Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Frozen Heat by Richard Castle

FROZEN HEAT
By Richard Castle
Copyright ABC Studios
Published by Hyperion


Genre: Crime Drama


In book four of the series, we’re getting in deep. The body of an unidentified woman has been found stuffed inside a suitcase, and left in a freezer truck. An unusual case, but a clue ties the murder to the shocking, unsolved murder of Heat’s mother, ten years ago. The cold case is reopened, and Heat’s crew works the murders together. Solving one has a chance of solving them both.

Someone seems to think that Heat knows too much, and targets her for the kill. Nikki must delve into her painful past for answers, while fighting to stay alive. How many of her friends will die before she finds the killer? Or will he find her first?

This book reveals a lot of what makes Heat who she is. Her character is fully fleshed out, and we want to solve her mother’s murder as much as she does. We want to bring some closure to this strong, tortured woman. We care.

Nikki Heat leads a wild, exciting, passionate life. We are lucky that we get to come along for the ride.


Book received from the publisher for my unbiased review.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

HEAT RISES by Richard Castle

HEAT RISES
By Richard Castle
Copyright ABC Studios
Published by Hyperion

Genre: Crime Drama

The third book in the Nikki Heat series. A priest is found tortured and murdered…in a bondage club. What was he doing there, and who was he with? Most of all, why?

This is a puzzling case, but Nikki is distracted. Rook has been away on assignment, unable to contact her. Or is he unwilling? The tabloids show him at a hotel with a stunning woman. And still, Heat’s phone doesn’t ring.

Captain Montrose, Nikki’s boss and mentor, is behaving strangely. He appears to have secret knowledge about the priest’s case, but he isn’t sharing. Then he gives Nikki orders that steer her away from answers in the case. What is he hiding?

More bodies pile up, and someone is following Heat. Is it connected to the case, or is something else going on?

By this point in the series, the characters are well-developed enough that we can easily separate them from the TV series characters. There are still many parallels between the two. Heat and Beckett may be sisters in blue, but they are very different people. Since Heat’s cases don’t have to be solved in 45 minutes, they twist and turn and run off in false directions much more than Beckett’s do. Which makes them even more satisfying to solve.


Book borrowed from the Indiana Free Library, Indiana PA.