Book Blurb:
Seventeen-year-old Nina Barrows knows all about the Thief. She’s intimately familiar with his hunting methods: how he stalks and kills at random, how he disposes of his victims’ bodies in an abandoned mine in the deepest, most desolate part of a desert.
Now, for the first time, Nina has the chance to do something about the serial killer that no one else knows exists. With the help of her former best friend, Warren, she tracks the Thief two thousand miles, to his home turf—the deserts of New Mexico.
But the man she meets there seems nothing like the brutal sociopath with whom she’s had a disturbing connection her whole life. To anyone else, Dylan Shadwell is exactly what he appears to be: a young veteran committed to his girlfriend and her young daughter. As Nina spends more time with him, she begins to doubt the truth she once held as certain: Dylan Shadwell is the Thief. She even starts to wonder . . . what if there is no Thief?
My Review:
4 Out Of 5 Stars
Genre: Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense, Teen--
Every night when Nina goes to sleep, she sees through the eyes of a serial killer, as he plots and carries out his murders. Nina has tried to escape this nightmare she has found herself in, be it from taking stimulants to stay awake or calling his victims to warn them, but ultimately nothing works. Trying to physically stop the next kill, Nina convinces her ex-friend/drug dealer Warren to drive her to the victim's house. Warren realizes that something more is going on with Nina, and when she finally tells him her truth, he has to decide what to do with the information. Together the two embark on a journey that may end their lives.
This was a very interesting concept for a book. I found the story to be really solid, engaging and unique. It was not the most amazing book ever, but I liked the twists and turns the plot took and the underlying psychological battle that runs through out the book. The story started out as Nina's journey into proving her dreams are real, but along the way it evolved into Warren's struggles with finding the truth too.
Nina struggles with two conflicting ideas here: 1. She is crazy and imagines the cold blooded murder of people as if she is another person, or 2. She is somehow psychically tied to another person who just so happens to be a cold blooded murderer. Either way, she is kind of screwed mentally. I don't want to give too much away and ruin the book, but the lasting emotional and psychological trauma associated with either outcome is awful. At one point in the book, Warren's mom says that Nina has cold eyes and I am sure she does. One can't experience this terror and still function without losing a piece of themselves along the way.
Can I also mention the psychology behind the Thief and who he was? He started out as such a sweet caring boy who would do anything to make his family happy. But he ended up turning into someone else, someone who played God with people's lives and ultimately was a monster. Was it his family that caused him to be this way? The war? Or is it the gift that turned him into a monster? I could sit and analyze/discuss this concept forever, it got me so intrigued.
The author did a great job of creating fully fleshed out characters, be it a sick twisted psyche or a nice honest guy. I struggled right along with Nina in her final choice and the repercussions. There was no clear cut version of who was bad out of any of the three characters, because each were seen doing something right and good, and then turn around and commit crimes and sins. I was conflicted on who I wanted to root for (minus Warren, because I loved him) and the plot really stayed with me even when the book was over. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.
I received this title from the publisher in return for my honest review.
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