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canadianbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
This thriller takes place in West Yorkshire and moves around between several points of view, some of them members of the recently disbanded MIT investigative team of the Bradfield Police: Tony Hill, psychologist and police profiler; Carol Jordan leader of the MIT team, now ex-police dealing with her grief by pushing everyone away; and Paula McIntyre, formerly Carol's constable, but now sergeant for another DCI. The other main character we see the inside view of is the criminal, the man who is obsessed with finding the perfect wife for his needs, the man who is never satisfied, who chooses, stalks, kidnaps, and terrorizes his victims in his impossible to fulfill goal. And then we have the victims, well-dressed professional women, successful and attractive, but no match for his well-planned attacks.
The title seems to come from a quote that appears on the first pages of the book:
"The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn" -- David Russell
Paula is struggling with her new DCI, trying to be loyal, but believing that justice outweighs such loyalty. When someone she knows goes missing and she becomes involved with the woman's teenage son, it becomes personal. When someone she knows well is under suspicion for these brutal crimes against women, she is sure they have the wrong man, and that the right one is still out there somewhere, endangering more women it becomes even more personal. A fast-moving book that you won't want to put down.
The title seems to come from a quote that appears on the first pages of the book:
"The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn" -- David Russell
Paula is struggling with her new DCI, trying to be loyal, but believing that justice outweighs such loyalty. When someone she knows goes missing and she becomes involved with the woman's teenage son, it becomes personal. When someone she knows well is under suspicion for these brutal crimes against women, she is sure they have the wrong man, and that the right one is still out there somewhere, endangering more women it becomes even more personal. A fast-moving book that you won't want to put down.
emmalynn's review against another edition
5.0
When it comes to Tony Hill and Carol Jordan, Val McDermid doesn't disappoint!
Her last stand-alones hadn't really convinced me so I was a tiny bit anxious before starting Cross and Burn but I had no reason to!
I was back in the usual page-turning, armrest-gripping territory and I just couldn't put it down.
I also really liked Paula (and her partner Elinor) being more present than ever as she's always been one of my favourite characters.
Her last stand-alones hadn't really convinced me so I was a tiny bit anxious before starting Cross and Burn but I had no reason to!
I was back in the usual page-turning, armrest-gripping territory and I just couldn't put it down.
I also really liked Paula (and her partner Elinor) being more present than ever as she's always been one of my favourite characters.
waynewaynus's review against another edition
5.0
I really loved this book, I find the characters endlessly interesting as the writer continues to play with the relationships of the characters in engaging ways.
jillheather's review against another edition
3.0
This book, spending more time on Paula and some sacrificial new characters, was much better than recent books have been. But Carol and Tony are getting more and more like caricatures, and I wish the series would either get them together or not, but in any case stop playing will-they-won't-they-oops-serial-killer. Perhaps it's time to let the series end.
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