Casey Woods runs a unique business called Forensic Instincts. Her training is as a behaviorist. She also employs a former Navy SEAL and a technology specialist. The company takes cases on a freelance basis, and they are able to cut corners that law enforcement agencies cannot. Untethered to the law and not bound by bureaucracy, they can often solve cases faster than the local police or the FBI, although not by conventional means (and in ways those agencies would rather not know about).

The day after solving a case, Casey gets a frantic call from Judge Hope Willis. Hope's daughter Krissy has been kidnapped. Hope's husband is reluctant to employ the services of Forensic Instincts and Casey is sure Hope is hiding something from the team, but she decides to hear them out in person before deciding whether to take the case. Once Casey hears Hope's secret, though, she decides the team must get involved.

Of course, the usual law enforcement agencies have also been called in -- the local police department, the county police agency, and the FBI, who has sent out their Behavioral Assessment Unit to profile the case. The agencies are all working harmoniously with each other and even manage to strike an alliance with Forensic Instincts. Within this mix is Claire, an intuitive who works with the local police, and Patrick, a former FBI agent.

This book was an absolute page-turner. Once I started it, it was difficult to put it down. The suspense was top-notch, and the characters was absolutely compelling. The dialogue was well-written, and it's clear that the author has spent time around law enforcement agents (and I say this as the daughter of a police officer).

There were times when I was sure that I had solved the mystery, only to doubt myself pages later. I think it's a mark of a great suspense novel when the reader is kept guessing until the very end but isn't made to feel like a fool. The very minor qualm I have with the book is that the varying agencies got along a little too well. As far as that point, I found the latter parts of the book more believable than the beginning.

I really hope that this is the first of a Forensic Instincts series. If so, I'll definitely be in line to buy the next book on the day it drops in bookstores!

Book Summary

SHE COULDN’T STOP IT. NOT THEN. NOT NOW.

Despite all her years determining the fates of families, veteran family court judge Hope Willis couldn’t save her own. If only she’d turned her head, she would have seen the car containing her daughter, struggling to get out.

Now she’s frantically grasping at any hope for Krissy’s rescue. Her husband dead-set against it, she calls Casey Woods and her team of renegade investigators, Forensic Instincts. A behaviorist. A techno-wizard. An intuitive. A former Navy SEAL. Unconventional operatives. All with unique talents, skills and personal reasons for being part of Casey’s team, they’ll do whatever it takes.

Able to accurately read people after the briefest of encounters, Casey leads her team to Krissy’s home. There she picks up the signs of a nervous spouse, a guilty conscience, a nanny that hides on her cell. She watches as secrets beg to creep into the open.

Forensic Instincts will dig through each tiny clue and eliminate the clutter. But time is running out, and even working around the clock, the authorities are bound by the legal system. Not so Casey’s team. For they know that the difference between bringing Krissy back alive and disappearing forever could be as small as a suspect’s rapid breathing, or as deep as Hope’s dark family history.

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