Determined to make a new life for herself, Lorie Hammonds returns to her hometown of Dunmore with a somewhat tarnished reputation. She's co-owner of Treasures of the Past with her best friend and manages to keep a low profile. When the first threatening letter arrives in her mail, she puts it down to a crank and gets rid of it. When the second arrives with the same message, promising that she will soon be dead by midnight, Lorie takes the threat a bit more seriously. Unwilling to go to the local sheriff, former love Mike Birkett, Lorie takes the letter to Powell Private Security Investigation Agency. Powell agent Maleah Perdue and former FBI profiler Derek Lawrence take the threat seriously and advise involving the local police.

Mike Birkett has no desire to get involved with Lorie Hammonds again. The widower has enough on his plate raising his two young children. Lorie is a part of his past he'd prefer to forget, especially when being around her reawakens old feelings that have never gone away. When the Powell investigators uncover more victims, all who've received the same threatening letter as Lorie, all who have a common moment in their pasts with Lorie, Mike takes the threat against her life seriously and dedicates himself to keeping her safe.

DEAD BY MIDNIGHT is a tautly written thriller by Beverly Barton. Neatly weaving multiple character arcs into one beautifully plotted story is a skill Ms. Barton executes brilliantly, keeping readers interest in old characters while focusing on the primary hero and heroine and whetting our appetites for the next story. Mike Birkett and Lorie Hammonds are reluctant to grab their second chance at love, but circumstances force them together. They will have to defeat a killer to grab their chance at happiness. Maleah and Derek's sparring as they are repeatedly thrown together provide some lighter moments in this character-driven thriller. There was one time when I felt the reader was given too much information, taking away a potential twist to the end, but overall DEAD BY MIDNIGHT is an entertaining adventure.

Book Summary

In Murder…

The last sounds Dean Wilson hears are a clock striking twelve and a killer's taunting words. And his death is just the first. One by one, victims are stalked and shot at close range. Only the killer knows their sins, and who will be the next to die at midnight…

And In Life…

In the ten years since her Hollywood career imploded, Lorie Hammonds has built a good life in her Alabama hometown. When the first death threat arrives, she assumes it's a joke. Then she gets a second note. Sheriff Mike Birkett, her high-school sweetheart, has avoided Lorie since she returned to Dunmore, but when investigators uncover her connection to a string of recent murders, he's drawn into a case that's terrifyingly personal.

Timing Is Everything

With every murder, the killer edges closer. Soon Lorie's will be the last name left on his list. Her only hope is to unearth a deadly secret-before the clock runs out for good…