Are You Afraid? (Signet Eclipse) [Mass Market Paperback]

Carla Cassidy (Author)

Book Description

Series: Signet Eclipse | Publication Date: March 7, 2006

Where do you go when you're running from THE past?

Long ago, Jessica Langford endured-and escaped-the menace of a serial killer who buried his victims alive. Overcoming this experience, she started her own radio program, helping those who live in fear to overcome their pasts just as she did. But then an anonymous man calls in to her show with knowledge of her experience-and her worst nightmares. She must uncover the mysterious caller's intentions before he kills again-and turns Jessica's life into a living hell.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Cassidy's sharp new thriller boasts an easy, masterful balance that's rare and ambitious for a suspense novel. Dr. Jessica "Jessie" Langford, psychiatrist, single mother and Kansas City radio personality, has begun receiving eerie phone calls—not so strange for the host of Are You Afraid of the Dark? but for the memories they stir up of the serial killer Jessie escaped as a teenager. Against her better judgment, Jessie contacts Det. Jake Merridan, already investigating the brutal murder of two women while juggling his own duties as a single parent. As Jessie's case moves beyond simple harassment, and their relationship moves beyond the professional, the couple combine resources to root out the killer before he catches up to Jessie, "the one who had gotten away." Quiet details make Cassidy's novel work: a shared smile between Jessie and her son; the easy back-and-forth of a good date; the creepy specifics of murder. Cassidy's smooth, simple prose tells a full story that's equal parts romance, family drama and sheer terror. Though the ending is a bit of a stretch, it's Jessie who gives the novel its foundation: an intelligent, mature, accomplished woman who's easy to root for. (Mar.)
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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Signet (March 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 045121806X
• ISBN-13: 978-0451218063
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,173,176 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Carla Cassidy lives in the Midwest with her husband, Frank. She's the author of over eighty books and can't think of anything she'd rather do for a living than tell stories.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading...., March 27, 2006

By 

Deborah Wiley (Winter Haven, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Are You Afraid? (Signet Eclipse) (Mass Market Paperback)

Dr. Jessica Langford is the psychiatrist on a radio call-in show where listeners describe their fears. Jessie knows all about fears as she was kidnapped, raped, tortured, and buried alive at age 16 by the T&B serial killer; she was his sole surviving victim. One night on her call-in show, "Cameron" calls in and describes Jessie's fear of cemetaries ("Cameron" was the name on the gravesite she was buried) and it begins to appear that the T&B serial killer wants to finish the job he started many years ago. Jessie attempts to report this and several other harassing calls to the local police department and meets Detective Jake Merridan, the lead cop for the lily serial killer case. Neither guesses that there could be a connection between the current case and the cold case (the T&B serial killer was never caught), particularly since Jessie doesn't initially reveal her past to Jake. Meanwhile, Jessie has a mysterious new patient, Mark Smith, who ties into the entire scenario. I won't spoil things by revealing the identity of the killer but will say I was able to guess his identity prior to the ending. This was a pretty good book and worth reading if only for Carla Cassidy's style of drawing the reader into the story.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another knockout romantic suspense from Cassidy, August 7, 2006

By 

Tracy Vest (Northern California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Are You Afraid? (Signet Eclipse) (Mass Market Paperback)

When Jessica was 16, she was abducted by the T&B (torture and burial) serial killer, but managed to escape death when some teenagers out for a party in the cemetery scared her assailant away. Now 18 years later, Jessica is a therapist and radio psychologist who specializes in helping patients deal with fears, while nursing her own fear of the dark. When her last caller of the night asks if she is afraid of the dark, she gets the eerie feeling that it is not just a prank.

Detective Jake Merridan has been assigned a new case, and all clues indicate it is related to another homicide and they just might have a serial killer on their hands. After Jessica starts getting freaky phone calls at home, she goes to the police and starts to tell her story to Jake, but chickens out on providing background. Both find themselves attracted to each other - having a lot in common - being divorced single parents - and start to see each other.

As their romance blossoms, neither realizes that the sadistic killer that Jake is trying to capture is the same one that abducted and altered Jessica's life. His MO might be different, but eventually his goal to get the one that got away will not be squelched. Will Jake identify the madman before his second chance for love is stolen from him? Will Jessica be able to share her physical and mental scars with Jake?

Cassidy is a master at creating diabolical killers and heart tugging romance. This one is not to be missed and will capture the reader's attention until the last paragraph.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars riguing serial killer police procedural romance, March 8, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Are You Afraid? (Signet Eclipse) (Mass Market Paperback)

In Kansas City, therapist Jessica Langford runs a two hour evening radio show, Are You Afraid of the Dark? That provides advice to those with phobias. However, a caller states that Jessica fears cemeteries. Her producer Chris Mathison asks if she is okay as Jessica goes pale. She thinks back to eighteen years ago as a teenager when the T&B serial killer buried her alive at Hillside Cemetery at Camerson Jackson' gravesite, but she was rescued; the perp was never caught.

Detective Jake Merridan investigates several recent homicides of young females. His failure to make progress, as a serial killer surfaces, frustrates him. Jessica knows who stalked her on the air as he is back but plans this time she plans to confront her fear and the T&B killer. Her efforts take her into the midst of Jake's inquiries and he soon sees a tie with the physical looks of the victims and the radio therapist. As they fall in love, he vows to keep her safe from a serial killer who is either a copy cat or the return of the T&B.

ARE YOU AFRAID? is an intriguing serial killer police procedural romance. Jake is a fascinating lead as he struggles with a case going nowhere until he meets Jessica and his frustration changes as he needs to keep his beloved safe. Jessica has come a long way from the frightened sixteen years old near victim, but answers affirmative to the title question. Though how T&B kept his obsession in check for so long yet now is obsessed to finish the job seems odd, fans of suspense thrillers will want to read Carla Cassidy's captivating novel.

Harriet Klausner