Unstable (Pike, Wisconsin 3) by Alexandra Ivy-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: April 26, 2022

WHEN IT COMES TO KILLING

A dead man in a cemetery isn’t news—unless he’s found on top of a grave, with a bullet through his head. The body belongs to Jude Henley, who was supposed to be buried below. Instead, the grave contains the remains of Staci Gale, thought to have run away nearly three decades ago. Then an old VCR tape arrives at the sheriff station, showing Staci before her death—bound and terrified—with a note, claiming to be from the killer’s apprentice . . .

PRACTICE

Rachel Fisher’s job in cold case files has brought her back to Pike, Wisconsin—where she’ll be working alongside her ex-husband, Zac Evans. As Pike’s interim sheriff, Zac expected a low-key assignment. Instead, he and Rachel are racing to solve serial murders from decades past while a new monster goads them with a chilling promise. Every week there’ll be another old tape—and a fresh victim . . .

MAKES PERFECT . . .

In this small town a killer walks—twisted, ruthless, determined to continue his master’s work. And unless Rachel and Zac can find a way to get ahead of him, the nightmare will never end.

•••••

REVIEW:UNSTABLE is the third instalment in Alexandra Ivy’s contemporary, adult PIKE, WISCONSIN slightly romantic, suspense thriller series focusing on the people of Pike Wisconsin. This is thirty year old , Pike Wisconsin interim Sheriff Zac Evans, and cold case Detective Rachel Fisher’s story line. UNSTABLE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from first person perspective (the killer) and several third person perspectives UNSTABLE follows in the discovery of a body long thought buried and dead. The identity of the body in the local cemetary reveals the victim was a man thought to have died close to thirty years earlier but the exhumation of his grave exposes the remains of a woman who disappeared years before. Enter cold case Detective Rachel Fisher, interim Sheriff Zac Evan’s ex-wife, and one-half of an investigation team that will expose the resurrection of a possible serial killer. As several local women go missing, and their murders are recorded for posterity, Rachel and Zac struggle to unravel a series of clues that date back close to thirty years, clues that affirm a possible copycat killer in Pike, Wisconsin. With each murder, a new videotape is released, a videotape that may or may not be connected to the current killer or a killer from the past. What ensues is the rebuilding relationship between Zac and Rachel, as our couple begin to suspect a number of residents, as well as one or two of their own. Like many small towns, Pike Wisconsin’s dead refuse to remain silent, and the victims begin to talk from the grave.

Rachel and Evan’s marriage imploded years before but working together pushed our couple to remember what was and what will never be. As the number of missing and murdered women begin to climb, more than one person is suspect, and a long forgotten piece of information reveals a secret that is about to be exposed.

UNSTABLE is a story of murder and abuse, obsession and fixation, history and family, forgiveness and love. The premise is dramatic, intriguing and riveting; the characters are energetic, colorful and curious; the romance is passionate but limited, taking a back seat to the search for a killer.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Don’t Look
Faceless

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy