Shadowheart – UNSUB #3

Author: Meg Gardiner
Genre: Crime/Police Procedural Thriller
333 pages
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing, 2024

Synopsis
What happens when two serial killers begin to compete with each other?

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Gardiner comes a new high-octane thriller in the acclaimed UNSUB series. FBI Special Agent Caitlin Hendrix faces a case from nightmares. In a Tennessee prison, Efrem Judah Goode draws haunting portraits of women he claims he has killed. Around the country, desperate families of the missing seek answers in his eerie drawings. And on darkened back roads and New York City streets, a new killer poses duct-taped bodies at the sites of Goode’s murders. Two serial killers are locked in a twisted rivalry. To stop the brutal slayings, FBI profiler Caitlin Hendrix must unravel the connection between Goode and the Broken Heart Killer. Their warped competition destroys anyone in their path. Caught between a manipulative psychopath and a ruthless UNSUB, Caitlin has to dive into not one, but two dark and twisted minds. She will risk everything, plunging into the depths of their depraved clash to hunt down an unstoppable killer.

My review
Shadowheart, the fourth installment in the UNSUB series, delivers another gripping police procedural from Meg Gardiner. One of the things I love about Gardiner’s writing is that every word matters—there’s no fluff, no unnecessary tangents, just a sharp, dark, well-crafted story. Her style is gritty, smart, and packed with meticulously researched police and profiling details. This one starts off a bit slow. Give it about 50 pages, and it kicks into high gear, and once it does, it doesn’t let up.

Gardiner does a fantastic job developing her characters, peeling back new layers with each book. Caitlin Hendrix, the detective-turned-FBI behavioral analyst, is hands down one of my favorite crime fiction leads. She steals the show in this series. The supporting cast is equally terrific, and it’s refreshing to see a team that works so well together without unnecessary drama.

Hendrix is brought in to interview Efrem Judah Goode, an inmate who has suddenly started sketching the women he claims to have murdered. As the team works to identify his victims from years ago, new bodies start turning up, found in the exact same locations as Goode’s. Now, Hendrix and her team must race to solve the puzzle and uncover how these killers are connected before more people fall into their trap.

Shadowheart is a solid addition to the UNSUB series. It wasn’t my favorite, but it’s still a sharp, well-executed police procedural. I’m already looking forward to book #5!

My recommendation: definitely worth the read!