until Diana came into the picture just to give us an unsatisfactory twist ending that did not compel me enough even try book 2 because I'm sure it'll just be the same as this but girl edition.
this going back to Goodwill it can be someone else problem.
oh and the who make them look like ballerinas are never really explained so just setting you up for that disappointment.
at that moment I realized I made the worse Goodwill purchase.
This was probably one of the worst books I've read in a long time. It felt like M.M Chouinard was trying to so hard to be James Patterson and for someone who isn't even a fan of Patterson, this makes it even worse.
The plot is something straight out of a late 2000's crime show episode like Bones, CSI, or Law and Order talking about the big bad world of internet gaming and Incels in an attempt to warn about how scary the internet is. Did I mention this came out in 2019? While there is certainly danger on the internet this was a bit much and I can only suspend my disbelief so much. You're telling me some married women talk to a guy in WoW for a few months and there ready to go bone?
The reason I make the comparison to Patterson is the fact that we are constantly seeing the killer's point of view but it gets to the point that the Killer is more the main character than the Detective. It's just multiple chapters reading about how this dude was sexually abused by his mom and jacking off to the thought of killing or talking to girls in WoW (and if I have to read one more chatroom log where he uses that same pickup line I might scream). I thought the scene in James Patterson's 2nd Chance where the killer masturbates to pictures of lynched black people was bad but that was one scene this is multiple chapters.
Since we spend so much time with the killer Detective Jo feels underdeveloped in her own book. Add on the fact that any moments meant to develop Jo happen outside of this case and feel completely random. The only other way they try to develop Jo is by having to go through the troubles of being a "working woman in a men's society" which everyone and their mother like to write but I've never seen a woman botch that narrative harder than this.
At about 200 pages the repetition on the Chapters truly showed though. Jo complains about having nothing, Martin (the Killer) jerks it and then talks to girls in WoW or thinks about his mom rinse and repeat until Diana came into the picture just to give us an unsatisfactory twist ending that did not compel me enough even try book 2 because I'm sure it'll just be the same as this but girl edition.
this going back to Goodwill it can be someone else problem.
oh and the who make them look like ballerinas are never really explained so just setting you up for that disappointment.
April 21, 2019
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of The Dancing Girls, the first novel to feature Lieutenant Josette Fournier of the Oakhurst, New England PD.
When the body of Jeanine Hammond is found strangled in a hotel room Jo and her team get the case. Intense investigation gets them nowhere until they find links to other similar cases, not that anybody sees the same links except the team.
I enjoyed The Dancing Girls to a point. It is well conceived and written with just enough reveals to keep the reader interested and a massive, if extremely unlikely, twist at the end. Maybe, to be fair, “extremely unlikely” is overkill but by then I had lost interest so it probably didn’t have the impact it will have on more invested readers.
The novel has an unusual approach in that it pairs the investigative narrative with not only the killer’s backstory but his wooing of his victims, in fact each part of the novel is named after a victim. This does not particularly interest me as I much prefer the emphasis to be on the investigation and in this case it has a secondary role. There is little new or fresh in the killer’s backstory and I quickly lost interest in his scheming. I skipped much of the wooing as it is set within a computer game which I have no knowledge of and less than zero interest in, if that’s possible. I was also uncomfortable with the portrayal of these gullible women. The twist sort of redeems the novel in my eyes as it is so clever.
With all the other things going on it is difficult to get a fix on Jo Fournier. She seems to be smart and dedicated, to the extent that she has nothing else in her life, but isn’t too happy in her promotion to Lieutenant as it takes her away from the front line. I’d be interested to read another novel in the series to see how she develops.
The Dancing Girls is a solid read.
When the body of Jeanine Hammond is found strangled in a hotel room Jo and her team get the case. Intense investigation gets them nowhere until they find links to other similar cases, not that anybody sees the same links except the team.
I enjoyed The Dancing Girls to a point. It is well conceived and written with just enough reveals to keep the reader interested and a massive, if extremely unlikely, twist at the end. Maybe, to be fair, “extremely unlikely” is overkill but by then I had lost interest so it probably didn’t have the impact it will have on more invested readers.
