People are disappearing with nary a trace in Serenity, Tennessee. First, it was adults that simply vanished while outside, but now a child has disappeared from her own home. Chief Jonah Riggs suspect something more sinister is occurring and requests the assistance of the FBI Special Crimes Unit (SCU). Noah Bishop, head of the SCU, sends in experienced agents Lucas and Samantha Jordan along with a new partnership of Dante Swann and Robbie Hodge. Each agent has their own unique abilities, including clairvoyance, telepathy, a medium, and a gift for finding the lost.

FEAR THE DARK is the sixteenth book in the Bishop/Special Crimes Unit series but can easily be read as a standalone. We get to meet various agents in the different books rather than sticking to just a few individuals and so it's easy to just jump right into the series. Kay Hooper also provides a list of all of the agents as well as their abilities at the end of the book, which is quite helpful at refreshing one's memory as to all the characters we have met over the course of the series. However, I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to read all of the Bishop/Special Crimes Unit books as every book by Kay Hooper is a guaranteed treat.

I love how Kay Hooper shows the camaraderie that exists (or builds, in the case of new partners) in the SCU. Each agent is respectful of both the strengths and weaknesses of each of their abilities, while also conducting solid police work. FEAR THE DARK showcases how the various abilities work hand in hand with old-fashioned detective work as I love seeing the blending of the two. While I love all the agents we meet in FEAR THE DARK, I can't help but hope that we'll see more of Jonah in future books.

Kay Hooper is a master at crafting a spooky ambiance and wrapping a phenomenal mystery inside of it. FEAR THE DARK is one of my favorite books out of Kay Hooper's more recent releases. I love the eerie mystery, almost like a locked door mystery in reverse, as we wonder how the kidnapper is getting his victims to just vanish. If you like supernatural mysteries or thrillers, then FEAR THE DARK is a must-read!

Book Summary

In this newest Bishop / Special Crimes Unit novel, an SCU team investigates a troubling string of disappearances. But how do you find someone who has vanished without a trace?

Something strange is happening in the small mountain town of Serenity, Tennessee. People going on routine errands never reach their destination. It’s as if they simply disappear. Over the past few weeks, it’s happened to five men and women—and now a child.

The local police chief Jonah Riggs calls the FBI, and a team from the Special Crimes Unit is immediately sent in. Agents Lucas and Samantha Jordan, partners in work and in life, have very different abilities. Samantha is a powerful clairvoyant and Lucas possesses a unique ability to find the lost or abducted. With them are new partners Dante Swann, a medium, and Robbie Hodge, a telepath.

The town is already on the edge of panic, but the mysterious events take a sinister turn when a body unrelated to the missing persons case surfaces, a citizen murdered under the noses of the police and FBI agents. Now, the team’s hunt for the lost has turned into something very personal for all of them … and very dangerous.

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