Split Second (Maggie O'Dell Novels) [Hardcover]

Alex Kava (Author)

Book Description

Series: Maggie O'Dell Novels | Publication Date: August 1, 2001

After Albert Stucky, a brutal and clever serial killer known as "The Collector," escapes from prison, he forces FBI profiler Maggie O'Dell, the agent who originally captured him, to play a deadly game when he targets her and everyone associated with her.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

FBI profiler Maggie O'Dell, star of Kava's first thriller, is back again in her second, but her return is not a happy one. From the very first scene, in which serial killer Albert Stucky escapes from two pitifully inadequate prison guards, through the inevitable and apparently endless escalation of brutality (usually against women), to the predictable ending, this is strictly a blender job: part Thomas Harris and part Patricia Cornwell, with odd bones and scraps tossed in from other similarly grisly and more successful sources. O'Dell, who plays Clarice Starling to Stucky's Hannibal Lecter, is still physically and mentally scarred by the two years she spent on his case and she's fighting to get back on it. She gets her wish. Before she can even unpack the boxes in her new home, one of her neighbors disappears, leaving behind a bloody mess, and another is found dead in a Dumpster. Soon, Stucky strikes even closer to home. The supporting cast is full of cardboard cutouts unsuccessfully masquerading as characters, and since O'Dell herself is so miserable from the start, it's hard to care whether or not she and Stucky ever do make it to their final showdown or, for that matter, which of them survives. Kava's hackneyed prose doesn't help matters: "Dear God! How much longer could she put up with the nightmares?" Probably longer than a lot of readers will put up with this book. (Aug.)Forecast: Kava's first O'Dell vehicle, A Perfect Evil, was widely praised, and Mira is looking to build on that success with a national ad campaign, a teaser chapter in the Perfect Evil paperback and a multicity author tour. Fans may go along for the ride, but Kava won't recruit many new readers with this one.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

". . . a roller coaster read. Although your heart is in your throat the entire time, you enjoy every scary minute." -- Woman's Own

". . . first novel is a formidable one, filled with characters comfortable with themselves and acting out their roles intelligently and believably." -- Dallas Morning News

"A suspense thriller with enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing until the last page." -- Mystery Scene

"Alex Kava has crafted a suspenseful novel and created a winning character in Agent O'Dell." -- Washington Post Book World

"Engaging debut . . . a well-crafted page-turner . . ." -- Publisher's Weekly

"This debut thriller pumps the suspense out . . . Maggie is gutsy and appealing as an FBI agent facing constant danger." -- Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: Mira (August 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551668351
• ISBN-13: 978-1551668352
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #916,281 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

ALEX KAVA's two stand-alone novels and seven novels featuring FBI profiler Maggie O'Dell have been published in more than twenty countries, appearing on the bestseller lists in Britain, Australia, Poland, Germany, and Italy. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers. Alex divides her time between Omaha, Nebraska, and Pensacola, Florida.
Photo credit Deborah Groh Carlin

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SECOND TIME AROUND, August 28, 2001

By 

Michael Butts (Berkeley Springs, WV USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Split Second (Maggie O'Dell Novels) (Hardcover)

