Review: Face Off (The Evelyn Talbot Chronicles #3) by Brenda Novak

Print Length: 

Publisher: St.Martin's Press (August 28, 2018)

From Goodreads.com: Tortured and left for dead at sixteen, Evelyn Talbot turned her personal nightmare into her life’s work—studying the disturbing psychopathy of some of the world’s most vicious serial killers. Now a leading psychiatrist at Hanover House in a small Alaskan town, she tries to believe the past will never come back to haunt her—until a woman goes missing from a cabin nearby, and every clue points to the man who once brutalized her…

As her boyfriend, who is the area’s only police, begins to investigate—and finds not one but two bodies—Evelyn can’t forget that her would-be killer, Jasper Moore, was never caught. But there are no new faces in tiny Hilltop, no one who seems suspicious or potentially violent. In this twisted game of cat and mouse, Evelyn is certain of only one thing—Jasper must be hiding in plain sight. And if she can’t find him before he comes for her, she won’t be lucky enough to survive twice…

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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5

This is my first time reading a story in this series, and to be honest, I'm not sure exactly why it fell flat for me, but it did. I had no trouble understanding these characters - their motivations, their histories, etc. I feel like there was a lot of repetition, and although this author definitely has a strong writing style, I feel like it took too long to get from point A to point B. For example - the author brings Evelyn's sister to Alaska and there are some things said, done, etc - and choices made - when all of the sudden the sister goes back home and nothing comes from the earlier hubbub. It seemed like a waste of time to include most of it. Also, for someone as intelligent as Evelyn, and someone who has been hunted most of her life, she sure makes some pretty dumb choices. 

I will say the ending definitely had me on the edge of my seat - I totally did not see that coming, nor did I think it was going to end the way that it did. 

Overall, I think this story will appeal to those who have read this series already, as well as those who enjoy complex stories. I would read more from this author!

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                       Face Off is available from Amazon.com