Customer Reviews

Twisted

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Not just anyone could gain access to the FBI's top-secret Quantico facility but best-selling author Andrea Kane could and did. When you read Twisted, you'll believe you're there with her every fascinating, grueling, shocking step of the way.

Dare you to put this book down after reading the following opener: "She was a true warrior. Even the weapon hadn't been enough to make her submit. Not like the others. Not until she'd felt the prick of the blade, sensed drops of her own blood........"

From the start we know that Kane has created one of the most frightening psychopaths of recent memory. Who is he? Why is he committing this heinous act? Will there be another?

To answer these questions Kane introduces Sloane Burbank, a former FBI agent. She left the Bureau to work as a negotiator after a stab wound deprived her of the use of one hand. Although her current schedule is packed Sloane immediately responds when she receives a call from the parents of a childhood friend, Penny Truman, who went missing some time ago. Penny's father is a renowned cardiologist, so he would have been prime for extortion but no such attempt was ever made.

Sloane's ex partner in the Cleveland office and former lover, Derek Parker, is the FBI agent in charge of Penny's case. He's busy elsewhere hoping to catch a man, Chen, also known as "Little Dragon." Three women have been slain in a similar manner - the only clue is that they all worked at Fukienese brothels which has been linked to Chen. Derek considers Penny's disappearance a nowhere to go case.

Nonetheless, Sloane prevails upon him to help her ( thus author Kane can show her skill at describing unresolved feelings between the two of them).

It soon becomes clear that Penny's disappearance may have been due to the machinations of the same killer responsible for the deaths of the prostitutes. As some of the pieces of the puzzle begin to fit it appears that Sloane is to be the next victim.

With traces of romance and an intriguing plot reinforced by assiduous research Kane has fashioned a chilling can't-put-down thriller.

- Gail Cooke

Former FBI hostage negotiator Sloane Burbank is taking time off from a debilitating injury when she's hired by a childhood friend's parents to locate their missing daughter Penny, who disappeared without a trace over a year ago baffling police and the FBI. When she seeks help from the local FBI, her former lover, Derek Parker is angry at being pulled off what he considers a more important case involving the Chinese mafia to babysit a PI who is tracking down a trail of clues that are now very cold. When clues start leading to a series of murders that seemingly tie to Sloane, they have to wonder who the ultimate victim is.

Kane's latest thriller includes some exhaustive research and a pretty ingenious MO for the killer (he is fascinated with Greek Goddesses and longs to create his own set of them). The romance is somewhat left on the backburner compared to some of Kane's other novels, but she manages to create a lot of tension between her two leads that leaps off the pages. With an engaging plot, and non-stop action, this is one hard story to put down.

Twisted is a great romantic suspense novel written by a talented writer. This intriguing plot takes place in the great New York City area. The book is structured in such multiple dimensions that you can't help but think she has experienced some of it along her life. The characters are brilliantly convincing all on their own. Main character Sloan burbank was a former FBI agent who retired due to an injury in Cleveland. She is going thru multiple surgeries and therapy due to that crazy boy slicing her hand. She wishes to join the FBI again as an agent but can't until her hand is healed. Meanwhile while her hand heals she devotes her times to her consulting business. Luckily with her many associates in the law enforcement she gets a bunch of work. Sloan gets a message from the mother of her childhood friend Penny Truman where she learns that she has disappeared. The Trumans ask her to try and find out what happened to their daughter. She knowing the victim well has an advantage of spotting clues that others overlooked. The romance and suspense now builds with her being forced to work with old lover Derek Parker in the force to find out what happened to Penny. The book ends with the identity of the sociopath remaining elusive. Sloan begins to see similarities in other disappearances of women and Derek starts to realize the connection with Sloan so that's when the book gets extremely interesting. It finishes with a climax you won't forget.

Sloane Burbank is making use of civilian life after leaving the FBI, teaching Krav Maga self-defense classes. A call from the mother of a childhood friend will quickly bring her back to her old career associations, however. Sloan's friend Penny has been missing for close to a year, and her case is stalled. Penny's mother hires Sloane to dig a little more and see if she can get the investigation moving again.

As similarities between Penny's disappearance and newer abductions begin to surface, Sloane is determined to discover the common denominator in the crime spree that may lead to the killer. In the meantime, she'll need to work her FBI connections to get all of the information she can, and that includes ex-boyfriend Derek Parker. To make matters more difficult, Derek isn't ready to move quietly past the breakup. The two are going to have to work through their differences if they want to capture the murderer before another woman becomes his prey. Time is of the essence.

