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A review by charmandareads
A Killing Fire by Faye Snowden
3.0
*I was gifted an ARC copy from Flame Tree Press in exchange for an honest review*
Raven Burns is a police officer in Byrd's Landing, Louisiana, doing her damnedest to right the wrongs of the past. A strong-willed, admirable woman, product of a devious, murderous man. Raven's father was Floyd "Fire" Burns, false preacher and convicted wife-killer. She is haunted by his actions, he plagues her mind even after his death. As our story unfolds, it begins to appear that Fire continues killing long after he left this earth.
Raven is called to investigate the murder of a young woman, one that had quite a vocal opposition of our detective. Her crime scene is so devoid of clues, we have no idea where to begin looking. Raven is a brilliant woman, and a great detective. She comes up with more and more answers as the story progresses. But it leads us to wonder, does she know that because she is good at her job, or is she a little too involved...?
Most of this story is enjoyable. But if I had to use one word to describe my overall impression, it would be: reaching. I am predominantly a horror/true crime reader, so much of what had to do with the background, and police policies did not fit what I know very well. If I were less educated in these fields, I would have no qualms. However, the extent of Floyd's "serial" killing is not explained well-enough for me, nor are his crimes consistent enough in type/victim/MO to earn him the title of serial killer. He appears to have been labelled such because he has killed more than one person. While the need for Raven to be on a case with a massively damaging conflict of interest was explained, it is egregiously unethical.
There are plenty of twists and turns to this novel, but I would have preferred to know less of Raven's moves so we could truly perceive her as a suspect. It was definitely a different story, and I did like it. I did not love it, but I would love to read another book by Faye Snowden! I felt that her writing itself was beautiful, and I love her characters. I would be interested in the live and times of Floyd "Fire" Burns (in a hope that his image in my head could be redeemed!). I am giving this book a sold 3 stars because I expect a lot out of murder/crime/cop stories, and this missed a few of my boxes.
Raven Burns is a police officer in Byrd's Landing, Louisiana, doing her damnedest to right the wrongs of the past. A strong-willed, admirable woman, product of a devious, murderous man. Raven's father was Floyd "Fire" Burns, false preacher and convicted wife-killer. She is haunted by his actions, he plagues her mind even after his death. As our story unfolds, it begins to appear that Fire continues killing long after he left this earth.
Raven is called to investigate the murder of a young woman, one that had quite a vocal opposition of our detective. Her crime scene is so devoid of clues, we have no idea where to begin looking. Raven is a brilliant woman, and a great detective. She comes up with more and more answers as the story progresses. But it leads us to wonder, does she know that because she is good at her job, or is she a little too involved...?
Most of this story is enjoyable. But if I had to use one word to describe my overall impression, it would be: reaching. I am predominantly a horror/true crime reader, so much of what had to do with the background, and police policies did not fit what I know very well. If I were less educated in these fields, I would have no qualms. However, the extent of Floyd's "serial" killing is not explained well-enough for me, nor are his crimes consistent enough in type/victim/MO to earn him the title of serial killer. He appears to have been labelled such because he has killed more than one person. While the need for Raven to be on a case with a massively damaging conflict of interest was explained, it is egregiously unethical.
There are plenty of twists and turns to this novel, but I would have preferred to know less of Raven's moves so we could truly perceive her as a suspect. It was definitely a different story, and I did like it. I did not love it, but I would love to read another book by Faye Snowden! I felt that her writing itself was beautiful, and I love her characters. I would be interested in the live and times of Floyd "Fire" Burns (in a hope that his image in my head could be redeemed!). I am giving this book a sold 3 stars because I expect a lot out of murder/crime/cop stories, and this missed a few of my boxes.