Book #7 of the series. It's interesting to me that I love reading about the holiday season even in March! Also, these holiday murders are gruesome. The serial killer's "theme" is the Twelve Days of Christmas (the song). Since Eve Dallas was injured in Book #6, she is just returning to work (too early, in everyone's opinion except her own) at the time of the first murder. She takes the case to prove to herself that she can still do the job with the same dedication, intensity, and success rate as before her injury. Unfortunately, this particular case also makes her face her own personal demons from her childhood of incestual abuse at the hands of her father. In other words, Eve Dallas is a mess in this book!
The killer chooses his victims through a dating service called Personally Yours. This is a high-end dating service that includes spa treatments and high-end cosmetic products on site. It's owned and run by a brother/sister team, Rudy & Piper Hoffman. The victims are both female and male, and they don't seem connected in any way except they all have profiles at Personally Yours. This gives Peabody and McNab an opportunity to expand their detective skills by going undercover and setting up their own profiles at Personally Yours. McNab drives Peabody crazy and she doesn't want anything to do with him (and obviously, McNab is crazy for Peabody), so them working together provides for some interesting interactions.
Eve does seem to get caught up at times in trying to get her personal suspect to fit in the "murderer box" even when there is evidence against her thoughts. She is not always able to separate her own personal baggage from the evidence in a case. I was so happy to see her finally admit that by the end of this book. It's very frustrating to me! Ha! I also hate how she runs herself into the ground time and time again. I like that she's feisty and determined, but what good is she to anyone half-dead? Honestly.
With that being said, I get that Eve's life is a journey and she has developed quite an awesome support team. I am looking forward to seeing how she grows as a person (and not just a detective).
Wendy's Rating: ****
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