The Killing Ground by Syd Parker

FBI Special Agent Jordan Gray and her FBI partner Matt Riley, are called in urgently one night by their boss, Assistant Director Susan Mitchell, to investigate the rape and near murder of her pregnant partner, Julie Keppler. Jordan and Matt are asked to work the case off the clock as a favor to Susan. To do this, they have to get the cooperation of the detective in charge of the case.

Detective Rebecca Foxx, is not too happy about the involvement of the FBI. But she knows she needs all the help she can get with tracking down the person responsible for not only Julie’s attack, but the rape and murder of several other victims. There appears to be a pattern to the attacks. Each victim has been pregnant and seemingly all the victims are lesbians. Is this a hate crime? The perpetrator attacks the victims, rapes them, kills them and takes their babies. He has to be stopped. So far this unsub (unknown subject) has evaded capture, but will he be smart enough to outwit the FBI and the Chicago Police Department?

Jordan and Rebecca and their partners begin their investigation in earnest to track down the perpetrator. As the hunt gets underway, more women are murdered. Suddenly the unsub appears to change his M.O, (Modus Operandi). He is not only attacking lesbians anymore, but also married women. Why has the perpetrator changed his tactics?

Just as the FBI and Chicago P.D think they are making progress, so they find themselves back to square one. Will they ever catch the perpetrator of these horrendous crimes?

During the course of their investigation, it becomes apparent to Jordan and Rebecca that they have a strong attraction towards each other. Jordan, who in the past has been quite a player, would like to act on it. But Rebecca is very career minded and fights her feelings. Will Rebecca relent?

This is a wonderfully well written murder, mystery, romance with so many twists and turns and ups and downs it was hard to figure out who the murderer was and why they were committing the atrocities on unsuspecting pregnant women.

Right from the very first page I was hooked on this story and I stayed hooked, right through to the last page. Be advised, don’t start this book until you have plenty of time to read right through and finish it. I couldn’t put the book down. I simply could not figure out who the murderer was. When I finally found out, I was flabbergasted. Such a total shock.

I love the two main characters, Jordan and Rebecca. They work well and play well together. They are both multidimensional and along with the rest of the characters in the story, play their parts to perfection in furthering the story along at a nice pace.

As well as the complex murder mystery, at the heart of the book is a steamy, red hot, sizzling romance, with all the ups and downs of real life getting in the way.

I’ve read all of Syd Parker’s books. This is her first murder mystery, I have to say, she’s exceeded all my expectations. I’ve loved her romance books from the outset, but this book simply has to be her best ever yet. But then, I say that about each of her books. Seriously, I would recommend this to all lesbian fiction mystery lovers. A great plot and excellent dialogue.