Body Count

P.D. Martin’s Body Count (2005) marks a first for me — it’s the first time I’ve read and reviewed a book because its author tweeted me about it.

I’ve been active on Twitter for about three years now, and as @karenrussell I have more than 3,000 followers and 12,000 tweets. But @howmysterious just got started in March and has a lowly following of less than 200 people. So when Phillipa Martin not only followed me back but sent me a direct message that indicated she’s read my bio and made a personal connection (she used to teach PR, too!), I was inspired to read one of her books.

Her tweet mentioned that her protagonist’s name is Sophie Anderson, so in keeping with my policy of starting a series at the beginning I went back to her first book, Body Count. Sophie is a profiler, an Australian who’s recently moved to Washington, D.C. to work for the FBI. She has a secret weapon that makes her better able to get into the mind of the killer: she’s psychic… at least a little, although it’s a new talent and not under her control.

In this case, the D.C. Slasher has abducted, tortured and killed several women, and then he gets Sophie’s new best friend, Sam (as in Samantha), giving the team reason to suspect the killer is in law enforcement — maybe even a member of the team itself. It’s a race against the clock to figure out who the killer is in time to save Sam.

As you probably know by now, I am not a fan of graphic violence, but this book despite the subject matter doesn’t push it too far. Martin shares enough of the gory stuff to make us understand why we should be scared, but not enough to make me at least put the book down. The story is fast-paced, and I think if you like Patricia Cornwell or “The Silence of the Lambs” (movie version) you will like this series as well.

Thanks for the tweet, Phillipa. Sophie has a new fan!

Buy the book:

Book #5 of 12 in the Thriller and Suspense Challenge.