Blood Dreams (Bishop/Special Crimes Unit Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: same killer, Marie Goode, Shirley Arledge, Becky Huntley (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the plodding first of a new psychic crime fighter trilogy from bestseller Hooper (Sleeping with Fear), Noah Bishop of the FBI's Special Crimes Unit is now supervising an all-female team of civilian contractors known as Haven. Together, they track a serial killer who has moved his maniacal atrocities from Boston to a small town outside Atlanta, where he continues to kidnap, torture and kill women. Psychic Dani Justice, who can often predict the future through her dreams, becomes obsessed with the case. The investigation of the crimes gets lost amid lots of psychic babble by members of Haven, hand-wringing by the local police, and frequent snapshots of the killer with his victims. An abrupt ending doesn't deliver on any of the trauma and drama that Justice's dreams have predicted, though presumably readers will get satisfaction on that score in the next entry in the series. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

" A good read for fans of other serial-killer books and the TV show, Criminal Minds."—Booklist


From the Hardcover edition. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; Reprint edition (November 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553589253
• ISBN-13: 978-0553589252
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #93,328 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not good., January 7, 2008

By	A. Halsey (Washington DC area) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Blood Dreams (Bishop/Special Crimes Unit Novel) (Hardcover)

*Warning....Mild Spoilers*

I was really disappointed in this book, especially after looking forward to a new book from her for so long. It was all fluff. The character developement was poor, I never felt a liking towards the main character at all. She was just kind of there, giving us information about her "dreams". The whole book was dedicated to her dream and then the dream she was having never even occured. I guess it was because the book ended as a (and I use this term VERY loosely) cliffhanger.

I didn't realize this book was the first in a trilogy, but even so the book was so unsatisfying. I'm not even sure I want to read the rest of the trilogy. Also, this book seemed so short. I found myself at the end and nothing had ever really happened. Looking at the book more closely I realized that the margins are really large and the type pretty large. The book should be half the size it is. What a waste of paper!

Hopefully Kay steps it up for her next book in the series or she will probably loose a lot of her loyal readers.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cures Cancer!, February 29, 2008

By	E. A. Montgomery (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Blood Dreams (Bishop/Special Crimes Unit Novel) (Hardcover)

Ok, well, probably not. But I spend hours in a medical chair these days and it's hard to concentrate on a story unless it's very engaging. I read Blood Dreams continually today, came home and kept reading. When it was over I wanted the next one Right Now. That's the mark of a great read. Blood Dreams goes a little too far into the killer's mind for my personal taste, but it seemed to be part of the story and it works very well in the plot and tone. I can see why we do but don't want to give any plot points away in the review.

Several times in Blood Dreams I thought I'd spotted a 'mistake' or a hole in the plot, but I should know better. Kay Hooper works her plots till they sing. I was completely wrong with my smug reader predictions. Dani Justice is a very engaging heroine. Her ability, dreaming the future, has led her to believe that she causes the future. Because her dreams are always bleak, Dani has emotionally distanced herself from those around her. The difference between what she knows with her head and knows with her heart is a universal dilemma that feels very true. Part of Dani's journey in Blood Dreams is learning that knowing something and causing it are not the same.

Noah Bishop makes appearances in Blood Dreams but is definitely a secondary character. Blood Dreams brings the stage to several new characters who work along character from the past. You don't miss anyone. This isn't a book that would be better with more of (your favorite SCU character.) This is the start of a multi book arc, and (like Nora Roberts does in her 3 book series) Blood Dreams wraps up some of the mystery and relationships while leaving others to develop along the way. If you like Iris Johansen's early Eve Duncan books, you'll enjoy Blood Dreams. It's very much a page turner in the best tradition.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Unsastisfying, January 9, 2008

By	bookaholic - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blood Dreams (Bishop/Special Crimes Unit Novel) (Hardcover)

Let me start by saying I am a HUGE Kay Hooper fan. I wait each year for her new books and purchase them as soon as they hit the shelf.

I was disappointed with this book; it doesn't live up to the books that have come before. It's a very quick read, less than a day, and feels like a short story. As with a short story not much time is given to the main characters' development. We don't get to see how they got to where they are. It's just here they are and this is what they do. Although the dream sequences were captivating, that's about all that was. I was very unsatisfied with the story as a whole but especially with the ending. It was anti-climatic; just as the story was getting good, it was over. And with a fizzle not a bang.

I was happy to see Bishop and a few of the gang were here this time, that interaction always pulls it together for me. The last couple of books have been a little off for me. I was hoping that would end with this one; I'm not sure it did. I will continue to read her books for now. If the trend I've seen in her writing continues, her books will no longer be a must have for me; and that would be a tragedy.