Alex Kava's "Split Second", in my opinion, is a much better book than her debut, "A Perfect Evil." Although "Evil" was entertaining and intriguing, Kava didn't seem to have her finger fully on the characters and spent a lot of time with romantic fluff scenes. However, in this book Alex brings much more depth and understanding into some of her characters. Even though Maggie O'Dell starts out being a little hard to like, a little paranoid, and belligerent, by the end of the book, Maggie has finally come to grips with her ghosts. Her reunion with Nick Morelli is especially well done. In "Evil," Nick came across as a woman chasing stud, with only one thing on his mind. This time around, Nick seems to really have matured, and with his new job in Boston, he has a new outlook on how to show a woman he loves her. It was nice after the Barbara Caitlin scenarios Kava gave us last time. The supporting characters in this one are far from cardboard cut-outs, as one reviewer surmised. Tess McGowan is a strong female character, and almost steals the book away from Maggie. Complete with a horrendous childhood and a life as a prostitute, Tess has bounced back and come into her own as a real estate salesperson. Her current boyfriend, Daniel, is a real jerk, but Kava gives her a one-night stand with a young stud lawyer named Will Finley, and establishes an entirely different relationship for such a one-night stand. When Tess finds herself kidnapped by Stucky, she shows fortitude and strength, and refuses to let him control her. Maggie's partner, Tully, is also a well-drawn character: disorganized; a recent divorcee trying to understand his 14 year old daughter, but actually a genuinely nice guy. Some of the other characters do well, too: stuffy and stubborn Detective Manz; Maggie's psychiatrist friend, Gwen Peterson; FBI Chief Kyle Cunningham is both stern but compassionate. The villain or villains (?) in "Split Second" are completely despicable and even if one reviewer thinks Stucky's antics are implausible, this is fiction, and considering how the FBI bumbled some important cases (remember Timothy McVeigh), one can see how someone as brilliantly insane as Stucky could outwit them. I'm sure in her next adventure, Maggie will return to Father Michael Kelly, and hopefully, her relationship with Nick will continue to grow. I wouldn't mind having Tess and Will around as secondary characters, too. I liked this book a lot and recommend both Ms. Kava's novels.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AN AMAZING, FAST-PACED, INCREDIBLE SEQUEL!, August 1, 2001

By 

Brad Stonecipher - See all my reviews

This review is from: Split Second (Maggie O'Dell Novels) (Hardcover)

Alex Kava is one of the best suspense authors that there is. She has only written two novels but both of them are on the same level of a Tami Hoag or Kay Hooper thriller. Make sure that you read Kava's first novel, "A Perfect Evil" before you read "Split Second." Both novels feature the hard-boiled and exciting FBI Agent Maggie O'Dell. She is a very enjoyable character to read about with a great attitude. Maggie put Albert Stuckey, a sociopath that loved to murder women and leave their entrails hanging out, away in prison about eight months ago after being forced to watch Stuckey perform one of his murders. Unfortunately, Stuckey has escaped from prison after overpowering two guards on the way from the jail to a psychiatric facility. He is now determined to make Agent O'Dell pay for putting him in prison. He is killing every woman who is an acquaintance of O'Dell, like the pizza delivery girl and a waitress. O'Dell is afraid of her own life and the lives of every woman she makes contact with. This is a pulse-pounding, non-stop action thriller, that keeps readers on the edge of their seat all the way until the shocking finale, that could easily be a major movie. Alex Kava will definitely make it "big" with this suspense masterpiece.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fast paced serial killer tale, July 30, 2001

By 

Nick G - See all my reviews

This review is from: Split Second (Maggie O'Dell Novels) (Hardcover)

Many say that FBI agent Maggie O'Dell has lost it, but none of them know the mental torture she had endured while trying to capture killer Albert Stucky.

Since the capture of Stucky, Maggie has had to live with her fellow co-workers belittling her, as well as the images of the victims she could not save. But, as Maggie is getting a grip on her life, she learns the news that Stucky has escaped.

As the body count rises, and the trail seems to be leading directly to Maggie, The Bureau puts her back on the case, only this time the hunt will push her to the limits, as Stucky has his own twisted game he wants to play.

Under the supervision of Special Agent R.J. Tully, Maggie will follow the trail of victims, only to discover she is on the verge of crossing the line...one that separates her from the madman she is hunting down. And, she is left wondering one thing, has her need to stop Stucky turned her into a monster?

`Split Second' is an awesome follow- up to the thriller `A Perfect Evil'. The pages turn as fast as the bodies fall, and even though Alex Kava keeps the suspense pumped, she manages to detail the troubles of her heroine, giving readers an understanding of what is going through Maggie's mind.

With this, her second novel, Alex Kava has become an author to reckon with in the thriller genre. As many people are trying to write good serial killer novels, Ms. Kava is doing it. And, as with the novel before it, `Split Second' is a page-turning tale of cat and mouse that will further catapult the author to the forefront of thriller writers.

Nick Gonnella