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A review by obsidian_blue
Soğuk Kalp by Tami Hoag
4.0
Mental note. Never ever read two dark books back to back again. I seriously had to take a reading break. Dark Places and Cold Cold Heart just made me long for sunshine and rom-com movies.
Dana’s harrowing story and her return to small town life have rekindled police and media interest in the unsolved case of her childhood best friend, Casey Grant, who disappeared without a trace the summer after their graduation from high school.
Terrified of truths long-buried, Dana reluctantly begins to look back at her past. Viewed through the dark filter of PTSD, old friends and loved ones become suspects and enemies.
Questioning everything she knows, refusing to be defined by the traumas of her past and struggling against excruciating odds, Dana seeks out a truth that may prove too terrible to be believed…
This is a continuation of the story from Tami Hoag's last book, The 9th Girl. We find out about the serial killer who eventually kidnaps Dana and rapes and beats her repeatedly with the goal of turning her into his "9th girl". I have to say I have a tough stomach, but others who may get triggered by books that go into rape and abuse may want to skip this one.
I think the reason why this one stuck in my head so bad was because Dana creeps into your skin. When we first start the book we are taken back to her about to be taken and killed by the serial killer, Doc Holiday. However, through the thought running through her brain that
Where there is life, there is hope
Dana manages to save herself.
The change in her face and personality to everyone around Dana makes you cringe and feel for her. Going from a good looking woman excited about her career and then turning into someone that can't stand for anyone to touch her with nightmares that would have grown men weeping was a lot for her to take.
Prayer. She had prayed and prayed and prayed, but no one had come to save her.
I thought Ms. Hoag realistically showed the trauma that Dana goes through and her recovery. How many times do you read a book like this and the person magically wakes up and is all better. Maybe they have a nightmare or two and the hero comes in and holds her so it makes everything all better.
Reading Dana calling herself "Before Dana" and "After Dana" and realizing that not many people were interested in "After Dana" just pulls at you. Throwing herself into finding out what happened to her best friend Casey I thought was very interesting. I was more invested in Dana and her interactions with other people though than her figuring out what happened to Casey. There was also an odd side plot that involves Dana and her stepfather that never really gets resolved so I am curious about that. Maybe Ms. Hoag will take that up in a future book.
You do want to shake Dana's mom a lot in this book since she seems to have her head fully buried about her husband, and that her daughter is not going to be the same person anymore. There was a scene where her mother is encouraging Dana to go out on a date with a former boyfriend that I cringed at.
We eventually get to what happened to Casey and who was involved though the identify of the killer didn't surprise me. If you read carefully, you could tell who it was going to be and why.
We do get a welcome look at Kovac and Tinks again. I hope that Ms. Hoag brings them back for another book. I love Kovac and Tinks.
That said, the ending just kind of happened and as I said there was the lack of resolution between Dana and her stepfather and that's why I gave this book only four stars.
Dana’s harrowing story and her return to small town life have rekindled police and media interest in the unsolved case of her childhood best friend, Casey Grant, who disappeared without a trace the summer after their graduation from high school.
Terrified of truths long-buried, Dana reluctantly begins to look back at her past. Viewed through the dark filter of PTSD, old friends and loved ones become suspects and enemies.
Questioning everything she knows, refusing to be defined by the traumas of her past and struggling against excruciating odds, Dana seeks out a truth that may prove too terrible to be believed…
This is a continuation of the story from Tami Hoag's last book, The 9th Girl. We find out about the serial killer who eventually kidnaps Dana and rapes and beats her repeatedly with the goal of turning her into his "9th girl". I have to say I have a tough stomach, but others who may get triggered by books that go into rape and abuse may want to skip this one.
I think the reason why this one stuck in my head so bad was because Dana creeps into your skin. When we first start the book we are taken back to her about to be taken and killed by the serial killer, Doc Holiday. However, through the thought running through her brain that
Where there is life, there is hope
Dana manages to save herself.
The change in her face and personality to everyone around Dana makes you cringe and feel for her. Going from a good looking woman excited about her career and then turning into someone that can't stand for anyone to touch her with nightmares that would have grown men weeping was a lot for her to take.
Prayer. She had prayed and prayed and prayed, but no one had come to save her.
I thought Ms. Hoag realistically showed the trauma that Dana goes through and her recovery. How many times do you read a book like this and the person magically wakes up and is all better. Maybe they have a nightmare or two and the hero comes in and holds her so it makes everything all better.
Reading Dana calling herself "Before Dana" and "After Dana" and realizing that not many people were interested in "After Dana" just pulls at you. Throwing herself into finding out what happened to her best friend Casey I thought was very interesting. I was more invested in Dana and her interactions with other people though than her figuring out what happened to Casey. There was also an odd side plot that involves Dana and her stepfather that never really gets resolved so I am curious about that. Maybe Ms. Hoag will take that up in a future book.
You do want to shake Dana's mom a lot in this book since she seems to have her head fully buried about her husband, and that her daughter is not going to be the same person anymore. There was a scene where her mother is encouraging Dana to go out on a date with a former boyfriend that I cringed at.
We eventually get to what happened to Casey and who was involved though the identify of the killer didn't surprise me. If you read carefully, you could tell who it was going to be and why.
We do get a welcome look at Kovac and Tinks again. I hope that Ms. Hoag brings them back for another book. I love Kovac and Tinks.
That said, the ending just kind of happened and as I said there was the lack of resolution between Dana and her stepfather and that's why I gave this book only four stars.