The novel has an unusual approach in that it pairs the investigative narrative with not only the killer’s backstory but his wooing of his victims, in fact each part of the novel is named after a victim. This does not particularly interest me as I much prefer the emphasis to be on the investigation and in this case it has a secondary role. There is little new or fresh in the killer’s backstory and I quickly lost interest in his scheming. I skipped much of the wooing as it is set within a computer game which I have no knowledge of and less than zero interest in, if that’s possible. I was also uncomfortable with the portrayal of these gullible women. The twist sort of redeems the novel in my eyes as it is so clever.
With all the other things going on it is difficult to get a fix on Jo Fournier. She seems to be smart and dedicated, to the extent that she has nothing else in her life, but isn’t too happy in her promotion to Lieutenant as it takes her away from the front line. I’d be interested to read another novel in the series to see how she develops.
The Dancing Girls is a solid read.
May 15, 2019
This is the first book in the Detective Jo Fournier series. There wasn’t a ton of getting to know Jo Fournier in this book. She started off in charge and then realized part of the way into the book she was truly meant to be a detective and go after the criminal element. I didn’t feel like I learned a ton about her in this book but I was intrigued,
The mystery was simple enough. Crazy dude is killing women he met via World of Warcraft through the chats and later through Skype. He liked to make his victims his puppets and play with them until the ultimate kill.
Jo is chasing this monster. We see the story through both Jo’s perspective and the killer’s POV.
When I got to the end of the book I felt gipped. That was it? Where was the resolution for Jo’s chase and search. Suddenly it is all over and the perp is dead. Uh, what? I totally thought this book should have been longer to delve into the gaping cliffhanger than was left at the end.
The book was decent but over too quickly and I didn’t particularly care for the ending. I felt bad for Jo… oh, okay, the hunt is over. Time to go home. No closure there. No closure for me either.
I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.
The mystery was simple enough. Crazy dude is killing women he met via World of Warcraft through the chats and later through Skype. He liked to make his victims his puppets and play with them until the ultimate kill.
Jo is chasing this monster. We see the story through both Jo’s perspective and the killer’s POV.
When I got to the end of the book I felt gipped. That was it? Where was the resolution for Jo’s chase and search. Suddenly it is all over and the perp is dead. Uh, what? I totally thought this book should have been longer to delve into the gaping cliffhanger than was left at the end.
The book was decent but over too quickly and I didn’t particularly care for the ending. I felt bad for Jo… oh, okay, the hunt is over. Time to go home. No closure there. No closure for me either.
I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.
May 20, 2019
"You danced at my command. Ate and drank according to my whims. Rose to a fever pitch of desire because I willed it. And now, finally, you die."
Janine Hammond is found murdered in her hotel room, and the way in which her body is lying on the hotel floor gives it the appearance that she had been dancing. Lieutenant Jo Fournier and her team are called on scene to investigate this mysterious and gruesome murder. There’s no blood or sign of struggle in the hotel room. Apart from Janine Hammond’s missing wedding ring, everything else in the room was in order ruling out a potential robbery. Jo and her team try to track down any leads, but they ultimately end up empty handed. Janine Hammond’s case ends up cold.
Jo is forced to take leave, and she ultimately decides to visit her dad in New Orleans. While she’s there, she gets a call that there’s a crime scene that is an exact match to the cold case of Janine Hammond. Additionally, the security camera revealed the victim walking into the hotel with a man who wore a fedora…finally a clue to link both of the scenes! Jo and her team now realize that they have a serial killer on their hands, and they must race against time in order to prevent him from killing his next victim.
One thing that was really disturbing about this thriller is that you know who the serial killer is the entire time because there are several chapters that are from his POV. To make things worse, you get an intimate insight to not only how he murders his victims but also his process of how he selects them and lures them into his prowess. Unsurprisingly, we also learn that his childhood is chock-full of abuse, which makes you wonder if that’s the reason he turns out the way he does.
What I loved about this story was that from the very beginning, this crime thriller is fast paced and nonstop action. Every time I thought we finally had the information that we needed in order to capture the serial killer, another curve ball was thrown into the mix, which was even more exciting. Oh and that ending?! Yeah, I’ll just leave it at that.
Overall, this is a stunning debut from this author. I can’t wait to see how the adventure continues in the next installment of Lieutenant Jo Fournier.
Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Janine Hammond is found murdered in her hotel room, and the way in which her body is lying on the hotel floor gives it the appearance that she had been dancing. Lieutenant Jo Fournier and her team are called on scene to investigate this mysterious and gruesome murder. There’s no blood or sign of struggle in the hotel room. Apart from Janine Hammond’s missing wedding ring, everything else in the room was in order ruling out a potential robbery. Jo and her team try to track down any leads, but they ultimately end up empty handed. Janine Hammond’s case ends up cold.
Jo is forced to take leave, and she ultimately decides to visit her dad in New Orleans. While she’s there, she gets a call that there’s a crime scene that is an exact match to the cold case of Janine Hammond. Additionally, the security camera revealed the victim walking into the hotel with a man who wore a fedora…finally a clue to link both of the scenes! Jo and her team now realize that they have a serial killer on their hands, and they must race against time in order to prevent him from killing his next victim.
One thing that was really disturbing about this thriller is that you know who the serial killer is the entire time because there are several chapters that are from his POV. To make things worse, you get an intimate insight to not only how he murders his victims but also his process of how he selects them and lures them into his prowess. Unsurprisingly, we also learn that his childhood is chock-full of abuse, which makes you wonder if that’s the reason he turns out the way he does.
What I loved about this story was that from the very beginning, this crime thriller is fast paced and nonstop action. Every time I thought we finally had the information that we needed in order to capture the serial killer, another curve ball was thrown into the mix, which was even more exciting. Oh and that ending?! Yeah, I’ll just leave it at that.
Overall, this is a stunning debut from this author. I can’t wait to see how the adventure continues in the next installment of Lieutenant Jo Fournier.
Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
September 17, 2019
Recently promoted Lieutenant Josette (Jo) Fournier of the Oakhurst County State Police Detective Unit in Massachusetts is keen to get back to what she does best, investigating crimes. But directing a team is her assignment and she longs to sink her teeth into a crime that looks to her as the work of a serial killer.
Janine Hammond was found in a hotel room. She'd been strangled. No signs of any type of assault. Since she was visiting from out of town, the detectives have few clues. The only thing that seems to be missing is her wedding ring. Jo senses that something is off about the whole set-up with the victim in the room. Little does she know that this case is going to become an obsession for her and her team. NO SPOILERS.
What a fun police procedural and crime thriller! I enjoyed the writing even though I couldn't care less about online gaming or WoW. The dialog and character development made me quite interested in learning more about Jo Fournier and I can't wait to see what happens in the follow-up book as this one has a cliffhanger of an ending. And, believe it or not, this actually has a twist that came as a complete surprise. It's not often that happens, so I definitely have to hand it to this author for her deft sleight of hand. The narrative shifts in time and point of view between the characters and the reader gets some insight into the mind and motives of the killer along the way.
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review. I will be looking for #2 in the series.
Janine Hammond was found in a hotel room. She'd been strangled. No signs of any type of assault. Since she was visiting from out of town, the detectives have few clues. The only thing that seems to be missing is her wedding ring. Jo senses that something is off about the whole set-up with the victim in the room. Little does she know that this case is going to become an obsession for her and her team. NO SPOILERS.
What a fun police procedural and crime thriller! I enjoyed the writing even though I couldn't care less about online gaming or WoW. The dialog and character development made me quite interested in learning more about Jo Fournier and I can't wait to see what happens in the follow-up book as this one has a cliffhanger of an ending. And, believe it or not, this actually has a twist that came as a complete surprise. It's not often that happens, so I definitely have to hand it to this author for her deft sleight of hand. The narrative shifts in time and point of view between the characters and the reader gets some insight into the mind and motives of the killer along the way.
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review. I will be looking for #2 in the series.
June 5, 2019
An impressive debut.
A police procedural which demonstrates how hard detectives have it if criminal try to avoid mistakes and murder random strangers.
I was immediately drawn to the lead detective having taken one final promotion is frustrated by the gap that crates and which isolates her from grunt work.
This is a wonderfully simple book but filled with crimes that no-one has the time or resources to solve. Jo leads a team of two in their own time to understand the senseless murder of a young woman in a hotel room. Nothing flags up, alibis check out and suspects fade away.
The psychology behind the killer is easy to follow and his needs less so, but it is evident he is a serial killer where nothing ties the victims together.