I wanted to like this book; I really did. But it reminded me too much of a newer J. D. Robb novel I'm also reading, Creation in Death, that was initially released almost a year before Twisted. Both contain a strong female law enforcement agent who becomes the ultimate prize of a deranged serial killer. But while Robb's novel contains actual legwork and investigating on the part of the main characters, Kane's novel seems to be comprised of a lot of filler to make up for the fact that they feed all of the information into a computer and let it solve the mystery. And the probability is slim of the computer pinpointing the murderer in the detailed way that it does, based on the limited clues it was running.

I also couldn't figure out why the author kept throwing in "9/11" like Rudi Giuliani on a campaign trail. It really had nothing to do with any of the events in the book, as far as I can see. There was the fact that many FBI agents were transferring to counterterrorism units, but it bore no relevance to the case Sloane was working on.

Twisted's strongpoint is that the reader is kept in suspense regarding the identity of the killer until late in the book. Once that first big clue arrives, the climax takes off. Of course, strong female protagonists make for good material and high sales these days. We don't like our women weak and submissive any longer. Sloane Burbank does not disappoint.

In summary, I'd have to say Twisted is a pretty good light mystery with a little romance thrown in. Don't expect intricate networks and convoluted clues to tease the brain. If you keep hoping for a challenge, you're not going to get it. Is there such a thing as mystery "fluff?"

Sloane Burbank almost bled to death when she was wounded on duty. When and if she ever gets her hand back in working order, Sloane will decide whether to return to the FBI. Unwilling to be stuck at a desk job, she turns her skills to a new job as a private consultant. Time has passed, but Sloane is not ready for the FBI again yet. But her consultant job keeps her busy and she loves teaching seminars at colleges, especially showing and telling college students about Krav Maga training.

When Hope Truman calls for her help, Sloane drops everything. Penny, her friend since elementary school, has been missing for just under a full year. The local police and FBI have given up and set the case on a back burner. Hope believes Sloane is the last real hope of ever finding out what happened to Penny. Sloane vows to find Penny, dead or alive, and begins pulling strings from her former FBI contacts. To make matters even more difficult, the agent in charge is her ex-love, Derek Parker.

Special Agent Derek Parker is transferred to the Asian Criminal Enterprise Task Force "C-6". There has been a string of murders in Chinatown that is threatening to explode into gang warfare. Each gang is blaming their rivals for the deaths of Asian prostitutes and everyone has nervous trigger fingers (or knife hands as the case may be). The last thing Derek has time for is to be pulled out C-6 at this point in time to go over a cold-case with zero leads. Derek's professionalism cracks when he learns that he must work with Sloane on the old case. It soon becomes clear that Penny is not the only one who has been kidnapped. Several other women have disappeared; all have been connected with Sloane in some way, even if only vaguely. The disappearing women are part of a twisted, heinous crime spree that has been going on for almost a year - and the last target is to be Sloane.

**** This is an original plot line, at least to me. The criminal has his own warped twist version about Greek goddesses. He is one sick puppy, that's for sure. The story slows down a bit too much in the middle for me, but the couple's rekindled relationship kept me entertained as I waited for more to happen. I found that I could never really like Derek, the hero. He just came across to me as too unsympathetic for what Sloane went through and is still in physical pain from. However, the chemistry between Sloane and Derek is obvious and she is a forgiving soul (at least where he is concerned). Mystery and Thriller fans will enjoy testing their wits against this who-dunnit. There are enough clues to figure it out. Romance fans will find themselves delighted as well. The author even includes a page with the FBI departmental chart on it. It only shows the departments mentioned in the book though. Acronyms and a few unknown words are also listed in the beginning for readers to refer to if they need to. I found it to be a very handy little tool. All-in-all, this is an exceptional tale that grabbed me on the first page and gave me one heck of a wild ride. Recommended! ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Andrea Kane is a well established writer of romance suspense but she has reached a new high with "Twisted". The characters are strong and though there is a hint of romance here, most of the book is about one man and his obsession.

FBI Special Agent Sloane Burbank has something to prove to herself and to the FBI. Injured in a previous incident which ended her relationship with another agent, she has to prove she can still do the job.

