One Perfect Grave by Stacy Green @authorstacywhisenand @katehandford @hachetteuk @bookouture #NikkiHunt #OnePerfectGrave

the setup…
FBI Special Agent Nikki Hunt was helping new Washington County Police Chief Kent Miller search for nine-year old Kellan Rhodes, missing for the last two days, when she got the news she’d dreaded. His mother Dana was suspected to have abducted him but Nikki was unprepared to find both of them dead, their frozen bodies found in an open grave along a highway. There was suspicion it was a murder-suicide until it’s determined that Dana was murdered and evidence at the scene that someone else was there. Then another young boy, Zach Reeves, goes missing and reporter Caitlin Newport harangues Nikki to get involved. Is it possible that the two cases are related?

the heart of the story…
It’s always heartbreaking when children are involved and these two were no exception. From the onset, the focus was on the procedurals and those close to Dana and Kellan. Nikki’s really good at her job and she was skillful here. Caitlin’s passion around Nikki taking on Zach’s case felt like a distraction, until it wasn’t. I was drawn in to both.

the narration…
Kate Handford continues to do a stellar job of storytelling and I’m enjoying her performances.

the bottom line…
I had my suspicions early on about who might be behind Dana and Kellan’s deaths but didn’t know the why. The police procedurals were great as Nikki is meticulous in her investigation process. The personal issues around her love life emerge as I’d expected but didn’t interfere with the cases as they did in the last story. They just add more layers to the character and the series. Even though I figured out the who, the devil’s in the details and the surprising why and how had me hooked from start to finish.

Book Info

• Release Date: February 25, 2021
• Series: Nikki Hunt #2
• Narrator: Kate Handford
• Audio Length: 9 hours
• Publisher: Hachette UK – Bookouture

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