I like the contrast between his planing and preparation against the lack of progress with the police investigation. I enjoyed his trial and error in perfecting his method and his sense of power in achieving his brief moment of peace and fulfilment.
While his intellect can not prepare him for when things go wrong, there is great satisfaction in reading the balance of control shift.
His arrogance in believing he is invincible in his method overwhelms him that when he should run he is slow to escape and then as so often happens his attention is elsewhere and he gets run over figuratively in the chase.
All the better for being the first in a series of new detective stories. I’m in and looking forward to learning more about these characters.
A police procedural which demonstrates how hard detectives have it if criminal try to avoid mistakes and murder random strangers.
I was immediately drawn to the lead detective having taken one final promotion is frustrated by the gap that crates and which isolates her from grunt work.
This is a wonderfully simple book but filled with crimes that no-one has the time or resources to solve. Jo leads a team of two in their own time to understand the senseless murder of a young woman in a hotel room. Nothing flags up, alibis check out and suspects fade away.
The psychology behind the killer is easy to follow and his needs less so, but it is evident he is a serial killer where nothing ties the victims together.
I like the contrast between his planing and preparation against the lack of progress with the police investigation. I enjoyed his trial and error in perfecting his method and his sense of power in achieving his brief moment of peace and fulfilment.
While his intellect can not prepare him for when things go wrong, there is great satisfaction in reading the balance of control shift.
His arrogance in believing he is invincible in his method overwhelms him that when he should run he is slow to escape and then as so often happens his attention is elsewhere and he gets run over figuratively in the chase.
All the better for being the first in a series of new detective stories. I’m in and looking forward to learning more about these characters.
April 21, 2023
The Dancing Girls by M.M. Chouinard is the first book in the Detective Jo Fournier series and I just loved it. I was hooked and didn't want to put it down. I loved all the characters.
A body of a woman is found in a hotel room, Detective Jo Fournier and her team are called to investigate. Its a fast paced and well written throughout.
I loved the twist at the end and I look forward to the next book in the series. Just Brilliant!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
A body of a woman is found in a hotel room, Detective Jo Fournier and her team are called to investigate. Its a fast paced and well written throughout.
I loved the twist at the end and I look forward to the next book in the series. Just Brilliant!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
January 6, 2020
Honestly I just didn't care for this book, at all.
Having just finished "The Dutch House" which I loved and still think about, I was hoping for a good take me in quickly thriller.
This book just didn't do it for me - on any level. :(
Having just finished "The Dutch House" which I loved and still think about, I was hoping for a good take me in quickly thriller.
This book just didn't do it for me - on any level. :(
October 27, 2019
Middle of the road.
Nothing special. Sure have no idea where all the rage reviews come from. The "gaming" talk boring. At least it was a cheap book.
Nothing special. Sure have no idea where all the rage reviews come from. The "gaming" talk boring. At least it was a cheap book.
May 18, 2019
Wow squared! This was a gem of a book and a truely wonderful start of a new series.
I loved the way the author gave background about victim and culprit and how you could follow how the muderer’s and victim’s minds worked.
You often see how criminals blame their oh so unlucky youth on every thing they do later on and you might think : ‘Yeah, yeah, bla bla bla’, but when you look back they might not always be wrong. Maybe the police should also punish parents, friends or other members of the family because they are more than once the base for heartbreak and cruelty.
The author surprised me pleasantly with the twist and left me with an OMG feeling.
To me this was a brilliant read and I want more. 5 stars.
Thank you, M.M. Chouinard, Bookouture and Netgalley.
https://bforbookreview.wordpress.com
I loved the way the author gave background about victim and culprit and how you could follow how the muderer’s and victim’s minds worked.
You often see how criminals blame their oh so unlucky youth on every thing they do later on and you might think : ‘Yeah, yeah, bla bla bla’, but when you look back they might not always be wrong. Maybe the police should also punish parents, friends or other members of the family because they are more than once the base for heartbreak and cruelty.
The author surprised me pleasantly with the twist and left me with an OMG feeling.
To me this was a brilliant read and I want more. 5 stars.
Thank you, M.M. Chouinard, Bookouture and Netgalley.
https://bforbookreview.wordpress.com
May 21, 2019
The Dancing Girls by M.M Chouinard is the first book in the Jo Fournier series and I have to say I was completely and thoroughly hooked right from the start.