Enter an old friend asking a favor and the chase is on. From there the book pace never slows down. There are a number of women who have gone missing but no one is sure they are dead and no one knows what the kidnapper wants.

The case will reunite Sloane with her ex-lover and put her in line as the kidnapper's next and possibly final victim.

Everything in this book is well researched and the characters finely drawn. The antagonist is a dark twisted soul that makes Hannibal Lecter seem tame. Figuring out who the man is and what his ultimate plan is for all these women is drawn out through the book til the end.

Very enjoyable and not easily forgotten, readers will want to keep turning the pages late into the night.

FBI Agent Sloane Burbank is on extended medical leave having come close to bleeding to death and suffering a severe hand injury. When the Feds offer her an office job the field agent declines. Instead decides to become a private consultant providing self defense seminars using the Krav Maga methodology to universities. She finds teaching quite enjoyable.

Hope Truman arranges for Sloane to visit her at her expensive Manhattan apartment to discuss the disappearance of her daughter Penny almost a year ago as the NYPD and FBI put their investigation on simmering, which means they will get back to it if workload allows; in other words cold case. Hope begs Sloane to find her daughter hopefully alive; Penny has been Sloane's best friend since elementary school so she drops everything to investigate. Sloane uses her FBI background to learn what the agency knows. That takes her to her former lover, Derek Parker, who remains the agent in charge on paper. Currently he works on deadly gang warfare in Chinatown as part of an Asian Criminal Enterprise Task Force. Derek is outraged to be forced back on a cold case especially with Sloane, but they soon learn other females, all with connections to Sloan, have vanished without a trace over the last year, but neither sleuth can understand why.

This engaging romantic suspense thriller stars two likable protagonists and a TWISTED killer who worships Athena "the true warrior". The story line is at its best when the lead pair follows clues that continually link back to Sloane. Derek is an interesting male lead as he slowly turns from resentment and outrage to protectiveness and love. Although the romantic subplot between him and Sloane seems out of place even with their history and readers will know why Sloane, mystery fans will enjoy this tense thriller.

This is the first in a new series and is set in the exciting and fast-paced city of New York. Kane has always developed strong, smart characters and with Twisted she introduces Sloan Burbank. She is a former FBI Agent who was injured in Cleveland so is now retired. She is going through surgery after surgery along with therapy to repair her hand. She wants it fixed so she can return to the FBI.

Meanwhile she keeps herself busy running her own consulting business. She gets a message from the mother of an old friend - Penny Truman - that tells her she is missing. The family is asking for her help in finding out what happened to her since the police aren't working the case anymore. She cares about the victim so she starts investigating.

The suspense and romance starts when she pairs up with former lover Derek Parker. Mystery and urgency quickly arises, because more girls also disappear all having connections to Sloan, so she is more determined to fine the sociopath killer. The book finishes with a great climax, leaving you filled with excitement for the next in this series.

This is the first Andrea Kane book that I've read and although the storyline was well thought out and well paced enough to keep me reading, the dialogue annoyed me throughout. I'm a fan of police procedurals and mysteries, not romances, but there are points in this novel where Ms. Kane's historical romance background really shines through, and not necessarily in a good way.

I can't imagine an adult FBI agent using the phrase "her eyes were veiled with tears" to describe someone to another agent, and the phrase, "we do have nothing to lose", used by another character, stuck sideways in my ear. Isn't the typical phrasing "we don't have anything to lose"?. These are just two of many points of dialogue that struck me as unrealistic in a modern world where even the well-educated use fairly plain language to get their point across.

The formality of language, and the use of descriptors more likely to be used by a drama major (or a writer :-) rather than real people kept me from enjoying this book as much as I would have liked. I hope that as she moves on with the series, Ms. Kane pays as much attention to the way people speak as she does to the nuts and bolts of FBI procedure.

I read this book in one sitting and I loved it, very much a thiller with some romance, for former FBI SA Solane Burbank. She reconnects with her former lover SA Derek Parker. Slone suffered a life threating injury in the life of duty and and left her job to recuperate, she also left Derek as well. Of course when two people don't communicate, each thinks the worst of each other. Sloane is looking for one of closest childhood friends and she and Derek end up working together. This ends up opening up many wounds for both of them. Along the way, many women disapper and one women is murdered, there are a lot of twists and turns in this book and it may be that Sloane is the killers twisted target.

A fast paced thiller, one I enjoyed. My first book by this author, but I will search out more titles to read by her.