Jo Fournier is the newly appointed Lieutenant thrust right into the murder of Jeanine Hammond. Found murdered in a hotel room, it is up to Jo to find the killer responsible for Jeanine’s death. But with no clues to go on, finding a murderer seems more like finding a needle in a haystack. As the months go by with no leads, the Hammond murder looks like it about to turn into a cold case, that is until another victim turns up with striking similarities to the Hammond case. Is there a serial killer on the loose targeting married women? Jo is convinced there is one killer responsible, but no one believes her, not even the FBI. Will Jo be able to solve the case before more dead women start showing up?
Holy Moly! This book was intense and definitely something different from the norm in the thriller genre. Chouinard really delves deep into the mind and modus operandi of our killer. While we learn quite early on who the killer is it was interesting to see how his mind worked and a good part of the story is told through his point of view which I found to be really interesting and refreshing. There are multiple POV’s told throughout this story and something that I enjoyed was the victim’s point of view as well. There is such a huge difference with a killing told off screen as opposed to getting to know the victim where one could feel sympathy or sorrow for a character.
Also, I think we just scratched the surface with Jo. As newly appointed Lieutenant, we can see just how much she missed being involved in crime scenes like she was when she was a detective. Jo is not great with relationships and she is practically married to her job. But, she sinks her teeth into the new case and is determined to find answers and to at least bring some closure to the victims families.
The story is pretty fast paced and kinda creepy for me reading how the killer finds his victims. Plus, there is a major major twist I definitely did not see coming. It was absolutely brilliant and original. I admit that I really loved it, but at the same time...wow that was really messed up! I was mindblown!
I devoured this book in a matter of hours! The Dancing Girls is intense and shocking. I am definitely looking forward to learning more about Jo in the next book in the series. I highly recommend this five star read.
Jo Fournier is the newly appointed Lieutenant thrust right into the murder of Jeanine Hammond. Found murdered in a hotel room, it is up to Jo to find the killer responsible for Jeanine’s death. But with no clues to go on, finding a murderer seems more like finding a needle in a haystack. As the months go by with no leads, the Hammond murder looks like it about to turn into a cold case, that is until another victim turns up with striking similarities to the Hammond case. Is there a serial killer on the loose targeting married women? Jo is convinced there is one killer responsible, but no one believes her, not even the FBI. Will Jo be able to solve the case before more dead women start showing up?
Holy Moly! This book was intense and definitely something different from the norm in the thriller genre. Chouinard really delves deep into the mind and modus operandi of our killer. While we learn quite early on who the killer is it was interesting to see how his mind worked and a good part of the story is told through his point of view which I found to be really interesting and refreshing. There are multiple POV’s told throughout this story and something that I enjoyed was the victim’s point of view as well. There is such a huge difference with a killing told off screen as opposed to getting to know the victim where one could feel sympathy or sorrow for a character.
Also, I think we just scratched the surface with Jo. As newly appointed Lieutenant, we can see just how much she missed being involved in crime scenes like she was when she was a detective. Jo is not great with relationships and she is practically married to her job. But, she sinks her teeth into the new case and is determined to find answers and to at least bring some closure to the victims families.
The story is pretty fast paced and kinda creepy for me reading how the killer finds his victims. Plus, there is a major major twist I definitely did not see coming. It was absolutely brilliant and original. I admit that I really loved it, but at the same time...wow that was really messed up! I was mindblown!
I devoured this book in a matter of hours! The Dancing Girls is intense and shocking. I am definitely looking forward to learning more about Jo in the next book in the series. I highly recommend this five star read.
February 19, 2020
I read sections, and I mean SECTIONS of this book out loud to my husband because it heavily features World of Warcraft, something I truly was not expecting. My husband used to be a big WOW player, so when the killer(s) used WOW to find their victims, how could I keep that to myself.
That was also part of the drawback, I could keep up with the WOW speak only on a basic level, clearly the author is a fan and loved explaining unnecessary WOW details throughout the book, but I felt badly for anyone reading this and not knowing what WOW even is. It was kind of off-putting. The story itself was okay, but the "dancing girls" piece seemed a bit wedged in there, almost like the title came first and then the author had to make up some quick note about how the victims are posed like their in mid-dance, yeah, yeah, sure...that'll work.
I wish the author had spent more time on focusing on the characters, like Jo, who was interesting, and the killer, who had some great psychology behind him, but all that could have been written further developing both of them was overtaken by descriptions of welding and other WOW-related bs.
That was also part of the drawback, I could keep up with the WOW speak only on a basic level, clearly the author is a fan and loved explaining unnecessary WOW details throughout the book, but I felt badly for anyone reading this and not knowing what WOW even is. It was kind of off-putting. The story itself was okay, but the "dancing girls" piece seemed a bit wedged in there, almost like the title came first and then the author had to make up some quick note about how the victims are posed like their in mid-dance, yeah, yeah, sure...that'll work.
I wish the author had spent more time on focusing on the characters, like Jo, who was interesting, and the killer, who had some great psychology behind him, but all that could have been written further developing both of them was overtaken by descriptions of welding and other WOW-related bs.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 13, 2020
This book was just average. A lot of cliches with the work addicted detective who hates being promoted. There was a twist with the mystery that was good but the ending felt very unfulfilling.
August 25, 2023
I want my time back….
May 27, 2019
The Dancing Girls introduces us to Detective Jo Fournier in the start of a brand new series and what a start it is.
When the body of a woman is found in a hotel room, strangled, Jo and her team are stumped. There doesn’t seem to be any reason for the killing, the victim Jeanine was a married woman, her husband and friends don’t believe she would have an affair, she had no enemies so why was she found strangled, positioned like a ballerina and her wedding ring taken?
Told from multiple points of view we not only hear from Jo as she tries to figure it all out but we get to hear from the killer as he selects his victims and we hear from the victims themselves as we find out how they end up coming in contact with the killer. This I found really intriguing, it really drew me in to the story making me feel like I knew the characters but it also filled me with dread, it was like I was getting to know the victim, I had sympathy for them but I knew what was coming and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
The killer in this story seriously gave me the chills, he’s a sick and twisted man with a very troublesome background. I didn’t in the slightest feel any sympathy for him but I could sort of see how he became so troubled. I suppose I felt sorry for the boy he was and what he went through but certainly not for the man he became.
I really enjoyed reading this book, it was a story that kept me intrigued from beginning to end and also kept me on my toes as well. I felt terribly frustrated for Jo as she really wanted to crack this case, I knew who the killer was but couldn’t help her at all.
The Dancing Girls really is a cracking start to a new series featuring Jo and I enjoyed it immensely but I would have liked to have heard more from Jo, gotten to know her a bit better but it’s exciting to see where her character will go and how much more we’ll find out about her in the next book. Hopefully we won’t have too long to wait.
So yes I’ll definitely be recommending The Dancing Girls, it’s a thrilling and engrossing read that I managed to devour in a few hours and has me excited for book two.
When the body of a woman is found in a hotel room, strangled, Jo and her team are stumped. There doesn’t seem to be any reason for the killing, the victim Jeanine was a married woman, her husband and friends don’t believe she would have an affair, she had no enemies so why was she found strangled, positioned like a ballerina and her wedding ring taken?
Told from multiple points of view we not only hear from Jo as she tries to figure it all out but we get to hear from the killer as he selects his victims and we hear from the victims themselves as we find out how they end up coming in contact with the killer. This I found really intriguing, it really drew me in to the story making me feel like I knew the characters but it also filled me with dread, it was like I was getting to know the victim, I had sympathy for them but I knew what was coming and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
The killer in this story seriously gave me the chills, he’s a sick and twisted man with a very troublesome background. I didn’t in the slightest feel any sympathy for him but I could sort of see how he became so troubled. I suppose I felt sorry for the boy he was and what he went through but certainly not for the man he became.
I really enjoyed reading this book, it was a story that kept me intrigued from beginning to end and also kept me on my toes as well. I felt terribly frustrated for Jo as she really wanted to crack this case, I knew who the killer was but couldn’t help her at all.
The Dancing Girls really is a cracking start to a new series featuring Jo and I enjoyed it immensely but I would have liked to have heard more from Jo, gotten to know her a bit better but it’s exciting to see where her character will go and how much more we’ll find out about her in the next book. Hopefully we won’t have too long to wait.
So yes I’ll definitely be recommending The Dancing Girls, it’s a thrilling and engrossing read that I managed to devour in a few hours and has me excited for book two.
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